AFL Finals Melbourne v Sydney: All the news, action and fallout from the qualifying final
Friday night at the MCG was full of stories to be celebrated for the Swans but a damning record against the remaining contenders continues for the Demons.
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Rewind two years and Sydney had slumped to 16th with a bursting salary cap.
The Swans lost Aliir Aliir to Port Adelaide and then farewelled Jordan Dawson (Adelaide) and George Hewett (Carlton) last year.
Has their surge to a home preliminary final shocked them? Not really.
“Yeah, I can believe it,” Jake Lloyd told the Herald Sun.
“I feel like as a group we probably lost a lot of those tight games last year. But I feel like we got a lot of good games into those young kids at that time and now they’re just flourishing on the big stage.”
Lloyd was right.
The Swans dropped five games by less than 10 points in 2020 and four last year, including the one-point heartbreaker in the elimination final against Greater Western Sydney.
Coach John Longmire lamented missed chances against the Giants. The Swans had 19 more inside 50s but kicked 2.7 in the final quarter in Launceston.
Suddenly they are in a home preliminary final while holding two first-round picks in this year’s draft.
Could this club be better-placed for the next three weeks or the next three years? It’s hard to think so.
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Once again, ‘The Bloods’ culture is front and centre. Paddy McCartin, who might be the individual story of the season, said Sydney and St Kilda was chalk and cheese.
“(Sydney’s culture) is hard to explain,” McCartin said.
“Everyone’s pretty much from interstate. I’ve been at another club and I’ve been at the Swans and just how tight the group is doesn’t really compare to where I was before.
“A lot of that is to do with a lot of the people don’t have anyone else apart from the footy club crew.”
That culture was on display when Longmire singled out Tom Hickey post-match.
The unheralded ruckman more than held his own against six-time All-Australian Max Gawn and imminent millionaire Luke Jackson.
His third-quarter goal, answering Gawn, spiked Sydney’s spirit. Why?
Hickey’s twins Olive and Delma, born last October, were in hospital last week.
“I’m coming home. I’m coming home, girls,” an emotional Hickey said on Fox Footy post-match.
That’s partially why Longmire singled Hickey out and points to the culture McCartin was on about.
McCartin, the diabetic No.1 draft pick in 2014 who has been to hell and back with nine concussions, spent Friday night playing his first final alongside brother Tom.
“From where I was this time last to now if you had of told me I’d be playing in a prelim at the SCG if you’d put $5 on it you’d be a rich man,” he told K-Rock radio.
Was McCartin nervous? Nope. He hasn’t been all season because his perspective has understandably evolved.
“I don’t know if it’s to do with the shit that I’ve been through before,” he said.
Sydney was spilling with stories to be celebrated.
Robbie Fox’s double-act of desperation to deny Jake Melksham and then Charlie Spargo a goal in the final quarter will be replayed countless times.
The MCG lighting technician was so sure it would be a goal the LED bulbs started to flash in celebration as play continued on the wing.
How about Tom Papley spoiling Harrison Petty on the wing in the second quarter to set up Isaac Heeney’s shot on goal?
Or Ryan Clarke smothering Jake Lever to set up Will Hayward for the opening major?
Or two-way Callum Mills throwing himself in front of Bayley Fritsch’s marking lane only to bounce to his feet and lay 11 tackles?
Or James Rowbottom’s tackle on James Harmes that set up Jake Lloyd’s first goal for the season?
Or Mills sharking Luke Jackson to snap Sydney’s fifth?
The Swans were as hard as a $2 steak around the Sherrin and also have sizable upside.
Buddy Franklin was beaten, Heeney played more blue-collar than his usual glitzy white-collar while young jewels Nick Blakey and Chad Warner were below their game-busting best.
Since Sydney was shocked by Essendon in round 16 it has, along with Geelong, been the best team in the competition by some margin.
“We sat down after that game,” Lloyd, who played in the 2014 and 2016 losing grand finals said.
“It was a really disappointing performance. We knew what was going to get us back into the season. Since then that’s been our primary focus, our pressure and hunt around the footy and defending as a group.”
Since then they’ve looked as urgent as an ER doctor, ranking No.1 for pressure, No.2 for points and No.2 for points against.
Led by Luke Parker, Errol Gulden and Mills they brought pulsating pressure against Melbourne and now Melbourne is under pressure.
The Demons won contested ball by 25. But it was a hollow statistic because almost every second possession of theirs was boiling hot.
Melbourne scored just once from 40 attempts exiting defensive 50m. The ball rarely made it too far up the MCG.
Instead the Swans locked it in and laid 25 tackles inside 50m. Their 57 points from forward-half intercepts was their best return this season.
They were gifted goals but these were presents paid for in advance, using commitment as currency.
The Swans laid 30 tackles in the final term, becoming only the eighth team to do so after 800 quarters of football this season.
They’ve kept the Demons to five points (round 12) and 30 points (qualifying final) off turnovers this year.
Instead Melbourne mainly scored from stoppages, an unsustainable style.
The Demons fumbled and bumbled while Norm Smith Medallist Christian Petracca moved more like a 36-year-old than a 26-year-old.
Petracca copped a kick to the calf from Franklin in the first quarter, which numbed his special powers.
Premiership coach Simon Goodwin told his players in the MCG rooms on Friday night their equation had not changed.
He was right. The Demons are still three victories away from securing back-to-back flags for the first time since 1959-60.
The problem is they are 0-5 against top-four teams this season. Yep, zip and five.
They’ve lost to Sydney at the MCG twice, Collingwood at the MCG twice and were smacked by Geelong at GMHBA Stadium.
In fact, it has been a middling Melbourne for many months.
The Demons are 6-7 in their past 13 games and the ladder from rounds 11-23 had them 10th, only one win in front of Essendon and Adelaide.
Last year they dropped games against the stragglers but mostly dominated the contenders.
This year they have lost to every club still alive in the premiership hunt except Brisbane while the Swans have won eight in a row, the Cats have won 13 in a row and the Magpies have won 12 out of their past 13.
All eyes now turn to the semi-final rematch against their bunnies, Brisbane, on Friday night.
The outside chatter will centre on the spice as Harrison Petty and Dayne Zorko come face-to-face again.
You suspect Goodwin will instead be obsessed by Lachie Neale, who had the second-most clearances (15) ever recorded in a final on Friday night.
Angus Brayshaw appears to be the man to cool the Brownlow Medal favourite and you hope he’s feeling fresh, because Neale incredibly did not visit the bench in the second half.
Brayshaw blunted Warner on Friday night, winning seven disposals to four from their 37 minutes opposed, and broke even against Neale a fortnight ago.
That night it was Brayshaw 22-20 (disposals) and 4-3 (clearances) from 79 minutes.
Clayton Oliver and Neale showed why they are Brownlow Medal favourites the past two nights and you suspect Deven Robertson will be the man to clamp ‘Clarry’.
Noah Answerth and Cameron Rayner will return from suspension but it’s unlikely the Lions will return to Jarryd Lyons.
He was listed as injured but will play in the VFL on Saturday and his dip in form had been a red flag for the Lions.
In the Gabba rooms on Friday night coach Chris Fagan thanked his recruiters for signing ruckman Darcy Fort after Oscar McInerney’s concussion.
Fort will withdraw from the VFL and will probably play against Gawn and Jackson. But you wonder whether Dan McStay’s performance could cause a rethink.
Jackson spent 71 per cent of round 23 in the ruck and recorded a season-high 12 hit-outs to advantage.
The Demons will back in Ben Brown over Tom McDonald while the Gawn forward experiment rolls on.
McStay the No.1 ruckman was unplanned yet unpredictable against the Tigers and the Lions need to throw something different at the Dees after three losses in 12 months totalling 155 points.
Their other six losses have combined for just 47 points.
They need a circuit-breaker against the reigning champions. And if they can’t find one then the champs will need one to snap that top-four run the following week.
Stunning Swans leave Dees on the ropes
Sydney have made it through to a home preliminary final in a fortnight’s time after upsetting reigning premiers Melbourne by 22 points in the second qualifying final in front of 78,377 fans at the MCG on Friday night.
The Swans repeated the dose from their Round 12 encounter at the same venue, becoming the second team this year, along with Collingwood, to beat the Demons twice, and can now look forward to their first grand final qualifier in six years.
The 14.7 (91) to 10.9 (69) result has sent Melbourne into a cut-throat semi-final next Friday night against the Brisbane Lions at the MCG.
After trailing by six points at half-time, the Demons wrested the momentum back with a three-goal blast inside the first six minutes of the third term to lead by 12 points, on the back of their devastating surge game from the middle.
But the Swans absorbed the onslaught and responded by kicking eight of the last 10 majors to complete a comprehensive victory.
With Lance Franklin well held by Steven May all night, the Swans still comfortably managed to kick a winning score, as Will Hayward, Tom Papley, Sam Reid and Jake Lloyd all chipped in for two goals each as Sydney finished with 10 individual goalkickers in total.
“We are absolutely rapt. Coming down here it was a big game... to come out in front of 78,000 and get the job done over a quality side, it was an arm wrestle,” Swans star Luke Parker said post-match.
“We knew what May and (Jake) Lever could do but once we got that chaos ball going we improved.
“You’ve seen the desperation at the last line of defence, it’s what stands up and they do it time and time again.”
The result was further soured for Melbourne with James Harmes sure to come under match review scrutiny for charging into Lloyd early in the final quarter.
The Swans didn’t escape unscathed, though, as Oliver Florent limped off the ground with less than five minutes to go with what appeared to be a right ankle injury.
Melbourne dominated the airways all night, winning the contested marks 17-6, but once again, their forward efficiency let them down terribly, finishing with 19 scores from 55 inside 50s (35 per cent), compared to Sydney 21 from 50 (42 per cent).
The Demons again had the lion’s share of contested possessions (165-141) but couldn’t capitalise as the Swans finished on top in clearances (39-34).
Parker and Lloyd each had 25 disposals for the Swans, while Tom Hickey was huge in the ruck with 18 touches, 24 hitouts, five clearances and a goal.
Hickey had a good duel with Melbourne’s Max Gawn, who had 19 touches, 30 hitouts and a goal, while May (23 touches) and Clayton Oliver (29) also stood out for the Demons.
Papley praised the effort and toughness of the young Swans.
“That was amazing and you look at the Swans over the years, some of those efforts towards the end that’s the Bloods Culture,” he said.
“We base our game around pressure, today we brang it. They are a good side.”
“The Academy kids they go all right, even Stevo (Dylan Stephens) kicking one from the junction.”
“The SCG will be humming.”
THE BLOODS CULTURE
Sydney big manTom Hickey got emotional in the rooms after the win, echoing Papley’s thoughts about the people at the Swans, and discussing a difficult week for his family.
“It was like nothing I’ve experienced. It is incredible,” the ruckman said.
“I’ve spent plenty of time without a final so it is incredible.
“It is just good people everywhere at the footy club, it is just genuine care.
Just amazing people.”
“Max (Gawn) is a hell of a player and so is (Luke) Jackson so I knew I had a hell of a job to quell his influence. I was right up his arse for one of them and he still marked it. He’s one hell of a player.”
“Both of my twins have been in hospital this week so I’m coming home.”
MAY FREES TURN THE TIDE
Just as Melbourne threatened to run away with the game when Kysaiah Pickett made it three Demons goals in a row to give them a 16-point lead early in the second period, the momentum completely changed. With Melbourne well on top and the ball on their half-forward flank, May gave away a pair of off-the-ball free kicks to Franklin, the second of which resulted in a 50-metre penalty for Will Hayward who duly slotted a goal against the run of play. It would be the first of four consecutive Sydney goals as the Swans grabbed a seven-point lead prior to half-time.
SMART LIKE A FOX
Nearing the halfway mark of the final quarter, with Melbourne on the ropes and trailing by 19 points, they had a gilt-edged chance to get within 13, but Sydney defender Robbie Fox got in the way brilliantly as he first smothered Jake Melksham’s shot on goal from 30m out and after Charlie Spargo gathered the subsequent spillage, Fox was there again, smothering Spargo’s snap from the pocket.
FRITSCH FIRES
After drawing level early in the third term thanks to a converted Oliver set shot, Melbourne went six points ahead thanks to a spectacular Bayley Fritsch snap shot from the boundary in the wrong pocket for a left-footer. He finished with three goals after passing a very late fitness test.
LLOYD KICKS A RARE GOAL
Nine minutes later, Lloyd kicked a similarly magnificent goal for the Swans as he gathered the loose ball 50m out from goal tied up on the boundary line and split the big sticks with Pickett and Jake Lever bearing down on him. The goal drew Swans level with the Demons and it was Lloyd’s first goal since Round 8 last year (also against Melbourne), and just the 32nd of his 198-game career.
IN HARMES WAY
James Harmes’ finals series could be over after a callous strike on Jake Lloyd that cost Melbourne the opening goal of the final quarter at the MCG.
Harmes cannoned into Swan Jake Lloyd in an act Hawthorn legend Dermott Brereton described as “1970s stuff” on radio.
Brereton suspected Harmes’ season might be over after the moment of madness that gifted Lloyd a free kick and 50m penalty, which took him to the top of the goalsquare.
“That’s a forearm to the throat late on the scene. He’s pleading his case to Luke Parker,” Brerton told SEN as Lloyd punched the Swans three goals clear,
“This will put Harmes off completely now.”
The Swans fans booed Harmes for the remainder of the qualifying final.
Scoreboard
DEMONS 4.1, 5.4, 10.5, 10.9 (69)
SWANS 2.3, 6.4, 12.5, 14.7 (91)
LERNER’S BEST Demons: May, Oliver, Gawn, Petracca, Fritsch, Viney, Langdon. Swans: Parker, Lloyd, Hickey, Papley, Rowbottom, Mills, Fox.
GOALS Demons: Fritsch 3, Oliver 2, Spargo, B.Brown, Pickett, Sparrow, Gawn. Swans: Hayward 2, Papley 2, Reid 2, Lloyd 2, Rowbottom, Mills, Stephens, Parker, Hickey, Heeney.
INJURIES Demons: Oliver (cut eyebrow/cut cheekbone). Swans: Florent (ankle).
REPORTS James Harmes (Melbourne) for charging Jake Lloyd (Sydney) in the final quarter.
UMPIRES Stevic, Stephens, Fleer
VENUE MCG
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