IF THERE was any player from North Melbourne that could have given Sydney Swans coach John Longmire nightmares this week, it was Brent Harvey.

Before Saturday's clash at Etihad Stadium, the Kangaroos' skipper was ranked No.1 at his club for disposals against the Swans since 2006. He had collected 20 touches in all but two of his seven games against the Swans in that period, and had 27 in round 15 last season.

For Longmire, stopping his former North Melbourne teammate this weekend was always going to go a long way to determining the result.

He gave the task to Rhyce Shaw; a player he later described as having a "very consistent" year in either a midfield shut-down role or in defence on a small forward.

Shaw followed Harvey everywhere - up and down the ground, through the middle, to the interchange bench.

At the end of the game, which the Swans pinched by one point, Shaw had eight touches to his name.

It didn't matter, because Harvey had just 16 and was goalless for the third time this season.

Shaw later admitted he felt Harvey was winning in the head-to-head stakes played out between the two over the years, but was pleased he was able to do his job for the team on Saturday, particularly given the nail-biting nature in which the match was decided.

He also said he chose not to think about the magnitude of the job at hand before such a task, and knew he was in for an afternoon of gut-running when he accepted the challenge.

"I've had a few jobs this year and if you get yourself worked up about it, you kind of tend to try too hard and you give away free kicks and holding on," he said.

"I just prepare myself to run hard all day. Boomer is one of the all-time greats, there's no doubt about it, and it's an honour to play on guys like that.

"You see what kind of champions they are and he's a fantastic player and some days it goes for you and others it doesn't.

"I try to play my role as best I can and it kind of worked out."

Shaw rated Harvey among the best players he had played on in his 148-game career, just before he cursed him for "getting a second wind" in that hot final quarter when almost every player on the field was spent.

"He's a fantastic footballer and I don't know how he's doing it at his age, to be honest," he said.

"I'm 29 and I'm feeling it now."

The former Magpie, who crossed to the Swans at the start of the 2009 season, said his own personal reinvention as a sometimes-tagger had made him a more accountable footballer.

"I didn't man up there for a couple of years and I was just running off half-back, getting the handballs and running around and taking a few bounces," he said.

"In this day and age, you've got to adapt to the game and you've got to make sure that you're versatile enough to play anywhere at any stage for the side.

"This year's been about me playing my role and trying to shut down the best midfielder or best half forward as it is, and you try and do it as best you can.

"Sometimes it hasn't worked out but you just have to work at it.

"You get a lot of support from the guys here and we've got a good young group and we're going a long way, I reckon."

Shaw said the final quarter of Saturday's one-point win, where the lead changed twice and the Kangaroos locked the ball inside their attacking arc for the majority of time-on, was both physically and mentally exhausting.

He also said the victory - the Swans' fourth under three goals this season - showed true grit on his side's behalf, given it was able to withstand 18 inside 50s and concede just two goals.

"The way we held up was really good and I think to some of the boys' credit, they weren't having the best days but they stood up when it mattered most," he said.

"I don't know how long that quarter went for. It felt like it went for 40 minutes.

"I was under the pump but the boys were all buggered, both sides were stuffed, totally spent, and everyone was throwing their bodies in.

"It was just a great advertisement for our game and both sides really had a crack."