Sydney and Fremantle are poised to produce a brutal, potentially low-scoring battle, as the AFL’s two meanest defensive teams clash in Saturday’s qualifying final at ANZ Stadium.
Struggling at 1-3, the Swans kickstarted their season with a gritty 17-point win over the Dockers at the SCG back in round five.
They made a whopping 102 tackles to begin a club record-equalling 12-match winning streak, which set up their charge to the minor premiership.
Fourth-placed Fremantle come into Saturday’s game buoyed by three straight wins, scoring more than 100 points in each.
However, with Sydney’s big wet of recent weeks expected to continue bucketing rain onto the controversial ANZ Stadium surface, it could well be the seventh successive game between the two teams in which both sides fail to score 100 points.
For all the hype about Sydney’s potent star-studded forward line, the Swans were only the fourth highest scoring team at the end of the home and away rounds, but boasted the stingiest defence, conceding an average of just 67 points a game.
Fremantle were next best, allowing just 70 a match.
The Dockers only previous match at ANZ Stadium was back in 2006, when Sydney scored a 35-point preliminary final win.
Four players from each of those sides have been named to play in Saturday’s game.
The Sydney quartet are Adam Goodes, Nick Malceski, Jarrad McVeigh and Ted Richards, while the Fremantle four are Ryan Crowley, David Mundy, Aaron Sandilands and Matthew Pavlich, who kicked four goals.
Richmond won in their very first match at the ground last week, but Sydney will field a much stronger side than they did against the Tigers.
The Swans have regained the services of arguably their two most influential players in forward and Coleman Medal winner Lance Franklin and midfielder Josh Kennedy.
The return of first choice ruckman Mike Pyke is just as significant given the towering Sandilands will occupy that position for Freo, while Sydney’s midfield stocks will be bolstered by Ben McGlynn and Craig Bird.
Fremantle also welcome back a key man in midfielder Nat Fyfe, who always seems to produce his best against Sydney.
