High-flying Swans wary of a potential Cat-astrophe

Sydney's Justin McInerney (centre) says the Swans will not underestimate the inconsistent Cats. (Dan Himbrechts/AAP PHOTOS)

Sydney midfielder Justin McInerney knows if they underestimate Geelong, his high-flying Swans could land in all sorts of trouble.

Boasting fresh legs after a bye, the Swans are set to kick off their red-hot charge to the AFL finals with a Sunday hit-out against the Cats at the SCG.

At first glance, handing Geelong a defeat may seem an easy enough assignment for the flag favourites.

The harbour city team leads the league, boasting the highest percentage (150.1 per cent), the strongest offence (1132 points for) and the stingiest defence (754 points against).

Sydney have lost just once this season - a five-point defeat at the hands of Richmond in round three.

Meanwhile, Chris Scott's Cats are rebuilding after snapping a four-game losing run - their worst streak in 18 years.

A sloppy Geelong unit scored an unconvincing 30-point win over the Tigers last time out, after trailing by 29 points in the first half against the competition strugglers.

The Cats will be looking to wrest back momentum, this time with a four-quarter performance, and McInerney knows that desperation can make a team dangerous.

"Every team has their lulls. We know that Geelong is going to bounce back," McInerney told AAP.

"We're not going to take them lightly at all. They've proven over the past two decades how good they are, and they're always up for the contest.

"They've shown us plenty of times how good they are. This Sunday is going to be no different."

Geelong will be bolstered by the return of Mark Blicavs and Jhye Clark from suspension, but will still be without captain Patrick Dangerfield (hamstring).

The Swans will turn their attention to the Cats' other stars, with a potential match-up on the wing between McInerney and Jeremy Cameron.

Geelong forward Jeremy Cameron (centre).
Geelong forward Jeremy Cameron (centre) has spent time playing on the wing this season.

"He's been doing a bit of wing work and he's obviously one of the better players in the comp, so I'll have to watch out for that,'' McInerney said.

"(The Cats are dangerous with) their run and their ability to spread forward and react first.

"They've got such damaging forwards and hopefully they don't get on top of us."

Sydney will  be without captain Callum Mills, but welcome back defensive stalwart Tom McCartin (concussion).

Geelong's Toby Conway (knee) and Zach Tuohy (hip) will both miss the clash after they were withdrawn from the Cats squad on Friday.

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