Sydney have scrambled their way to a finals double chance in a most unfinals-like performance against St Kilda at Marvel Stadium on Sunday.
Needing to win by about nine goals to finish second and claim a home final at the SCG in a fortnight, the Swans were forced to fight desperately, scrambling to a 14-point victory.
They also have questions about the fitness of livewire small forward Tom Papley after he was subbed out with concussion.
Trailing by 23 points at the last change, the Saints kicked four goals in the final term to the Swans’ two, with Will Haywood snapping both goals to save John Longmire’s side after St Kilda twice reduced the margin to seven points.
Sydney will meet Melbourne in a qualifying final at the MCG in a fortnight. The Demons, last year’s premiers, finished second with the Swans third.
Papley was subbed out shortly before half-time with suspected concussion by but may still be able to play in the Swans’ first final given that next weekend is a bye, allowing teams to regroup and freshen up.
Isaac Heeney and Lance Franklin’s Swans open their finals campaign against defending premiers Melbourne at the MCG.Credit:Getty
Melbourne’s imposing victory over Brisbane on Friday night left the Swans with a steep mountain to climb if they were to propel themselves into the rarefied air of a top-two finish.
Sydney’s haul of 16 victories for the season is one better than last year, when they finished fifth but suffered an upset loss to crosstown rivals GWS in the first week of the finals to be knocked out.
The Swans can’t be knocked out in week one this year. Victory against Melbourne will give Sydney a week off and a place in a preliminary final while a loss would give the Swans a home final the following week at the SCG.
The workmanlike performance was Sydney’s seventh win in a row but hardly the type of football that suggests the Swans are going to be a serious September threat to the likes of Melbourne or top team Geelong.
The 14-point loss was former Swan Dan Hannebery’s final game in the AFL.Credit:Getty
Hard-working midfielders James Rowbottom and Callum Mills were the main drivers for the Swans along with wingman Errol Gulden, but they were strongly matched around the ball by St Kilda’s Ben Long, Jack Steele and retiring former Blood Dan Hannebery.
And Max King went from villain to potential hero. The tall and mobile key forward kicked five goals straight after a shocking case of the yips against Brisbane, when he kicked five behinds.
Most of the drama around finals places took place further down the ladder on Sunday as Collingwood came from behind to win by a point and knock Carlton out of the finals in front of 88,000 at the MCG, allowing the Western Bulldogs to sneak into eighth place after beating Hawthorn in Launceston.
Such is the topsy-turvy nature of the game that the last team to beat the Swans were Essendon, who sacked their coach on Sunday as a precursor to a big day of football.
Hannebery, the former Swans premiership midfielder, turned back the clock for one of his rare strong appearances in a Saints jumper.
A prolific possession winner for the Swans through more than 200 games, Hannebery was a three-time All-Australian but managed just 17 matches during four injury-riddled years with the Saints.
The Swans failed to start like a team that needed to win by a considerable margin for second place and a home final.
All the early indicators were in favour of St Kilda but they failed to capitalise on their early domination. Most significantly the Saints had doubled the Swans in clearances.
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