In this exclusive column, stoppage coach Mark Stone gives an insight into how the Swans can counter Collingwood.

AFTER a week off, the team is refreshed and raring to go against Collingwood this weekend. Before the break, we had managed to work back into some form and there were some really positive signs. I think we’ve just got a bit of confidence back and that’s essential with any football team. That confidence has come by playing more of our style of game, which is being a bit bolder, moving the ball more quickly, tackling harder and helping and showing trust in each other.

The confidence of the group has grown too as we emerge from a bit of an injury phase. It’s certainly not an excuse, but the return of some key players has really given the group a boost. This week we hope to see the return of spearhead Daniel Bradshaw. He trained on Tuesday and got though and looked pretty sharp up forward. Fingers crossed he gets through Thursday and pulls up without any soreness and he’ll be right to play.

Saturday night will be a great test for our side as we take on fourth placed Collingwood. They’re a very good team and this will be a tough assignment. The game will be won and lost in a few key areas and contested football is one of those areas. It’s area where we were particularly strong against Essendon and Port Adelaide and we need to continue that this weekend. Loose ball gets and hard ball gets, stoppages and inside 50s are all key areas and it means we’ve got to be really proactive, really sharp and really compete for the whole 120 minutes.

Collingwood boast an excellent record against us in recent times. The last time we played them here in Sydney, we got close to them for a period but they probably lifted and won it and when they had to. We got close but their better players stepped up and were able to lift them again and really seize the opportunities. For us to overcome that, we know they’re going to have periods where they’re surging and they have momentum, it is important we can hold strong in those periods and regain the ascendency with good hard harassing and tackling, pressure and ensuring we do not let them turn any half changes into scores.

One of the really important contests in the game will be how our ruck duo fares against a former Swan Darren Jolly. Shane Mumford and Mike Pyke have worked exceptionally well together in our last two wins and I’m confident our two guys can perform well against Darren. There is probably little advantages for both teams, he knows what we do, we know what he does but it is all about execution. It’s about being able to work as a team, about who has the best synergy together and a matter of who executes best on the day.

We return this weekend to ANZ Stadium for the first time since round one, in which we narrowly went down to St Kilda. We really hope to get a good crowd and have a lot of red and white out there. If we go out there and it is sparse, it doesn’t give us that much of a home ground advantage. So we hope there is a good turn out from the red and white faithful and they can drown out any noise coming from the visiting Collingwood army. 

This is a crucial game for us. We need to beat someone above us on the ladder, we need to beat a quality team and this is our opportunity and we’ll tackle it that way. It’s a real opportunity to set ourselves for a game against a top side and see where we are at.

Mark Stone
Stoppage Coach