Source :- PERTH NOW NEWS
The Lions will be “wary” of the “wounded” Sydney Swans in Saturday week’s AFL qualifying final at the SCG.
Despite finishing second on the ladder, the Swans have largely been written off as premiership contenders following the recent hotel scandal that led to the club suspending five players – star trio Isaac Heeney, Chad Warner and Nick Blakey, and James Jordon and Riley Bice – for the rest of the season.
However, despite the quintet’s absence, the Swans finished their regular season campaign in style on Sunday with an emotional 53-point home win over North Melbourne.
That win, coupled with Sydney’s comprehensive 44-point win over Brisbane at the SCG in March, will ensure the back-to-back premiers are anything but complacent in a game that will reward the winner with a home preliminary final.
“A lot of those guys they brought in (against North Melbourne) had played AFL football before and in finals.” Brisbane veteran Dayne Zorko told SENQ’s Coz and Heals breakfast show on Tuesday.
“You’ve always got to be wary of the wounded giant. What they were able to do on the weekend just shows how fair dinkum they are and how good of a system they actually do have.
“We know they’re missing five of their best players you could probably say, but the youth that they brought in, that brings a lot of energy and dangerous energy as well.
“We need to be absolutely wary of that, we will be wary of that, and it should shape as a really good contest.
“Back in (March), they gave us an absolute thumping down there at the SCG. We need to have a look at that game, review that really strongly, look what we did in (June) when they came up to the Gabba (when Brisbane won by 43 points) and try to flip that script again because they do play the SCG differently, and they are such a good team at home as well.”
The Lions’ 63-point win over Collingwood at the MCG last Friday night was enough to secure them third spot on the table ahead of Hawthorn on percentage.
The victory was Brisbane’s 10th in its past 11 matches after three successive defeats in May had left the Lions with a record of six wins and six losses after 12 games.
“Getting a sample size of what we’ve been able to do over the last six to eight weeks is probably a little bit more realistic than what it has been over the duration of the year,” Zorko said.
“We know that when we play our best football that defensively we’re really strong, and offensively, most times, we can put on a score.
“There’s still plenty to learn, still plenty to work on … and that’ll hopefully make us a better side heading into this finals series.”
