SYDNEY Swans champion Adam Goodes expects a strong showing from Geelong at ANZ Stadium after the Cats’ unexpected 35-point loss to Carlton in round 19.
Goodes, who will become the second-fastest player to reach the 250-game milestone on Saturday night, said the Blues caught Geelong "on a good night".
"If you look at Geelong’s form from the last three or four years, that’s the worst they’ve played," he said before training on Thursday at the SCG.
"They’ve got a lot of pride and they’ve got a fantastic team of blokes who know how to get the job done.
Goodes, who will become the second-fastest player to reach the 250-game milestone on Saturday night, said the Blues caught Geelong "on a good night".
"If you look at Geelong’s form from the last three or four years, that’s the worst they’ve played," he said before training on Thursday at the SCG.
"They’ve got a lot of pride and they’ve got a fantastic team of blokes who know how to get the job done.
"They’ve been doing it quite consistently for a number of years now so we’re very wary of them bouncing back pretty strongly this week."
Despite winning just eight of their 19 games this season, the Swans remain in contention for a finals berth with three rounds to play.
While Goodes didn’t rule out a seventh successive finals campaign, he was far from bullish about the prospect.
"A lot of crazy things can happen and you might see for the first time that a team might make the finals with 10 wins," he said.
"If it’s us, we’ll assess that when the time gets here."
The dual Brownlow Medallist was more concerned with Saturday night’s battle against a Geelong defence that regains key players Matthew Scarlett and Harry Taylor.
Goodes confirmed he was set to spend much more time as a permanent forward in the future, helping to fill the impending void created by the departures of Barry Hall and Michael O’Loughlin.
"There’s definitely a role in there for me to play," he said.
"I’ll play down there for the rest of the season and we’ll assess it in the pre-season and talk about what sort of role I can play in the future, but definitely the forward line is looking pretty promising."
With a contract that expires at the end of 2011, the 29-year-old appears certain to become just the second Sydney/South Melbourne player after O’Loughlin to play 300 games.
His current good form even has pundits whispering about his chances of a third Brownlow Medal – he is rated a $13 chance on TAB Sportsbet – but Goodes said he was content to assess his future when his contract ended in two years.
"The way the body’s feeling at the moment, I’ll be playing out those two years and hopefully we’ll see how we go after that," he said.
"I know it’s been a hard track for Mick to get to 300 and what a journey it’s been.
"Whatever game I finish up at, if I have to go the same way Mick has to get there, it’ll be a very tough track.
"I’ve been very lucky with injuries through my career and hopefully I can keep lucky and maybe play in the forward line and last a bit longer."
