Adam Goodes booted eight goals and Barry Hall four as they flew home to beat Fremantle at the SCG. And Bolton said it was a tactic worth revisiting against the reigning premiers next weekend at ANZ Stadium.
“Geelong get back and support their defence really well,” Bolton said.
“You just have to look at the amount of marks Tom Harley has intercepted, and that sort of thing. That's one thing you really have to do against Geelong, to actually be bold and brave enough to really take them on.
"I think if you can give guys space, they're going to be able to cut you up, so we need to make them defend and be accountable.
“You have to attack, you can't think you can just shut them down. It's going to be a good game.”
Bolton said the team’s performance against the Cats next week would determine where they were at in terms of performing well in the finals.
“We'll know by the end of this coming weekend where we stand,” Bolton said.
“Obviously, they're the benchmark, and they've towelled up a lot of teams this year. It's going to be a great contest and we're looking forward to the challenge.
“They've got a star-studded midfield. I don't know who I'll end up getting, it's going to be great, whether I play on a Bartel or a Corey or any of those sort of guys. Yeah, I'm looking forward to the challenge and I think there's nothing we haven't come up against previously, it's just they're all in great form.”
Bolton said that the club was focusing on finishing fourth and securing that double chance in the finals.
“I think the main concern is just making sure we get fourth.
"It doesn't matter if we get Geelong or whoever, we just want to make sure we get that little bit of distance between the other groups. It was good to get a win last night and we'll probably be cheering on the Bulldogs against the Kangaroos this afternoon, just to get that little bit more space. It's amazing how close the competition is.”
Bolton said that the club was relieved to be back on the winner’s list after a nail-biting four-point victory over Fremantle. The Swans needed to win to maintain their grip on fourth spot.
“Roosy spoke about it after the game, saying we weren't going to have some really flashy win to get us back into form; it was going to be a hard-fought win,” Bolton said.
“I think it gives us a bit of confidence, to go out and take on a massive challenge next week.”
With 30 possessions and seven marks, Bolton vied for best-on-ground honours with Goodes and he admitted that the team had been struggling for form in recent weeks.
“I think the club as a whole has probably been a little bit flat,” Bolton said.
“I know, for myself, I think we know we haven't been playing the way we should be playing, that's probably flattened us as a group. I think we got back, the last couple of weeks, to the way we want to play, which is really attacking the game and taking the game on.”
