WHERE AND WHEN: Etihad Stadium, Friday 24 February, 6.40pm
LAST TIME: Sydney Swans 12.10 (82) d St Kilda 8.9 (57), elimination final, 2011 at Etihad Stadium
Sydney Swans 15.9 (99) d Geelong 12.14 (86), round 23, 2011 at Simonds Stadium
Geelong 15.10 (100) d St Kilda 11.6 (72), round 13, 2011 at the MCG
TV AND RADIO: Click here for broadcast guide
THE FOUR POINTS
Sydney Swans
1. One of the real bright points of the Swans' 2011 campaign was the performance of some of their veterans. Led by best and fairest winner Adam Goodes, Ryan O'Keefe, Rhyce Shaw and Jude Bolton, the older brigade was outstanding. Can they keep up the pace for another year?
2. How will the Swans use their stocks of big men? Shane Mumford's dominance in the ruck, coupled with the substitution rule and injuries, meant the likes of Mike Pyke and Mark Seaby were rarely sighted in the senior team last year. Both have spent time in the forward line during pre-season training and how they fit in, will be interesting.
3. One of the Swans' key issues last season was kicking goals. It is an area the coaching staff has focused on during the off-season. With Gary Rohan joining Sam Reid and Adam Goodes in the forward 50 over the off-season, with the possibility of new recruit Mitch Morton helping out, the club hopes goals will be far more common in 2012.
4. If goalkicking was an area of concern, the other key focus has revolved around improving skills. Turnovers and missed targets were an issue last season and a huge amount of work has been completed on fixing that this season. Coach John Longmire will be hoping to see some signs of improved skills on Friday night.
Geelong
1. The Cats have had plenty of recent success in the NAB Cup, winning the competition in 2006 and '09. But the word out of the Cattery is that they're not so worried about the scoreboard this time around. They'll be fielding an inexperienced team in the early rounds, with Chris Scott keen to run the rule over the club's second- and third-year players.
2. Geelong's first pick in the 2010 NAB AFL Draft, Billie Smedts, is very keen to make a big impression. Smedts hardly made it onto the field last year because of problems with both his hips, but he's been the star of the Cats' pre-season on the track.
3. Recruiting maestro Stephen Wells pulled a rabbit out of a hat late last year when he drafted 29-year-old North Ballarat ruckman Orren Stephenson. Known as the 'Big O', Stephenson will be thrown straight into the fray. And given fellow ruckman Dawson Simpson has gone down with a back injury, a couple of decent performances will make him a near-certainly to debut against Fremantle at Subiaco Oval in round one of the real stuff.
4. Who will be Geelong's new tagger now that Cameron Ling has retired? Chris Scott is expected to try youngster Cameron Guthrie in a run-with role, while Josh Cowan might also be asked to shadow an opposition midfielder.
St Kilda
1. What should we expect from Lenny Hayes? The veteran Saint is moving well in his comeback from a knee injury and should see a fair amount of game time. Will his role in the St Kilda midfield remain the same or will his job change under Scott Watters?
2. The Saints will have to do some experimenting in defence with Zac Dawson now in Fremantle purple and James Gwilt still on the comeback path from a knee injury. New recruit Beau Wilkes is sure to be used in defence.
3. Sebastian Ross was the most impressive of St Kilda's young players in the recent intra club match and will be one to watch. He had a tough assignment, playing on Brendon Goddard in the centre square and held his own against the star Saint.
4. The football world will wait anxiously to see Scott Watters' game plan as opposed to Ross Lyon. Already the Saints are said to be moving the ball freely and attacking more than in previous years.
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL
