Sydney star Josh Kennedy has applauded opposing players’ calls for fans not to boo Swans champion Adam Goodes.​ Goodes has been sporadically booed by opposition fans over the past two seasons, but the jeering has intensified in recent weeks. Ahead of North Melbourne’s clash with Sydney at Etihad Stadium tomorrow, Kangaroos midfielder Jack Ziebell said he hoped his club’s supporters wouldn’t boo the dual Brownlow medallist and former Australian of the Year.

“I think it is great from Jack Ziebell that he has come out and said it and I think (Hawthorn’s) Jordan Lewis did it a week or two ago as well, which is great,” Kennedy said. “From our point of view, we can’t really control it. We have just got to support Goodesy on the field and get around him as much as we can.​ We’ve got to try and not think too much about it, we’ll let the powers that be worry about that sort of stuff.”

Kennedy praised Goodes’ recent performances after he struggled with form earlier in the season. “His form has been fantastic the last few weeks after a challenging start to the year, so it’s great to see him back and really contributing to the team,” Kennedy said. The Swans take on an inconsistent Kangaroos side which last Sunday upset West Coast in Hobart.“The way they played last week — their intensity around the contest, their tackling pressure — was ferocious and it was over the course of the four quarters. We probably haven’t done that the last two weeks and we’ll need to,” Kennedy said.

AAP