AFL

No superpowers needed as Swans aim to take down Dockers

By Justin Chadwick

Sep 15, 2026

Sydney - Freo action. — Sydney will look to atone for losing their last match with Fremantle when the sides meet this week. -AAP Image

Sydney coach Dean Cox has called on the club's leaders to ditch their Superman capes as the undermanned Swans attempt to secure a shock grand final berth.

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The club-imposed suspensions of the Pullman Five plus a season-ending knee injury to captain Callum Mills means Sydney will be missing six regular players when they take on Fremantle in Friday night's preliminary final at the SCG.

That includes suspended stars Chad Warner, Nick Blakey and Isaac Heeney, with chairman Andrew Pridham even conceding last month that the club had "torpedoed" their own flag hopes by bringing down the bans after the Pullman Hotel incident.

But Sydney's boilover 53-point qualifying final defeat of premiers Brisbane has raised hopes the Swans could snare a shock premiership, despite missing a host of their best players.

Cox says for the group to succeed, the club's senior players don't need to do anything extraordinary.

"One thing that I sort of touched on with the leaders is they don't need to do any more," Cox told AFL360.

"They don't need to fill the void of players that are missing. They just need to make sure that they play their role to the best of their ability, and then try and help some of the younger players to play their best.

"It's not about throwing the Superman cape on and trying to do it all yourself.

"It's about doing it as a collective, and we need to make sure that we do that again on Friday night."

Sydney have met Fremantle only once this year, for a 53-loss to the Dockers in Perth in July.

With Mills done for the year, former skipper Dane Rampe has been named Sydney's captain for the rest of the finals campaign.

Mills is scheduled to undergo a knee reconstruction on Wednesday, but it's hoped he'll still be able to attend Friday's game.

"He's devastated, but like all good leaders, he's turned his attention to how can he help the football club as much as he possibly can for the remainder of our season," Cox said of Mills.

"Unfortunately, footy is a pretty cruel game at times. I've got no doubt he'll rally behind the boys as much as he possibly can post surgery.

"I think he'll do whatever he can to be there. If we've got to wheel him, we'll carry him out and sit him where he needs."

Cox will weigh up selection calls on key forward Joel Amartey (Achilles) and winger Justin McInerney (hamstring) this week as the pair push for returns.