AFL round 24: Dees defeat Swans 77-56, Buddy Franklin farewelled
The Dees dug deep in Sydney to spoil Buddy Franklin’s farewell, but it is set to come at a massive cost, with a key injury denting their September aspirations.
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Simon Goodwin admits the Dees will walk away from their win against the Swans “a little bit empty” after Jake Melksham’s suspected ACL injury.
The 31-year-old came from the ground in the third quarter unassisted after jarring his knee jostling at the back of a marking contest with Robbie Fox.
He was subbed out of the game and Goodwin admitted the initial prognosis was not promising.
“Yeah, we fear the worst but we hope for the best,” Goodwin said.
“Looking at an ACL which is really sad for Melky and takes a really big dent in the day.
“I’ve coached Jake for a long time, 14 years, and he’s been craving the opportunity to play in a successful team for finals footy.
“It’s a bit of a dampener on our day. There’s no doubt we walk away a little bit empty missing Jake.”
Melksham has played 14 games this season, his most in a year since 2020, and had another two goals against the Swans on Sunday.
It’s a dent for Melbourne’s forward-line plans going into the finals but Goodwin is hopeful he will have the cavalry to cover Melksham’s absence.
“He means so much to our footy club and he’s done an enormous job for us this year and he’s actually improved as a player,” Goodwin said.
“We’ll wait and see what the scan says. That’s the emotional part of our game that we find difficult.
“Today we went with a different mix for the first time with Joel Smith, Melky, Fritsch and Jacob van Rooyen. It was looking quite dynamic but now, we’ve got to have another look at what’s possible.”
Goodwin won’t be short for options with Tom McDonald and Brodie Grundy kicking eight goals between them in Casey Demons’ big win over North Melbourne in the VFL.
“That’s the pleasing thing about our club, guys keep pushing hard and looking for opportunities,” McDonald said.
“Tom McDonald has come back and kicked another five. Brodie played another outstanding game and kicked three. So there’s some opportunity there.”
Bayley Fritsch also came off with a slight injury during the third quarter but returned to the field to kick two key goals in the final term.
“He just rolled his foot halfway through the third quarter but came back on and seems fine,” Goodwin said.
“He’ll need some assessment but we’re confident he’ll be right. It’s something fresh today…but we’re pretty sure he’ll be okay.”
The Demons knew going into the Swans’ clash that they would be playing minor premiers Collingwood no matter the result at the SCG.
But the win gives them plenty of momentum going into the finals, particularly following their King’s Birthday victory over the Pies in June.
While Goodwin’s side won’t be taking them for granted, there’s no doubt they’ll be confident of pulling off a week-one upset.
“We’re as best prepared as we can be,” Goodwin said.
“We feel like we built some momentum in the back half of the year. We feel like our game is built on really strong foundations.
“We’re well placed but we’re playing a formidable opponent in Collingwood who is sitting at the top of the ladder for a reason.
“We’re looking forward to that opportunity but we’ll have to play at our best.”
Dees play party spoilers in Buddy’s emotional farewell game
Melbourne has spoiled the party at the SCG with a come-from-behind 21-point victory over the Swans on Sunday afternoon.
The Sydney faithful were in full voice as they farewelled Lance Franklin, but it was Christian Petracca, Bayley Fritsch and their Dees teammates who let their footy do the talking.
While the Swans had already secured finals action, a win against Melbourne would have given them another match at the SCG in week one of the finals.
However, inefficiency in front of goal came back to bite John Longmire’s side once again in 2023 with Melbourne coming home with a head of steam in the final quarter to wrap up the win.
The first half of the match was evenly poised with Melbourne leading at the first two breaks thanks mainly to Sydney’s inaccuracy.
A third-quarter onslaught handed the momentum back to the Swans thanks to three goals in the space of three minutes to Sam Wicks, Hayden McLean and a stunner from outside 50 to Errol Gulden.
The noise went through the roof for Gulden’s second goal of the day with a capacity crowd at Moore Park on a high after Franklin’s half-time lap of honour.
But the Dees were not done for and kicked two goals late in the third term to take the momentum right back.
Players were coming from the ground for both teams in the last quarter as the pressure of the physical, finals-like encounter began to ramp up.
In his first game back, Bayley Fritsch finished with a game-high five goals for the match, lifting himself off the canvas to kick two decisive goals in the final term.
The Dees kicked the last six goals of the game across the third and fourth terms to ice the game and send a message to the rest of the competition that they should be feared in this finals series.
Melbourne will now face Collingwood in a qualifying final at the MCG in the first week of the finals. The Swans will also be heading down to Melbourne where they will take on either Carlton or St Kilda in an elimination final.
GULDEN WRAPS UP ALL-AUSTRALIAN JUMPER
If there was any doubt about Errol Gulden’s place in the All-Australian team, his performance against the Dees all but locked up his first jumper.
The 21-year-old has been Sydney’s best player in 2023 but saved arguably his best performance for the final round of the year.
Gulden finished with two goals and an incredible 42 touches as he tried to spark the Swans’ attack. He also had nine score involvements and 14 contested in another formidable showing from the wingman.
TRAC GETS DEES BACK ON TRACK
Sydney threatened to run away with the match in the third quarter after four straight goals. They opened a 17-point lead and were well on top with less than four minutes to go in the term.
However, superstar Christian Petracca put his team on his back to kick a goal and set up another to bring the lead back to just four points at the final break.
It was a perfect example of both his brute strength and delicate touch as handed the Dees the momentum back going into the last quarter. The Swans wouldn’t kick another goal for the match as Melbourne closed out their 16th win of the season.
For Petracca, it could also prove to be the difference as he hunts for the Brownlow Medal.
INACCURACY HURTS SYDNEY AGAIN
The Swans have already had a handful of games in 2023 where inaccurate goal-kicking has come back to haunt them but none could hurt as much as Sunday’s loss to Melbourne.
Sydney only kicked 3.7 in the first half despite having the run of a lot of action. Joel Amartey was one of the main culprits with one behind and one out on the full from two straightforward set shots.
The yips steadied in the second half but the damage was done with Melbourne running away with the game.
MATCH DETAILS
SWANS 2.5, 3.8, 7.12, 7.14 (56)
DEMONS 3.2, 5.4, 7.8, 11.11 (77)
MCKIRDY’S BEST:
Sydney - Gulden, Mills, Parker, Warner, Lloyd
Melbourne - Petracca, Fritsch, Oliver, Viney
GOALS:
Sydney - Gulden (2), Warner, (1), McLean (1), Wicks (1), Mills (1), McDonald (1)
Melbourne - Fritsch (5), Melksham (2), van Rooyen (1), Pickett (1), Petracca (1), Brayshaw (1)
UMPIRES: Ray Chamberlain, Andre Gianfagna, Simon Meredith, Nathan Williamson
INJURIES: Melksham (leg injury - subbed out of the game)
CROWD: 41,753 at the Sydney Cricket Ground
MCKIRDY’S VOTES:
3 - Petracca (MEL)
2 - Gulden (SYD)
1 - Fritsch (MEL)
Tears and beers: Buddy’s emotional footy farewell
An emotional Lance Franklin has been farewelled in front of a packed SCG crowd, honouring the career of the Sydney and Hawthorn legend.
A relaxed Franklin was soaking in the sun and enjoying a beverage as the SCG prepared to say goodbye to the champion goalkicker.
It’s the first time Franklin has returned to the footy since he retired from the AFL following a calf injury against Essendon.
Franklin was taking in the action alongside fellow Sydney legend Michael O’Loughlin, as well as former Wallabies Matt Giteau and Drew Mitchell.
Former Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson was in attendance, as was fellow Swans retiree Paddy McCartin.
Buddy is looking relaxed in life after footy ðŸ¾
— Fox Footy (@FOXFOOTY) August 27, 2023
📺 Watch #AFLSwansDees LIVE on ch. 504 or stream on Kayo: https://t.co/c5VwhmeFbG
âœï¸ BLOG https://t.co/p6NHqFP3dZ
🔢 MATCH CENTRE https://t.co/1EEoBD9jWmpic.twitter.com/rA2g6nD4Wn
At half time, Franklin made his way down to ground level to complete a lap of honour in front of the Swans’ fans where he was visibly emotional as he thanked fans.
A near-capacity crowd packed out the SCG for the occasion with members lining up from as early as 8.30am to get a seat at the ground.
Speaking at the ground, Franklin admitted he was overwhelmed by the reception from the Sydney faithful as he reflected on his footy career.
“Lot of happiness, a little bit of sadness, but it’s all come to an end,’ Franklin told his former Hawthorn teammate Shaun Burgoyne on Channel 7.
“I feel incredibly honoured to have played this great game for 19 years. A little bit overwhelmed. “There’s a lot of hard work that goes into it. It’s a long time playing footy. It’s incredible to be here and see our fans out here today.
“Coming from the bush in Western Australia, probably never thought this was possible. To play 19 years at two great clubs, I’m incredibly proud.”
“Probably the banter in the changerooms, that day-to-day stuff. That’s what I’ll miss the most. Competing, being out here. Just playing footy, I’m going to miss that.” Franklin said.
“I feel very blessed to have played this great game for so long. I’ve met some amazing people through my journey and it’s been an incredible turnout today, so thanks, everyone.”
On the field, it was a scrappy opening half of footy with the Dees taking a narrow eight-point lead into the main break.
The Swans could have used some of Franklin’s accuracy as they kicked 3.8 across the opening two terms.
Originally published as AFL round 24: Dees defeat Swans 77-56, Buddy Franklin farewelled
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