‘Worst ever’: NRL cult figure blows AFL away over depressing detail

An AFL great has responded after NRL cult hero Willie Mason turned a flamethrower on the rival football code.

Willie Mason says he felt sorry for fans at the AFL Grand Final and will not be going back.

The NRL cult hero this week turned a flamethrower on the rival football code after heading to the MCG to watch the Lions slaughter the Swans in the 2024 season decider.

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Sydney has since been torched by footy commentators with calls for the club to trade out players, despite the club finishing on top of the ladder.

Mason went even further in his criticism, saying the day as a whole left him “bored s***less”.

It comes as former Brisbane Lions stars Mitch Robinson and Rhys Mathieson responded to the former NSW State of Origin star, with Mathieson saying the atmosphere from inside the venue was “nuts” as a Brisbane Lions supporter.

Mason, however, said he wanted to leave after 25 minutes.

“It was probably the worst major event I’ve ever been to,” Mason said on the Levels Network podcast with former Eels star Justin Horo.

“It was just boring. There were 100,000 people there and 25 minutes in I’m thinking this is boring.

Mitch Robinson and Willie Mason filming their podcasts on YouTube.

“Maybe it was what the Swans dished up. Very underwhelming. If I speak to most people that were down there it was very underwhelming. If I was going off just as an event. Terrible.”

He went on to say: “I think it would have been a lot better if it wasn’t over at quarter time.

“I was bored s***less. And then they say, ‘Well the game was pretty s***’. It’s f***ing the Sydney Swans’ fault then. F***ing have a decent crack.

“I felt sorry for the diehard supporters. I’m not a diehard supporter and I’m sitting there going, ‘This is awful’ – as a spectacle because of the awful effort that the Swans put in.”

He said he would only return if big Melbourne clubs like Collingwood and Carlton were facing off.

Robinson, who played 147 games for the Lions before being delisted in 2022, said on his Rip Through It podcast he could see why Mason would have seen it as a “pretty depressing” day.

“I can understand what he’s saying because he doesn’t know AFL. He doesn’t really watch it, whatever. He’s come down expecting a f***ing arm wrestle of a full on game,” Robinson said.

“They’re the two best teams in the granny. Obviously, Sydney dished up that s*** and it would have been pretty depressing coming from Sydney to watch that.”

He said, as a neutral fan, the 2022 grand final where Geelong annihilated the Swans was “the most boring thing I’ve seen in my life”.

The Swans look on after another grand final disappointment. (Photo by Daniel Pockett/AFL Photos/Getty Images)

“He (Mason) is being biased obviously. But that could be the opinion of a lot of people tuning into the game just because the Swannies are in it,” he said.

“They’re two interstate teams and it’s not a Carlton-Collingwood grand final. We know what would happen with a Carlton-Collingwood grand final. It would be the biggest thing in history.”

Mathieson, however, said the stadium was “rocking” from where he was sitting inside the Lions’ official family and friends seating bay.

“The atmosphere was sick there for me,” he said.

“I was in the family section with all the friends and players and I know people at home were saying it was a s*** game.

“Obviously the sting was taken out of the game. But if you’re a Brissy fan and you’ve been to games before and know the atmosphere and know what’s going on. That was rocking for us.”

To the victors go the spoils. (Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

He highlighted the moments the crowd belted out the Lions players’ individual songs — headlined by Charlie Cameron’s famous Country Road song celebration.

He said the TV didn’t capture the spectacle and described the atmosphere as “nuts at the ground”.

Robinson also spared a thought for the Swans after the humiliating defeat, saying the players will have “demons”.

“It’s more embarrassing and your ego just takes a kick to the nuts,” he said of the 60-point blow out.

“I know they’re going to be struggling. They’ll be back in the finals next year. They’re not going to go anywhere. But that’s demons. That’s demons, brother.”

It was a fourth consecutive grand final defeat for the Harbour City club, following losses to Hawthorn in 2014, the Bulldogs in 2016 and Geelong two seasons ago.

The hits have continue to come for the Swans this week with club champion Luke Parker requesting a trade.

Former Footy Show host Sam Newman also took a swipe at Swans players.

The Swans completely capitulated late in the second quarter and there was no sign of any fight in the second half where the Lions led by as many as 73 points.

“If anyone ever says, ‘You experience the hurt of losing — either in life or in sport — and that will stand you in good stead’ — it is the most overrated, ridiculous comment,” the former Geelong player said in a video shared on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“I’ve watched the Swans. I tipped the Swans today. I watched the Swans get belted by Geelong in 2022. They didn’t try. And today they came down to the MCG. Took the oxygen out of the city. Both sided, because no Melbourne sides were playing. And we thought wow, here we go. And once again they refused to try.

“They are a disgrace. They should be censured by the AFL for taking the piss out of this competition.”