High stakes
Sydney and Collingwood are one of eight clubs to start the season 0-2, one more loss and it will be the Swans or Pies’ worst start to a year since 1999.

Even then the Swans still reached the qualifying final.

Can last year’s grand finallists bounce back against the Pies on Friday night and get their season back on track?

History says yes.

Of the previous eleven seasons, twice the Sydney Swans has stared down the barrel of a 0-2 start – in 2006 and 2014 – and both times they reached the Grand Final.

John Longmire, while disappointed with the start, will still be bullish about the improvement his side made in the space of a week following the brave performance against the Western Bulldogs.

Still, “we’ve got some improvement areas,” Longmire said. “We improved on the week before certainly, but we need to get better again this week.”

Who’s the Tipp?
It looks like Callum Sinclair and Darcy Cameron will go head-to-head this week to replace Kurt Tippett who has been ruled out of Friday’s blockbuster with an ankle injury.

At his press conference on Monday, Longmire said the coaches will have a closer look at the pair during training this week to see who’s ready to shoulder the ruckwork alongside Sam Naismith.

Brodie Grundy has been in exceptional form for the Pies so the Swans’ Match Committee will need to decide whether they prefer Sinclair’s experience or back another debutant in Cameron.

Sinclair showed strong form when given an opportunity last season and would be solid option as a ruck-forward, similar to Tippett, while Cameron proved in glimpses throughout the JLT Community Series he’s capable at the higher level.

You could hardly split the two in last week’s NEAFL opener, Cameron (12 disposals, four marks, 16 hit-outs, two clearances and two goals) and Sinclair (10 possessions, four marks, 14 hit-outs, two clearances and two goals), so it may just come down to whoever puts their best foot forward on the training track this week.

Watch this space.

250 up for “one of the greats”
One of the greatest forwards to ever play the game will line up for game 250 on Friday night.

Lance “Buddy” Franklin.

For 182 games Franklin tore oppositions to shreds in brown and gold.

In red and white he’s doing more of the same and has for the past 67 appearances.

That unbelievable passage in the final quarter of last weekend’s clash against the Western Bulldogs reminded everyone he’s still the supreme athlete, entertainer and footballer he’s always been.

At 29 years of age and 50 games shy of the 300 Club, he’s showing no signs of slowing down and may add a few more accolades to his already glittering trophy cabinet this season.

Sam Reid kicked a six-goal bag in his 100th on Friday night. Can Buddy follow suit in his 250th?

Reid v Reid
Spare a through for Mrs Reid.

Her allegiances will be split as Sam and Ben Reid take on each other in Friday night’s blockbuster.

It has been a while since both Sam and Ben Reid have been on the park simultaneously, injuries have hit both pretty hard in recent seasons.

Sydney’s version of the twin towers has been in exceptional form since returning from his injury woes of 2016.

Six goals last weekend would have caught the attention of Collingwood’s coaching staff who may look to Ben to try and stop his younger sibling repeating those feats.

They have played on each other in fleeting moments in their four encounters. They’re similar in regards to height and build so we could have the other as company for most of the night.

Our black and white rivals
Sydney kicked 10 goals to one in the opening half of last year’s encounter against Collingwood to put the game beyond doubt by half-time.

A similar start will put a lot of minds at ease at the SCG, especially given the Magpies have just as much to play for on Friday night and will be throwing everything at the contest for the four-point reward.

Inaccuracy in front of goal (kicking 23.28 at 41 percent) and a poor disposal efficiency (ranked 15th at 72.3 percent) seem to have been their undoing in the opening two games.

Same goes for Longmire’s men, who rank no better off for accuracy around goal (25.19 at 52.1 percent) and worse for disposal rate (ranked 16th at 70.6 percent).

Fix that and suddenly Collingwood become a dangerous opponent given they boast the competition’s best midfield, according to Champion Data, who have been animals around the contest sitting second for contested disposals and third for clearances.

Longmire prides himself on having a midfield who pride themselves on their contested ball winning ability so no doubt he’d like to bridge that gap in a big way come Friday night at the SCG.