A MEETING with his leadership group after the heavy loss to Collingwood in round 21 may have turned the side's on-field fortunes, says Sydney Swans coach Paul Roos.

Defender Tadhg Kennelly indicated on Wednesday that two wins in eight matches leading into the round-22 win over the Brisbane Lions left his teammates frustrated and searching for answers.

But now the club is preparing for a semi-final against the Western Bulldogs at the MCG on Friday night, looking to strike back against a side that has beaten them twice this season.

Amidst speculation that the Swans may have reached the end of an era, Roos encouraged his players to forget about off-field matters and simply focus on the efforts necessary for a sixth successive finals berth.

The coach is unsure how much the change in mindset has helped, though victories over the Lions and North Melbourne in last weekend's elimination final are evidence.

"Sometimes they can get a little bit waylaid with a lot of things off the field," Roos said from Melbourne Airport on Thursday afternoon.

"Expectations of players off the field are very high these days and our guys are extremely disciplined, (they) really look after each other and discipline each other and make sure things are going very well.

"Probably what we needed to do was try to focus on the game itself.

"It was really just time to re-focus for them and to say, 'Guys, look, we'll worry about all the stuff off the field and you guys worry about the stuff on the field.

"It probably just took a bit of the burden off the players ... maybe it's helped a bit."

A win for the Swans on Friday night would set up a preliminary final clash with Geelong – the opponent they beat in the semi-final of their 2005 premiership campaign.