‘It’s just crazy’: Unsung hero Chad Warner gets lost amid SCG chaos

Chad Warner had a night to remember at the SCG, but the Swans young gun took a wrong turn amid the chaotic scenes in Sydney.

Buddy Franklin was the centre of attention on Friday evening — and rightfully so — but Sydney Swans young gun Chad Warner also had a night to remember at the SCG.

The 20-year-old had the honour of booting the Sherrin at Franklin to set up his 1000th AFL goal, which sent Sydney into a frenzy.

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With six and a half minutes left in the fourth quarter, Warner kicked the footy towards his veteran teammate, who claimed the mark 30m out from the sticks.

Franklin calmly kicked the major to hit quadruple digits, sparking wild scenes as the stands emptied onto the hallowed turf.

Amid the chaos, a Sydney spectator filmed Warner celebrating his small but vital contribution to the milestone moment.

“I f***ing kicked it to him,” the estatic Swan screamed.

It took nearly half an hour for security to drain the venue and return the jubilant pundits back to their seats.

However, Warner and teammate Ollie Florent were stranded outside the SCG among the public, having taken a wrong turn while navigating their way back to the sheds.

“I did a head count in the rooms and I realised we were five short,” Swans coach John Longmire told SEN.

“I felt like a kindergarten teacher trying to look around where all the kids were ... I thought we might struggle to get a team organised for the last five minutes!”

Funniest thing I’ve ever seen. Amongst the mayhem last night these two ended outside the stadium. #Buddy1000pic.twitter.com/u1CTfdSRFS

— Xavier Ellis (@XaviEllis18) March 26, 2022

Just a couple of punters trying to find their way around the ground https://t.co/AtTTszf4blpic.twitter.com/C9nQlkPInK

— Mitch Cleary (@cleary_mitch) March 26, 2022

Warner told CODE Sports: “Yeah it was crazy. I had a lot of running room and I was about to bomb it over his head but I saw him at the last minute and thought I have to go there don’t I? It was a moment that will go down in my life forever. It’s just crazy.

“I saw the goals first and then I thought in the back of my head where’s Lance, he was the only bloke I was thinking about and he had that much space. I just checked at the last minute and it was great, a pretty nice kick straight to him.

“He’s an amazing competitor. I reckon he’s a big child at heart, he just loves playing with us young boys. Great for me obviously, my development and that.

“He’s always got time for you which is amazing, especially a massive figure like him to hang out with him and all that stuff. He’s an amazing bloke and an amazing father now as well.”

The theatre of sport gets no better .. ever 🙌 💪👏👏#Buddy1000pic.twitter.com/rLiNDrNkZB

— Phil Hillyard (@philthy295) March 25, 2022

Warner, who made his AFL debut in 2020, finished the Round 2 match with 25 disposals and four marks as Sydney secured a comfortable 17.5 (107) to 10.17 (77) victory over th Geelong Cats.

“Most importantly we played a way which gave us the moment to be able to celebrate it and that was really important for us,” Longmire told reporters in his post-match press conference.

“Going into the game we didn’t talk about Lance and the ifs, buts and maybes in regards to that, we just wanted to play a certain way. To have the game at that point in hand and to be able to celebrate it was pretty special.

“We didn’t feel the pressure in the build up to the milestone; my attitude was always that it will happen when it happens. I know it sounds boring, but we didn’t talk about Lance in every meeting and talk about his thousand goals; it was always going to happen when it happened; we didn’t need to build the pressure, we just needed to take it away.

“He’s a footy head, Lance, so he fully appreciates the significance of it. He should be really proud of that.”

This tik tok of #Buddy1000 is inaaaaaaaannnneee 🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/BugRSCoDod

— Ashlyne McInnes (@ashlyne_mcinnes) March 25, 2022

Sometimes a photo takes your breath away #Buddy1000pic.twitter.com/xB3YNBPJpn

— Emily Benammar (@EmilyBenammar) March 25, 2022

Amid the wild celebrations, Geelong star Zach Tuohy inadvertently bumped into a fan who was sprinting towards the Sydney Swans hero.

Cameras at the SCG captured the moment Tuohy accidentally flattened a helpless fan donning a black coat, who quickly returned to his feet and legged it towards the man of the moment.

But Tuohy showed his class by picking up the spectator’s wallet, chasing after him and returning it before heading to the sheds.

— with Andrew McMurtry

Originally published as ‘It’s just crazy’: Unsung hero Chad Warner gets lost amid SCG chaos