Senior assistant coach Stuart Dew is confident his midfield can match the Western Bulldogs on-ballers during Saturday’s blockbuster at the SCG.

Sydney ranks as the best contested ball side in the competition led by Dan Hannebery, Josh Kennedy and Luke Parker, while the Bulldogs rank third in that area.

Dew said he would back his onball brigade to come out on top in what is set to be the most influential area of the game on Saturday.

“The Bulldogs often outnumber teams at the contest, but their mix is interesting – even when they lose they win the contested ball,” Dew said.

“It’s as big a challenge as there is to be able to beat them in that area, let alone match them.

“We will back our players in and then it becomes how much pressure we can put on them to determine the effectiveness of their ball use.”

The Swans have had a strong week on the training track after enjoying last weekend off with the bye.

Jeremy Laidler is the only inclusion to the side that defeated Melbourne by 55 points in Round 13. He replaces young defender Aliir Aliir.

“I think last week most teams that had the bye won, but it means nothing to us,” Dew said.

“It’s how you prepare; most teams do the same thing in the week off so it comes down to the two hours on the weekend.

“They have been itching to get out there after some good sessions this week and all signs are pointing towards a good performance.”

Ted Richards and Tom Papley will once again line up for the NEAFL side when they take on NT Thunder in a curtain raiser at the SCG from 12.55pm.