Young Sydney Swans star Isaac Heeney has called for the club’s faithful to flood the SCG with red and white for Sunday afternoon’s mouth-watering clash with the reigning premier.
More than 36,000 fans packed the SCG as Sydney toppled West Coast at the Moore Park venue in Round 13 last season, and Heeney said booming Swans support would again be crucial to victory over the Eagles.
“The support we get from Swans fans at the SCG is always amazing,” Heeney told SwansTV.
“The atmosphere when it’s buzzing really gets the lads up and about. And especially with a team coming from the other side of the country, if we can be as hostile as possible it gets us boys up and shuts them down a bit.”
Last year’s title victory delivered West Coast a fourth premiership cup, and Adam Simpson’s men have since begun season 2019 in ominous touch.
The Eagles are sitting in fourth on the ladder with eight wins and three losses on the board, and they’re riding high on the back of a 61-point victory over the Western Bulldogs.
The Eagles fronted the Dogs with five All Australian representatives in Jeremy McGovern, Josh Kennedy, Elliott Yeo and Andrew Gaff, as well as skipper Shannon Hurn who’ll miss the Swans clash due to a hamstring injury.
Dual Coleman Medallist Kennedy booted three goals against the Dogs, but it was Jack Darling who spearheaded the West Coast attack on his way to a six-goal haul.
But Heeney insists the Swans, who’ve faced top-four teams Collingwood and Geelong in the past fortnight, are committing more of their attention to themselves ahead of Sunday’s match.
“You’ve mainly got to focus on your own game,” Heeney said.
“If you look at our last couple of weeks, we’ve played some of the best sides and they’ve both got talent all over the park. I don’t think we go away from what we’ve been doing; it’s just a matter of putting in a more consistent performance and stepping it up to another level.
“We know how good a side West Coast is and they’re going to be tough this week.”