You almost can’t help but raise an eyebrow when a player tells you “we’ve got nothing to lose” in an AFL grand final. But when that player is Robbie Fox, you’re almost inclined to believe him.
It was not so long ago the 29-year-old thought about heading home to Tasmania, already acquainted with a back-up plan after a stint as a substitute teacher at a Paddington primary school, while stuck in Sydney’s reserves team without a contract for next year.
Now he finds himself on the cusp of an AFL premiership as part of a Sydney Swans side happy to wear the underdog tag and put the heat on the Geelong Cats in Saturday’s grand final at the MCG.
Oh, and the defender capable of shifting into the forward 50 or pinch-hitting in the ruck has a new two-year deal to boot.
Fox has rarely had it easy since he was picked up by the Swans in the 2017 rookie draft, cut in 2020 before being relisted again. It goes some way towards explaining why he genuinely feels like the Swans – who enter as outsiders for their fourth grand final appearance during the John Longmire era – have nothing to lose during a game in which legacies are carved, because Fox was almost resigned to throwing in the towel anyway.
“It’s pretty special,” Fox said of his remarkable rise to the grand final. He has found a home in Sydney’s defensive arc after featuring in just two of the first 14 rounds of the season – once as an unused medical substitute.
Robbie Fox has found a home in Sydney’s defensive ranks.Credit:Getty
“Speaking to ‘Horse’ [Longmire] and the older boys, you try and soak it up for what it is. It’s a pretty special week for the club and our families, so you try and enjoy it for what it is. When it gets to game day, you just focus on another game and hopefully another win.
“Every time we’re underdogs, we can bring the heat and the pressure. We like to be underdogs, we’ve got nothing to lose. We can just go down there, hunt them and play good footy.”
Geelong ride a 15-game winning streak to the grand final, the Swans are unbeaten in their past nine. At least one of these two clubs has featured in 10 of the past 17 grand finals, but this will be the first time they’ve met in the last game of the season.
The Cats’ last trip to the decider came two years ago, and there will be no shortage of experience in their ranks. Sydney have not played a grand final since 2016 and their rise has been fuelled largely by a young brigade Fox says will have no concern about lifting on the big stage.
“Errol Gulden is in his second year and he is playing like he has played 200 games, so it’s pretty special. We’ve got a lot of talented young boys, but we’ve got a good mix,” Fox said.
“We’ve got a lot of great, older mentors for them. They can give us handy tips about how to approach the week; don’t use the energy up early in the week and save some for game day, just prepare like it’s another game, embrace it and have a crack.
“They’ve got a great forward line, a mature midfield and really good defence down back. It’s pretty cliched but it’s definitely going to be a team effort.”
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