Extraordinary scenes as Sydney pull off robbery to topple North Melbourne

North Melbourne fans have been left heartbroken after one of the most absurd losses the AFL has ever seen on Saturday afternoon.

James McKern

@jLmcKern

2 min read

May 20, 2023 - 6:13PM

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - MAY 20: Jy Simpkin of the Kangaroos and Phoenix Spicer of the Kangaroos lead the team out during the round 10 AFL match between North Melbourne Kangaroos and Sydney Swans at Marvel Stadium, on May 20, 2023, in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Daniel Pockett/Getty Images)

Sydney have produced one of the more absurd wins the AFL world has seen on Saturday afternoon after defeating North Melbourne.

Under the roof at Marvel Stadium, the Swans kicked a goal in the final minute to steal the three-point victory 14.9 (93) to 14.6 (90).

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Down by three points with less than a minute to play in the game and the ball deep inside Sydney’s forward 50, North committed the game-losing cardinal sin.

As all players waited for the ball to be thrown up, an interchange breach had occurred and stopped the game as the umpires worked out what had unfolded.

In the end, the ball was tossed to Sydney’s Hayden McLean with a 50m penalty putting him on the goal line.

North unfortunately went over their interchange limit of 75 and the brutal mistake ultimately cost them four points in their first game since Alastair Clarkson stepped aside.

“Very unusual set of circumstances with the game paused like that and the umpire clearly talking to someone through his head set,” Nick Dal Santo said on Fox Footy.

“It feels like there’s a fair bit of confusion.

“That’s the first time I’ve ever seen the cap go over and therefore be penalised.

“I wouldn’t be shocked if the majority of players on the field have no idea what the last free kick was for.”

Fellow commentator Mark Howard added: “Extraordinary scenes, extraordinary scenes under the roof”.

Watch the bizarre moment unfold in the video player above

A truly extraordinary way to lose a football match. pic.twitter.com/qvlRvXeuc7
— Riley Beveridge (@RileyBev) May 20, 2023

I think thatâ€™s the first interchange breach of the year.... and what a time for it to occur ðŸ˜³ðŸ˜³ #AFLNorthSwans
— Ronny Lerner (@RonnyLerner) May 20, 2023

Fox’s David Zita explained the incident unfolded some 30-40 seconds prior to the free kick being awarded with the next stoppage being required to award the free.

Two North melbourne players came off in the dying minutes, with the second player ultimately being the 76th interchange. It meant the AFL steward on the bench had no time to notify the club they had reached their limit.

Footage from the bench of the interchange mistake that cost North Melbourne the match. pic.twitter.com/oagntfRJuI
— Fox Footy (@FOXFOOTY) May 20, 2023

Oh no! #aflroosswans
— Rohan Connolly (@rohan_connolly) May 20, 2023

North flipped the script to start the fourth quarter as they kicked four unanswered goals to hold a 16-point lead and look like they were on the way to snapping their losing-streak.

Fueled by the stellar play of young star Harry Sheezel, North’s dominance came through the middle of the ground.

The Swans looked completely out of sorts after losing ruckman Peter Ladhams in the third quarter through injury.

But as the quarter wore on the Swans began to turn the tide of momentum as Errol Gulden and Isaac Heeney kicked goals to keep the pressure right on.

North were on fire in the fourth. (Photo by Daniel Pockett/Getty Images)

Earlier in the game, North fans produced a touching tribute to Clarkson who stepped aside from his role during the week.

The moment came at the 23-minute mark of the first term, an ode to Clarkson’s jersey number he wore during the majority of his tenure when playing for the club.

It comes just days after the AFL world was rocked when Clarkson announced he was stepping away from his senior coaching role indefinitely.