Where and when: SCG, Sunday March, 30.1.10pm AEDT
Head to head: Sydney Swans nine wins, Port Adelaide six wins
Last time: Sydney Swans 17. 16 (118) defeated Port Adelaide 13.9 (87), round 8, 2007, at SCG
SUMMARY
Two finals sides from 2007 desperate to get on the winners' list after narrow defeats in round one last last week. We should see a contrast in styles though, with Port's free-flowing, high-scoring footy looking to be snuffed out by the Swans traditional hard, contested brand of football.
For both sides, the experienced heads will count. For Port, the inspirational Cornes and Burgoynes siblings in cahoots with experienced skipper Warren Tredrea as spearhead will be keys.
For the Swans, the quality quartet of Barry Hall, Brett Kirk, Michael O'Loughlin and dual Brownlow medalist Adam Goodes loom as match winners while the rejuvenated Tadhg Kennelly (who led the disposal count last week) provides plenty of dash.
It’s the first home game of 2008 and the Swans will be desperate to perform in front of the Bloods' faithful. However, if Port's excellent ruckmen dominate and the side uses the ball intelligently, it could be difficult to contain last season's grand final runners up.
KEY MATCH-UPS
Brendon Lade v Darren Jolly
All-Australian for the last two years, Lade together with Dean Brogan, is a ruckman to be reckoned with, having outpointed Geelong last week. Jolly and possibly Lewis Roberts Thomson will have their work cut out.
Shaun Burgoyne v Brett Kirk
Two of the best midfield warriors. Kirk will be looking to snuff out the danger from the South Australians' star man across the centre. The Swan kept Port's star man down to just 10 disposals in each of their last two meetings.
Leo Barry v Warren Tredrea
Barry was again at his canny best last week against the Saints. Port's Tredrea, a 211-game club veteran, will provide the Swans defence with another difficult assignment though. Two goals and seven marks last week against the miserly Cats defence was a good effort from the Port skipper.
WILDCARD
Jarred Moore
The promising former Dandenong Stingray midfielders almost won the game for the Swans last week with a snap that went agonisingly wide in the final moments. His performance augurs well for the future.
BLUFFER'S GUIDE
Two sides with contrasting approaches. The Swans have been able to snuff out Port Adelaide’s trademark run and carry in recent times, having won four of the last six encounters between the two. But with both sides featuring younger squads, it'll be the experienced heads that coaches Paul Roos and Mark Williams will look to as match winners.
MID-WEEK QUESTION MARKS
Will Roos once again employ Adam Goodes as a tagger on Chad Cornes?
Can big Barry convert his new-found freedom of movement into a bagful after his modest nine possessions resulted in 1.2 last week?
Can the Swans put together a four-quarter effort? And will Paul Roos be coaching from the bench again?
Can the Swans stop Port's Burgoynes and Cornes brothers dominating the disposals?
Can Port execute quality ball use despite the expected pressure on the ball carrier from the Swans? And will Port dominate in the ruck like they did last week?
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
