New king of the SCG? Capper’s take on Curnow

It was classic Warwick Capper when Zero Hanger asked him to compare himself with Sydney's newest drawcard in front of the sticks.

"He'll be the poor man's Warwick Capper,” the former star goalkicker said.

Capper, of course, was talking about new Swan Charlie Curnow, who is preparing to face off against his former Carlton teammates in AFL's Opening Round.

Curnow is far more reserved than the fast-talking Capper, but the charismatic and entertaining ‘Wiz' concedes the former Blues spearhead has the on-field attributes to take him a long way in the Harbour City.

He predicted Curnow could score 65 goals this season if he stayed fit and play most games.

Capper has spoken to Curnow - he and his partner Lisa Arocca are friends with the mother of the former Blue's girlfriend Tiana - and is confident the dual Coleman medallist will be able to handle the pressure that comes with being the Swans' biggest crowd-puller.

"There is a lot of pressure on him, but he's a good athlete and good footballer when he gets his head right," Capper said.

"He's a longer kick than me, but not as straight and can't take the spectacular marks."

In his heyday during the mid-1980s Capper was the king of the SCG, thrilling the crowds with his spectacular aerial feats and bags of goals.

He was a trailblazer for future star spearheads Tony ‘Plugger' Lockett, Barry Hall and Lance ‘Buddy' Franklin who were embraced by the red and white faithful for their goalkicking heroics at the SCG.

Capper is one of only three Swans to crack the ton in a season, which he achieved in 1987 - the others are Lockett and Bob Pratt.

While he remains confident Curnow will not emulate the feats of past goalkicking greats, he believes the new Swan can be successful on the tight confines at the SCG if he is afforded plenty of space “like they did with me”.

Capper was quick to point out he scored more than half of his 388 AFL/VFL goals away from the SCG. One of his most memorable goals was at Princes Park in Round 10, 1989, when he booted a long bomb for the Brisbane Bears to bury Carlton and finish Robert Walls' coaching tenure with the Blues.

Capper is also well aware of the pressure and emotions that Curnow will be going through as he takes on his former club.

After changing clubs at the end of 1987 and moving north to join the Bears, Capper locked horns with former teammate Rod Carter in Round 8, 1988.

‘The Wiz' booted two goals as his new club was triumphant over the Swans by 28 points at the SCG.

Capper hopes Curnow can kick a few goals and the Swans kick off the season with a victory, but concedes he faces a difficult assignment against a Carlton defence led by Jacob Weitering, one of the best full-backs in the AFL.