ADELAIDE and the Sydney Swans had starkly contrasting lead-ins to Saturday's qualifying final and it was the Swans' punishing month of footy that proved to be the better preparation.

The Crows mauled cellar dwellers Melbourne and Gold Coast to finish the season, while the Swans slipped from top spot on the ladder after round 21 on the back of a gruelling month of football that saw them lose to fellow finalists Geelong, Hawthorn and Collingwood.

That run of results had the Swans slipping from serious flag contention in the eyes of many outside the club, but onballer Dan Hannebery believes the tough run delivered his team to September with a hard edge.

"I think playing sides like Hawthorn and Collingwood, top four sides, really helps you steel yourself before the finals," Hannebery said after Saturday's 29-point win at AAMI Stadium.

"It gets you used to that sort of pressure. Whether or not that affected Adelaide, I don't know, but for us our preparation was super.

"All we were worried about is our preparation. I think it was the best it could possibly be even though we lost a few games. We thought we played some good footy in that four-week patch.

"It was just great to get the win, so we can focus on a home prelim."

Swans coach John Longmire echoed those sentiments in the press conference that followed his team's superb display of pressure footy that unnerved Adelaide.

Hannebery, who was one of the Swans better players with 27 touches, was delighted with the way that the team was able to execute its coach's plan to apply the screws to the Crows at every turn.

"We knew that Adelaide was going to be a super tough team inside with that midfield, and their tall forwards are super," he said.

"We had our work cut out for us, but we were able to execute under pressure and hold them out.

"Our full-ground defence was really good."

Hannebery paid tribute to tall swingman Lewis Roberts-Thomson, who shone in defence.

"It was a super effort from [Roberts-Thomson], who's played forward for most of the year and went back, so kudos goes to him for a super game," he said.

"He was super competitive and our back six was super. Adelaide had a lot of inside 50s so for those guys to be keep rebounding the ball out was great ... it went a long way toward us winning the game.

"It was a great team win, a gutsy effort and we look forward to a home preliminary final."