The Sydney Swans continue to prepare for this Saturday’s Qualifying Final against the Brisbane Lions at the SCG. After a second-place finish, Dean Cox and his men marked a return to the finals series after missing out in Cox’s first year in charge.

Recent finals history has favoured the Red and White when it has come to the Qualifying Final, having competed in the contest three times in the past 10 years.

Out of those three previous trips to the qualifying final, the Swans recorded two victories, one at the SCG in 2024 and the other at the MCG in 2022. Regardless of the result, in all three trips to the qualifying final over the past decade, the Swans have gone on to feature in the Grand Final.

Here is a breakdown of the Swans' recent qualifying finals history in preparation for the next instalment this Saturday.

(1) Sydney Swans 55 – 91 (4) GWS Giants – ANZ Stadium

The first-ever finals meeting between the Swans and the Giants was set up as the biggest Sydney Derby in the then young history between the two Sydney clubs. Moved to the now Accor Stadium at Sydney Olympic Park, over 60,000 people attended the Qualifying Final and recorded the largest ever crowd for a meeting between these two sides, a record that still stands today.

It was a physical and hard-fought Sydney Derby which saw a young Tom Papley on his AFL finals debut kick the opening goal of the final after being set up by Buddy Franklin. The Swans, who finished as the minor premiers, started strong against the Giants, who were also making their finals debut as a football club.

Trailing at halftime by two points, the Swans were unable to overcome the Giants, who pulled away in the third and ended up progressing to the preliminary final.

Despite the initial setback, the red and white stormed back with a 36-point semi-final win against Adelaide and a 37-point preliminary final win over Geelong at the MCG before going down to the Western Bulldogs in the grand final by 22 points.

2022 (3) Sydney Swans 91 – 69 (2) Melbourne – MCG

After finishing the regular season in third, the Swans travelled down to the MCG to take on Melbourne, who they finished the regular season tied on points with, though the Demons had a better goal percentage after 22 rounds. In front of an overwhelming 78,000 fans, the Swans fell behind early but were able to overturn a 10-point first quarter time deficit to lead by six heading into the half.

A critical six-goal third-term lead by Sam Reid and Jake Lloyd stirred the red and white onto a famous 22-point victory, which booked the first Preliminary Final at the SCG since 1996.

The preliminary final was an instant classic with the Swans downing the travelling Pies by a single point (95-94) to book their spot in the club's 18th Grand Final. The Swans were unable to carry the momentum of the preliminary final into the Grand Final, with the Bloods unable to beat the minor premiers Geelong, who claimed their 10th AFL title.

2024 Sydney Swans 88 – 82 (4) GWS Giants – SCG

The Swans' first-ever finals win over the Giants was always going to be special; however, the chaos that unfolded at the SCG on the first weekend of September in 2024 was nothing short of remarkable and will live long in the memories of every red and white supporter.
Unable to beat their cross-town rivals in the previous three meetings in finals football, the minor premiers were staring down the barrel of a fourth consecutive finals defeat at the hands of the Giants, with the Bloods trailing by a high of 27 points late on in the second quarter.
Still behind entering the final term, the Swans kicked three straight goals to reduce the deficit before drawing level with just under three minutes to play. Joel Amartey then sent the SCG into raptures after kicking the go-ahead goal with two minutes to play in a famous six-point victory.
The Swans then defeated Port Adelaide in a 36-point preliminary final to secure yet another grand final appearance, the fourth in a span of a decade.
With so much history already written on the first weekend of September, the Swans will be hoping to create more this Saturday and continue the club's recent finals form when the Lions travel down to the SCG.

Fans and members can still purchase their tickets for the qualifying final this weekend HERE or can catch all the action on 7mate, 7plus, Kayo and Fox Footy from 3:30 pm AEST.