Glory is Buddy’s, but the power’s with Kennedy

WHY is Sydney’s Josh Kennedy a great finals player?

Is it his build? The composure under extreme heat? Because he keeps his feet? His bravery? Is it the mindset?

Is it something more romantic such as genetics? His grandfather, John Kennedy Sr, the “Godfather of Hawthorn”, coached the club to three flags and is immortalised in statue.

His father, John Kennedy Jr, played in four premierships.

Maybe it’s all of those things; maybe it’s none.

But what is beyond doubt is that the Swans captain is the modern-day Mr September.

Kennedy has played 20 finals, churning out more than 100 SuperCoach points in 15.

He has dipped below 83 only once in what has been a consistently high output at the business end of the season.

Since 2010, Kennedy ranks No.1 in the league in finals for disposals (29.4 a game).

He is also No.1 for contested possessions (16.8), groundball gets (12.4) and clearances (7.3).

For all the talk about Lance Franklin before tomorrow night’s semi-final against Geelong, history screams that Kennedy is the warhorse who will light the fire for Sydney.

“I was joking about it today with a mate in a car saying that I’ve never been a big fan of preseason, so the longer we can go into finals, the later we start pre-season — that’s always been a big driving force,” Kennedy told Fox Footy this week.

“But I’m not too sure. I don’t really treat it differently.

“I certainly feel a lot more excited and there’s a lot more energy around the club, around the city and the footy world. It’s great to be a part of.

“Certainly in finals footy you want to be aggressive, both at the footy, at the man and with your tackling pressure.”

Kennedy and finals is like playing darts with six bullseyes — he rarely misses.

At halftime in last year’s Grand Final against the West- ern Bulldogs he had 22 touches, two goals and a Norm Smith Medal in the pocket before the Dogs’ fairytale became complete.

He finished with 34 possessions, three goals and the inaugural Gary Ayres Award for best finals player.

If the Kennedys are premiership royalty at Hawthorn, Josh Kennedy is the crown prince at the Swans.