Senior Coach Dean Cox has made one change for Sydney’s Round 9 clash with Essendon.
The Sydney Swans have confirmed one change for Saturday afternoon’s clash with Essendon, with Ben Paton named to return in place of Lewis Melican.
Paton returns to the side after missing last weekend’s Derby win with a calf strain, while Melican will miss this weekend’s match due to a three-match suspension.
Tall Peter Ladhams, youngster Tom Hanily and midfielder Caleb Mitchell have been named as emergencies.
Sydney will name their substitute one hour before the match.
The Swans will be searching for back-to-back victories when they meet Essendon at Marvel Stadium, following a derby win against cross-town rivals GWS.
Essendon comes into the match winning four of their last five games, and Cox said he was expecting a tough contest.
“Now we have to back up it up, so I thought our pressure and our work to create turnovers in the right spots was really effective against GWS,” Cox said.
“Essendon, they’ve won four of their last five, so we’ve got to make sure that we’re alert defensively first and get them done.
“They’re really high in contested possession post-clearance, so their contest to contest work is really strong.”
Saturday’s match is the first of three upcoming away games in Melbourne, and Cox said he was looking forward to seeing Melbourne members and fans out in force.
“I think the support they’ve always given every game when we go interstate, especially Melbourne, has been phenomenal,” he said.
“They’re almost as loud as the opposition home team so hopefully we can try and give them something to cheer about.”
Sydney takes on Essendon at Marvel Stadium on Saturday from 4.15pm AEDT.
