Brutal Grand Final truth Sydney Swans won’t want to hear

The Sydney Swans have let another golden opportunity slip, and there’s an inescapable truth their supporters won’t want to hear.

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The Sydney Swans have completely wasted a decade of dominance at the top of the AFL.

Another heartbreaking Grand Final loss, this time to the Brisbane Lions, means the Swans have fallen short in their last four grand finals.

They have the 2005 and 2012 premierships to hang their hat on, but you can’t escape the feeling the Bloods have let 10 years at the top of the AFL ladder slip through their fingers without a trophy to show for it.

Since John Longmire took over as coach in 2011, Sydney have been minor premiers three times and missed finals only twice.

Consistency is good. Finishing on top of the ladder is great. Premiership cups are even better.

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This looks all-too familiar for Swans fans. Photo by Robert Cianflone/AFL Photos via Getty Images.

With today’s loss, their recent Grand Final record has turned from a hoodoo to a curse.

The Swans haven’t been the same in Grand Finals since Hawthorn’s Jarryd Roughead crunched Dan Hannebery into the MCG turf in the 2014 decider.

They can consider themselves unlucky to get on the wrong end of some questionable umpiring in 2016 as the Bulldogs pulled off a drought-breaking, fairytale win from outside the top four.

The Swans haven’t been the same in Grand Finals since this Jarryd Roughead tackle on Dan Hannebery. Picture: Michael Klein

The Swans lost the 2014, 2016 and 2022 Grand Finals by a combined margin of 166 points. The hammerings at the hands of Hawthorn and Geelong were particularly painful — it’s never great when the most important game of the year is over at halftime.

Interestingly, Buddy Franklin lost the three Grand Finals he played during his time at the Swans.

His 10-year stint in Sydney was undoubtedly a success, with the SCG still seeing the benefits of Buddy in their strong crowd numbers.

But it’s easy to forget Buddy never tasted ultimate team success with the Swans.

They’re not the first team who has struggled to get it done on the last day in September.

Geelong lost four Grand Finals in 1989, 1992, 1994 and 1995, leaving Gary Ablett Snr as arguably the greatest player in the game’s history never to win a premiership.

St Kilda is perhaps the most cursed club of all. The Saints last won the premiership in 1966 and fell short at the final hurdle in 1971, 1997, 2009 and 2010.

Compare that to Hawthorn, who have won a premiership in every decade stretching back to the 1960s and look on track to contend again soon with club legend Sam Mitchell at the helm of a rapidly improving young team.

Buddy Franklin never won a premiership with the Swans. Picture: Wayne Ludbey

John Longmire’s Grand Final record of 1-4 doesn’t make for pretty reading.

Longmire led the Swans to the 2012 flag but a second premiership would be the perfect way to bookend his coaching career, if he hands the reins to Dean Cox in a couple of seasons.

Chris Scott could have been accused of getting lucky taking over a dominant Geelong team in 2011.

But the 2022 triumph, ironically over the Swans, was just reward for a decade of incredible consistency cemented his status as one of the best coaches of the modern era.

On the other hand, losing Grand Finals can also be seen as the sign of a successful team. In the NRL, the Melbourne Storm lost four deciders between 2006 and 2018.

It’s why triumphs in 2017 and 2020 were so crucial to franking their status as the most consistent team of the century, especially before Penrith’s dynasty began.

The Swans have missed finals only five times this century, rebuilding and regenerating with superb coaching and list management.

You have to applaud Longmire for getting the Swans back to a fifth Grand Final in his tenure.

But history is ultimately written by the winners, and the Swans have now lost their past four grand finals — a horror record that will sting for a long, long time.

John Longmire’s legacy is up for debate. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/AFL Photos/via Getty Images)

Spare a thought for Dane Rampe, Jake Lloyd and Luke Parker, who have now played in four losing grand finals.

Parker, the substitute in the 2012 grand final, is the only player left on Sydney’s list from their last premiership side.

Tom Papley, Isaac Heeney and Callum Mills have lost Sydney’s last three season deciders.

At what stage does repeatedly falling agonisingly short the take a mental and emotional toll on the playing and coaching group? It’s hard to climb the mountain again.

The 2016 Grand Final loss was crushing for the Swans. Picture. Phil Hillyard

It’s also a waste of a truly dominant season by the midfield trio of Isaac Heeney, Errol Gulden and Chad Warner.

Instead of earning comparisons to legendary midfields like Voss-Akermanis-Black and Judd-Cousins-Kerr trios, the Swans triumvirate may well be consigned to history.

Warner has put off contract talks until next year, and while he could well re-sign at the Swans, a move back home to Western Australia appears on the cards for The Chad.

The Swans faithful might feel better about farewelling Warner if he had won a premiership in red and white.

They are still young enough to make another charge. But there’s no guarantee they’ll get back to the Grand Final.

Sydney enjoyed an excellent run with injury in 2024, and it likely won’t be that good next year.

Losing four Grand Finals will haunt the Swans badly. Oh what might have been.