After worst SCG defeat this century, Sydney has bigger problems than a ‘rabble’ comment

After Sydney’s worst defeat at the SCG this century, Wayne Milera’s ‘rabble’ comment was generous, writes LACHLAN McKIRDY.” Can the Swans recover?

The Swans might have been labelled a rabble by an opposition player following their mammoth 90-point loss to the Crows, but that’s the least of their problems as senior leaders concede they lacked “synergy” on the field and are preparing for a week of brutal feedback.

The defeat was their worst at the SCG this century, as they commence a week of soul-searching and intense training in the hopes of turning things around this week against a resurgent Tigers outfit.

However, one of the major talking points out of last weekend’s defeat was the comment from Crows defender Wayne Milera that the Swans felt like a “bit of a rabble” by the way they were acting on the field.

While that phrase in particular has been the subject of much discussion, and even an apology from the Crows, not much investigation is required to see that Milera was accurate with his on-field assessment.

When Adelaide captain Jordan Dawson spoke on SEN on Monday morning, he provided further context around Milera’s commentary, suggesting it was about the Crows’ “ability to put enough pressure on (Sydney) to make them feel like they were second-guessing what they were doing”.

The Crows applied the pressure to the Swans and they didn’t know how to respond. Picture: Phil Hillyard

And the numbers back up that fact. The Crows scored a remarkable 14 goals from turnovers last Saturday, while 12 of their goals originated from the forward half. Sydney felt the heat in their own defensive half and were unable to get the ball forward of centre.

It resulted in Adelaide winning the inside 50 count 70-45, a mismatch in any sense of the word.

But the frustration eventually boiled over throughout the match. Justin McInerney, fresh off his second suspension of the season, gave away an unlucky, but still needless, 50-metre penalty to Milera in the first quarter that led to an easy goal.

The experienced Taylor Adams then vented his irritation by arriving late at a marking contest towards the end of the first half, putting in a late bump and disrupting one of their few forays forward by giving away another 50-metre penalty.

The trifecta of errors was capped off by veteran Dane Rampe who got sucked into giving away an easy shot at goal to Josh Rachele during the third term after the Swans’ glimmer of a comeback was emphatically slammed shut.

Three 50-metre penalties from players, and a team, who should know better after a season where ill-discipline has been a rare consistent theme in a year of inconsistencies.

There were other moments throughout the match where Swans players visibly showed their frustration at miskicks or errant handballs, leading to on-field arguments and disagreements.

On the rare occasion they found clean space out of the stoppages, they had no forward targets and bombed the ball long, resulting in easy Adelaide intercepts and Sydney heads dropping even further.

As much as it was a night where the Crows deserved to be celebrated for their ruthless efficiency, it was also a night where nothing went right for the Swans.

Isaac Heeney admitted that the “synergy” wasn’t there for his side against the Crows. Picture: Phil Hillyard

The Swans know they have to find a way to stick together after combusting against the Crows. Picture: Phil Hillyard

“We felt like we cracked in, but it just wasn’t coming off,” Isaac Heeney said. “But it just wasn’t coming off.

“And the synergy wasn’t there. So that’s definitely something we’ve got to work on. And all over the park, our defence, our contest, and our ball movement was terrible, and has been extremely inconsistent, especially the last two weeks.

“We hold ourselves to high standards, and we were far from that. We’ve gotta get back into the grind and work this out.”

The Swans need more on-field direction from their senior leaders. While for the majority of the season they’ve been missing club captain Callum Mills, the enigmatic Tom Papley and future skipper Errol Gulden, that’s not an excuse given the experience they still have.

Heeney, James Rowbottom and Lewis Melican are all part of the club’s current leadership group, which they choose not to publish publicly, who had the chance to prevent the “rabble” from occurring.

Even on the weekend, the Swans actually averaged 15 more games of experience in their 23 in comparison to the Crows. They’re a senior side, but didn’t play like it.

While Dean Cox took responsibility for the loss and suggested the training standards need to be improved, it’s also down to the wider playing group to admit some hard truths and find accountability for one of the Swans’ most embarrassing performances in recent history.

“We’ve got to get back to work and a bit of that old-school mentality of getting into it, and we’re not shying away from it,” Heeney said.

“It’s going to be a pretty honest review, and it’s going to be some honest feedback given. It’s not personal.

“We go to work and we get it done, we do it together. It’s going to be a long road back, but we’ve got the group to do it, and we’ll dig deep.”

Originally published as After worst SCG defeat this century, Sydney has bigger problems than a ‘rabble’ comment