CTV > Mick Malthouse's Friday press conferenceCOLLINGWOOD coach Mick Malthouse is planning for something special from the Sydney Swans at Telstra Dome on Saturday night after his counterpart Paul Roos warned on Thursday of "a different approach" to tackling the Magpies.
Malthouse said his side had "achieved something that not many other sides have been able to achieve" in forcing the Swans to change tactics.
Collingwood has been the Swans' bogey team – winning their last five encounters, including last year's elimination final and this season's round 14 clash at ANZ Stadium.
"Paul Roos, I think, is a very good coach, outside of the fact he's also a decent bloke," Malthouse said.
"He's got a team that has performed very, very well playing a certain role for five or six years, so if they're changing their game plans or strategies because of us, we've achieved something that not many other sides have been able to achieve."
Malthouse said Collingwood was taking Roos at his word and planning for a new strategy from the Harboursiders.
"It's not as if we're going to be sitting on our hands thinking that they won't change, but we'll have a look at what they do and hopefully our players can address any issues that come up because we've spoken about them."
The veteran coach wouldn't divulge what strategy his side had planned for the possibility of dual Brownlow medallist Adam Goodes basing himself in the forward line.
"Adam Goodes can play anywhere and he's a good player so we'll worry about that when he starts."
Malthouse said the Pies wouldn't be dwelling on their recent successes against the Swans.
"The past is the past. It serves you well when you want it to serve you well. It's also a distraction if you think the past is going to win the game for you.
"We know how we played in the past but that's yesterday and tomorrow's the game, so you've just got to get ready. If you've got confidence from previous games maintain that, but don't let that get in the way of the intensity that's required."
Malthouse said he wouldn't discuss the finals, including whether injured Dale Thomas will be recovered in time, as the team had yet to cement a spot in the eight.
"We're not in the finals yet … round 22 tells you who's in the finals.
"We're not about to start jumping up and down and saying we're going to be resting players or holding players back. We've got to make the finals.
"We are still one of the clubs in the eight currently that can slip out and there's two sides now who are out of the eight who could go into the eight."
Malthouse said that time was not running out for injured forward Anthony Rocca to make a return this season. However he said Collingwood reserves' failure to make the finals would make getting him back up to match speed more difficult.
"If we make the eight you'd love to think that your back up crew are also playing. The instance with Anthony is the classical one, but you can still fit a lot of work into people on the training track. They obviously lack match practice but you try to simulate that with the players that are left over."
Rhyce Shaw is named as an emergency in the side having served his two-week suspension for his involvement in the Alan Didak and Heath Shaw saga and Malthouse didn't rule him out of making a return.
"Any of the emergencies are a chance to play, that's why you name them. We're not going to waste time putting those boys on the emergency list if they can't play."
