If the Swans lose to the Blues at ANZ Stadium, it will mark the end of Kirk and coach Paul Roos’ decorated careers at the club.
But the 33-year-old even brushed away the notion that it was a fitting end to bow out in another finals series.
“You work so hard, you slog your guts out over a pre-season and you want to play finals footy … and you want to get as deep as you can,” he said on Friday.
“But that’s not really my thinking coming into my last season. My thinking is just getting out here and helping the team win games of footy and helping the players around me.
“Whether this is my last game or not, it’s fairly irrelevant to my thinking. Coming into a final, or any game, it’s all about getting myself right and getting the team right. I’m in a good headspace.”
The Swans have surprised many pundits with their dramatic improvement to finish fifth after they missed the finals for the first time in seven years in 2009.
Kirk said the pre-season pessimism was understandable from those outside the club but the potential was obvious to those in the inner sanctum.
“Come the off-season, we had a lot of guys retire from some really successful years so I can understand that they thought we were going to be heading south,” he said.
“But we recruited really well, got some mature bodies and some of the kids that have come through - we’ve nearly played every one of our draft picks… and those guys have really stepped up. That’s where the improvement’s come from.”
Substantial rain is expected in Sydney in the lead-up to Sunday’s game, setting a scene tailor-made for the Swans’ preference for hard, contested footy but Kirk wasn’t fussed about the forecast.
“I don’t think it’s going to matter too much. I don’t mind if it’s wet and it’s a bit more of a contested situation,” Kirk said.
“In terms of the game, it’s a step up in intensity and pressure and if there’s a bit of rain around, it means the ball is going to be on the deck even more.”
And Kirk said there would be no repeat of his post-match jumper swap with Brisbane Lions champion Simon Black, saying it was a special gesture to a long-time respected foe.
“No, Blacky and I go way back in terms of the contests we’ve played against each other and it’s an honour to have his guernsey,” he said.
