Sydney’s season had been “torpedoed” even before they were locked in to meet two-time reigning premier Brisbane in a qualifying final, at least according to the club’s chair Andrew Pridham a couple of weeks ago. But a season that few thought was heading toward anything but the most inglorious of endings – with five players suspended by the club for a breach of club standards – has suddenly taken flight again, after the Swans blew away the Lions for a stunning 53-point triumph in wet and wild conditions at the SCG.
Even without the suspended Isaac Heeney running the show in the midfield, Chad Warner lighting up the front half and Nick Blakey breaking the lines from defence, the Swans who lined up against the Lions on Saturday afternoon looked as eye-catching and familiar as any to run out in the red and white this year. The rapid and relentless ball movement that has been critical to the Swans’ resurgence this year was there for all to see. So was the newfound strength at stoppage with Errol Gulden rising to the occasion, James Rowbottom putting his head over the ball, and unheralded recruit Jai Serong playing the most influential game of his career as he clamped down on the Lions’ dual Brownlow medallist Lachie Neale.
But the Swans’ victory could have come at a huge cost after captain Callum Mills jarred a knee and had to be helped from the field late in the first term then took no further part in the game. The scene is one that even occasional fans have seen too many times before, as Mills went to change direction in an attempt to tackle Lions midfielder Will Ashcroft, but slipped a touch, collapsed to the turf and immediately grabbed at his knee.
There was no warmth for Sydney as they managed the fallout from their five players’ post-round 23 celebrations. But Mills earned respect for the way he fronted up to answer questions in the days after, then led the side to a stirring win over a listless North Melbourne. Mills’ emotions spilled over in the dying stages of the game against the Kangaroos as he felt the support of Swans fans. Now the Swans are left feeling for their skipper as they hope for the best but fear the worst, in a reminder of how harsh the game can be.
The undermanned Swans were always likely to ride the emotion again after a tumultuous few weeks for the club. But the opening-term blitz that left the Lions shellshocked was more than even the most optimistic Swans fans might have hoped for. It was less surprise to see Gulden take command of the midfield as the architect of the rousing win. The Swans academy graduate has hit the richest vein of form in recent weeks and at just the right time for his side. Gulden finished with a game-high 34 disposals, eight clearances, 915 metres gained and a goal. His greatest contribution was in setting the standard with tireless running on the outside and tenacity at the coalface.
On a day when key forwards might have been irrelevant as a storm descended on the SCG, Charlie Curnow and Logan McDonald delivered career-defining games. Curnow has rediscovered his touch since moving to Sydney from Carlton in last year’s trade period. The prized recruit bounced back from booting only 32 goals in 18 matches in his ninth and final season with the Blues to win a third Coleman medal with 69 goals in a first campaign with the Swans, even as a dark cloud remained over the 29-year-old. Curnow’s finals record had been a blemish on his career with next to no impact and only three goals from as many matches with his former club.
The Swans spearhead looked determined to change that as he soared for a majestic one-handed mark in the middle of the field to set up the opening goal to McDonald. He hit the scoreboard himself for the second goal of the game before the Swans unleashed four goals in a blistering six minutes. Curnow smashed his finals average as he finished with five goals, while McDonald booted a career-high six majors. Firebrand forward Tom Papley brushed off a pre-match fitness test to add five goals for Sydney and like his teammates will now have a week’s break to prepare to face the winner of the Fremantle and Geelong semi-final.
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For Brisbane, the suggestion that this is one that got away would do Sydney a disservice. The Lions challenged through the second and third terms but could not string enough goals together to truly threaten. Their path to becoming the third side in the AFL era to claim a premiership three-peat will now take a longer route with a home semi-final against the winner of an elimination final between Adelaide and Western Bulldogs.
Sydney had averaged crowds of 44,283 in their three home finals at the SCG since 2022 but not many more than 37,000 fans turned up for this top-four clash with the Lions. Whether the empty seats were due to unease over what happened around the club in recent weeks, a lack of confidence in the side’s chances of success, or simply the unnerving weather forecast, the Swans did all they could to turn doubters into believers.
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