Sydney rode the wave of sentiment for retiring captain Brett Kirk and outgoing coach Paul Roos to fifth on the AFL ladder with a 44-point victory over the stuttering Western Bulldogs at the SCG on Saturday night.

The Swans gave themselves genuine hopes of a home final by cutting the Bulldogs to pieces in the second quarter then easing away to finish 17.12 (114) to 10.10 (70).

If the Swans beat the lowly-placed Brisbane Lions in next weekend's final round at the Gabba, they will be almost guaranteed a home final - and another Sydney farewell for Kirk and Roos - irrespective of other results.

Only a massive win for Fremantle over Carlton could deny the Swans a home playoff.

Set back by a hamstring injury to Brownlow Medallist Adam Cooney inside the first five minutes, the Bulldogs threatened briefly to revive their fortunes in the third quarter before a Jude Bolton snap performed a sharp leg break near the goal-line for a critical major.

Briefly nervous, the Swans then kicked away to punch another serious hole in the Dogs' September ambitions following their hiding by Geelong last weekend.

As against the Cats, the Bulldogs were extremely poor in the second term.

Trent Dennis-Lane (four goals) and Kieren Jack (two) exemplified Sydney's speedy attack, while Bolton and Daniel Hannebery did plenty of tough work in close with the strong support of ruckman Mike Pike.

Kirk (two goals) played an entertaining cameo up forward in the absence of Ryan O'Keefe (groin soreness), digging deep in his last appearance at the SCG and drawing mighty roars each time he kicked truly.

Both sides delivered close to their best football in the first term and the Swans were better able to sustain their efforts in the second, pressuring the Bulldogs into error and steadily building a firm lead.

Winning a greater share of ruck contests and showing tremendous pace to break clear in attack, Sydney's control grew to all parts of the ground.

Kirk nailed a gratifying goal from a fortunate free kick near the goal square and the Swans advanced to lead 10.6 (66) to 6.3 (39) at the long break.

The listless Bulldogs picked themselves up after halftime, stringing together a handful of clean plays for a pair of goals to creep within three goals.

But any doubts about whether this was Sydney's night were swept away by Bolton's ridiculous bounce near the goal-line.

Two more returned the margin to 27 points at the final change, a buffer that only grew in the final quarter.

Roos was understandably delighted by the result, and the prospect that this might not have been his final match in charge in Sydney.

"It was a great win by the team," he said. "To come here and beat a team we respect.

"I think all year showed they're a genuine premiership contender - I know they had a hiccup last week but it makes them more dangerous when good team get beaten by 100 points.

"To be able to do what we did tonight was exceptional and a really good four-quarter performance - they came back in the third quarter and we steadied the ship."

However the Swans may be without ruckman Shane Mumford, who appeared to suffer a knee strain and left the field late in the match.

Things were altogether worse for the Bulldogs, their ageing skipper Brad Johnson limping off late with what coach Rodney Eade described as an Achilles injury.

Eade also indicated the SCG surface may have played a part in Cooney's hamstring strain, which is expected to keep him out of action for up to three weeks.

"Any key player going down like that is going to hurt you but it's no excuse, though, we needed to be better than that," said Eade.

"I thought our first quarter was okay without him, and obviously the second quarter was the difference in the end, that was the quarter that killed us."

Brought to you by AAP © 2024 AAP