Swans not dwelling on Malthouse flattery

Sydney aren’t taking any notice of Mick Malthouse’s flattery and have added yet another speedster to their line-up to counter Carlton’s running ability.

The 13th-placed Blues will start as massive underdogs on Saturday at the SCG against a ladder-leading Sydney striving for a club record-equalling 12th-straight win.

“These are the challenges you love as a coach,” Carlton coach Malthouse said.

He was effusive in his praise of the Swans.

“Without a doubt, they have the strongest and deepest list I’ve seen in football,” Malthouse said.

“My count is 17 or 18 of their players that aren’t playing would fit comfortably into a lot of teams.”

Never comfortable about talking themselves up, the Swans are happy to accept Malthouse’s kudos and kind words, while intent on showing the Blues no kindness on the field.

“A lot of people say a lot of things and we know inside the club what we are all about,” Sydney star Lewis Jetta said.

“It’s very good Mick said that, but to us it’s what we can do on the footy field.

“Just stick to the basics and try and keep winning and focus on this week.”

Jetta was equally matter of fact about the prospect of matching the win streak of the 1918, 1933 and 1935 South Melbourne sides.

“We don’t worry about how much we win, we just worry about this week and Carlton,” Jetta said.

Asked what he expected from the Blues, Jetta said “a lot of running”.

“They have a lot of good runners, good midfielders, so if we can beat them it will go a long way towards winning the game,” he said.

With Dean Towers selected to make his Swans senior debut on Saturday, Sydney will field five players renowned for their speed.

Jetta and Towers will be joined by Harry Cunningham, Brandon Jack and Gary Rohan, with noted speedster Jetta having first-hand experience of the debutant’s pace.

“He (Towers) is quick, he chased me down in the pre-season so that’s saying something,” Jetta said.

“He’s got some toe on him. If I get the ball and I see him in space, I’m going to be the one kicking to him and let him run.”

Towers comes in for injured fellow rookie Zak Jones, while for Carlton, David Ellard and Nick Graham replace the injured Andrew Carrazzo and Troy Menzel.

Stay up to date with the latest sports news
Follow our social accounts to get exclusive content and all the latest sporting news!