The Cats will face the best defence in the competition this Friday night at Simonds Stadium, as they take on the Sydney Swans in a recurring theme of top-four blockbusters.

It looms as no easy task with the Swans rueing another game they had all but won had it not been for lapse of concentration in the final minutes.

Will Sydney senior coach John Longmire make a statement at selection or will he allow his players to bounce back in the best possible way?

As for the Cats, Chris Scott’s men are renowned for their height all across the park and with Mitch Clark under consideration to make his long awaited return to the AFL, Sydney do have a second have a crucial decision to make – do they match them?

The match committee may look at the weather forecast and decide to go in smaller on what could be a wet deck, but should they choose to combat the Cats’ aerial advantage there are certainly options in the likes of Aliir Aliir and the experienced Ted Richards.

Aliir was named best on ground for the Swans’ NEAFL side last week with his intercept marking and ball use from half back a real positive amongst 26 disposals, whilst Richards has ticked the boxes in his return from concussion.

Aside from the two defenders, Tom Papley is another name to watch after two games in the reserves following a month sidelined with shin soreness.

“We want him back in the team as quickly as we can - it’s just whether he’s right to go,” Longmire said recently of the first-year rookie who would certainly provide something at ground level for the Swans should he be selected.

Papley may come in at the expense of James Rose or George Hewett, who tallied just one major between them in round 15 as small forwards.

As for others who face the axe, Toby Nankervis has struggled to make an impact in the absence of ruck/forward Kurt Tippett. The Tasmanian only managed 10 disposals and 11 hit outs last week in a last minute loss to the Western Bulldogs and also failed to hit the scoreboard. He may well be safe if the Swans feel recruit Callum Sinclair cannot ruck alone however.

Sinclair himself actually saw less of the football than Nankervis with only seven disposals and 19 hitouts. All the same, he is clearly Sydney’s number one choice in the ruck without Tippett.

Meanwhile, down back, Zak Jones has put in a solid body of work thus far but could be considered the odd-man out amongst Nick Smith, Jeremy Laidley, Dane Rampe and rising star Callum Mills. Should the Swans go down the path of selecting one or even two key defenders, it may be Jones who unfortunately misses out.

With two potential changes, here is how the Swans are predicted to line up against the Cats in round 16:

OUT: Z.Jones, J. Rose

IN: T.Richards, T. Papley