Sydney’s clash with North Melbourne at the SCG on Saturday night is brimming with a raft of Hot Topics.
The Swans’ new-look forward set-up, stopping a towering opposition forward, a number of player milestones and plenty more surround the Round 7 fixture.
New-look forward line
All eyes will be on the Swans’ new-look forward line as it tests its might without key forward Lance Franklin for the second week running. Franklin (heel) was ruled out of Sydney’s match with Geelong last week but the younger, smaller and speedier forwards rose to the occasion in the 17-point victory. Ben Ronke made his AFL debut and finished with two goals, 15 disposals and seven tackles, while fellow forwards Will Hayward (three goals), Robbie Fox (two), Oliver Florent (two) and Gary Rohan (one) also fired. The young guns brought manic tackling pressure, searing speed and ravenous crumbing and will aim to bring more of the same in the clash with North Melbourne.
Taming Ben Brown
One of North Melbourne’s strongest weapons is Goliath forward Ben Brown. The Tasmanian tips the measuring tape at 200 centimetres and weighs in at 101 kilograms and is leading the race for the Coleman Medal after the opening six rounds. Brown has bagged 23 goals this season to be leading Hawthorn forward Luke Breust (19) and Franklin (18). The 25-year-old is very strong on the lead, can take a great contested grab and has a deadeye for goal. Either evergreen defender Heath Grundy or fellow backman Dane Rampe will be tasked with playing a shutdown role on Brown and the match-up fares as a must-see.
Midfield battle
The Swans’ on-ballers crossed swords with a stellar Cats midfield last Saturday and will meet another stern test in Round 7. Ben Cunnington and Shaun Higgins lead the way for North Melbourne, while former Hawk Billy Hartung and left-footer Ben Jacobs bring youth to the set-up. Captain Jack Zieball predominantly plays as a forward but can win plenty of contested ball when he is thrown in the midfield. Cunnington was involved in everything as North claimed a huge scalp in beating Hawthorn in Round 5, collecting 30 touches (18 contested), six clearances and six tackles to inspire his side to a 28-point win. Swans skipper Josh Kennedy and fellow midfielders Luke Parker and Isaac Heeney are riding a wave of momentum after starring in the Cats clash and will again need to bring their best.
Milestone men
Rohan will notch up game 100 on Saturday, while Grundy will play his 244th and move into equal-10th for most games in South Melbourne-Sydney history. Rohan’s journey to triple figures hasn’t taken the easiest of roads. He suffered a broken leg in Round 4 of 2012 which kept him out until Round 22 of 2013 and stripped him of a chance to play in the Swans’ 2012 premiership win. A number of niggling injuries also hampered the speedster’s 2017 season in restricting him to 16 games. Grundy will move level with Swans great Daryn Cresswell, who donned the red and white between 1992 and 2003. Grundy is also within striking distance of Mark Bayes (246 games), Stephen Wright (246) and Mark Browning (251). The 31-year-old broke a Swans record in the Crows clash in Round 5 for most games played by a player who started on a Rookie list.
Head-to-head
Sydney and North Melbourne have met at the SCG on 28 occasions and the Victorians hold a 15-13 upper hand. But the Swans have claimed five of the last six at home and most recently grabbed a 26-point win in Round 10 of 2016 as Kennedy starred with 35 possessions.
