Fremantle's defensive pressure is terrific, but hey, what about ours?
That's the message from Hawthorn midfielder Jordan Lewis who says both sides in Saturday's AFL grand final at the MCG will have the ability to swarm around their opponents and pressure them into mistakes.
Fremantle's ability to prevent Sydney from running the ball out of defence was mesmerising at times during last weekend's preliminary final.
But Lewis says two can play at that game.
"Every finals game you play, the pressure's up," Lewis said on Tuesday.
"Because the media's hung onto it a little bit, it tends to grow legs.
"No doubt they're a great pressure side but if you look at the statistics so are we."
Asked if Hawthorn's defensive pressure was undervalued, Lewis said: "That's probably our No.1 focus internally.
"We've got a heavy focus on the defensive side of our game and we believe if that's at the forefront of our mind, our offensive side takes care of itself."
Lewis, a premiership player in 2008 and a member of Hawthorn's runners-up team last season against Sydney, says he feels fresher than during the previous grand final week.
"Maybe we ran out of steam (in 2012)," he said.
"The energy's up and definitely I'm feeling a lot better than this time last year."
Fellow midfielder Brad Sewell, dropped for one game mid-season, has relied on a strong sense of self-belief to put himself back in the frame for a second premiership medallion.
A slight change to his on-field role, including spending more time at half-back, has also rejuvenated the 29-year-old.
"I had been slightly pigeonholed to that midfield position," Sewell said.
Asked if he'd had any doubts during the year if his ageing legs could still match his pacy rivals, Sewell gave a flat 'no'.
"I've played well in big games. I've played well in finals before," Sewell said.
"Everybody at some stage goes through little fluctuations. I had mine in the mid-part of the year and I've bounced back really well."
Lewis and Sewell are expecting some more gold from coach Alastair Clarkson on Saturday. Before the 2008 decider against defending premiers Geelong, Clarkson urged his men to "kill the shark" and trample on anyone who gets in their way.
"He will come up with some sort of analogy," Lewis said.
"Knowing Clarko, he will have something up his sleeve."
Sewell suggested he might not take much notice either way.
"I'd almost say that you're that amped up yourself, the coach could be in there and draw flowers and ponies and stuff on the whiteboard and it wouldn't matter," Sewell said.
"There was a lot of talk after the 2008 grand final of the shark analogy he used. I'm sure he's got something special up his sleeve for Saturday as well."
