Lack of success at MCG for Swans may be advantage for Hawks

SYDNEY insist there’s nothing special about it, outsiders aren’t so sure.

The Swans’ lack of success at the MCG is attracting plenty of attention ahead of the AFL grand final on Saturday against Hawthorn.

Commentators such as Leigh Matthews and Dermott Brereton say the size of the MCG playing surface works against the Swans’ well-known strategy of keeping the game in close.

There is more room for opposition midfields to break out wide.

“If I was a Sydney supporter, one thing that would disturb is their inability to get the job done at the MCG,” Brereton told FoxSports.

Sydney only have one win and a draw from their last 15 MCG matches – Hawthorn have 12.

But the Swans are unfussed.

Last week’s preliminary final win broke an 11-game losing streak against Collingwood and coach John Longmire says they will take a simple attitude into this next visit to the MCG.

“We try and win it,” he said.

“We just look at what’s in front of us and we concern ourselves with our preparation, as we do whether it’s Adelaide in Adelaide or Collingwood last week or the Hawks this week.

“It’s about what we can control, our focus on our preparation, enjoying this week, but also knowing there’s a bit over two hours of pretty hard work on Saturday.”

Swans co-captain Adam Goodes said there was a simple reason why they were losing at the MCG.

Their only match at the ground this season was a 29-point loss to Richmond in round seven.

“We didn’t play to the best we possibly could play on the day,” Goodes said.

“Richmond got a good jump on us that day, they were up and about and we just didn’t fight hard enough to get back into the game.

“You can look at all those individual games, but we just didn’t play good football.

“If we do, we probably would have been close to getting a victory.

“We’ve been playing pretty well recently, we’ve backed our form.”

On the other side of the fence, Hawthorn try to manage the expectation that, while Sydney hope to win Saturday’s AFL grand final, the Hawks must.

Since their 2008 grand final upset of Geelong netted a young Hawthorn side the first of a club target of two flags in five years, the Hawks have failed to match the huge expectations.

They’ve spent most of this season as premiership favourites, despite the Swans holding top spot for much of it, and will enter the MCG decider clearly holding that status.

Coach Alastair Clarkson admits that it will nonetheless be a tough fight to convert that to a grand final win.

“It’s going to be a really fierce battle and I reckon it’s 50-50 who are going to win.” – AAP

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