Throughout Friday’s pre-grand final press conference with the two captains and coaches, the platitudes were plentiful. Both teams admired the other for their skill and depth, but each stressed they had to focus more on their own game plan. For Geelong, this was to be the ultimate test of their revised style and personnel. For Sydney, it had been a youth-led charge sprinkled with veteran nous.
In the end, come the shadows of Saturday afternoon before a heaving MCG, it was the Cats who had ultimate vindication, the oldest side in VFL-AFL history storming to an 81-point victory, remarkably their 16th straight this season, and the equal fifth-greatest winning margin on the sport’s showpiece day.
The victorious Cats were barely challenged all day.Credit:Eddie Jim
The emphatic victory assured Chris Scott of his place in history as a two-time premiership coach. He inherited a team in full premiership mode in 2011, but this latest incarnation was one he had steadily rebuilt around three of the game’s greats, Joel Selwood, Tom Hawkins and Patrick Dangerfield.
This was Selwood’s fourth flag, his first as captain, on a day he broke Michael Tuck’s record (40) for most finals. For Hawkins, it was his third flag, while Dangerfield finally celebrated what he had craved beyond all individual honours in his 303 games, franking his decision to leave the Crows and return home.
“This is the pinnacle, worth the wait better than I could have ever imagined,” Dangerfield said.
For the Swans, this was their heaviest defeat of the season, and their third-straight losing grand final, following the heartbreaks of 2014 and ’16. All have been in the Lance Franklin era, the last season of his nine-year contract failing to deliver the ultimate reward. Having signed a one-year extension, there is still hope, but work to do.
Amid the swirling wind, Hawkins (four goals), Selwood (26 disposals) and Dangerfield (26) were brilliant. Hawkins gave the Cats the early punch they craved. Having missed a set shot from a tight angle, the All-Australian skipper twice outmuscled Tom Hickey at forward-pocket throw-ins, plucked the ball and snapped truly. Hawkins has made a habit of this in the latter years of his career, but to do so twice against the Swans’ No.1 ruck was still surprising – and he set his team alight.
Isaac Smith celebrates a goal with Gary Rohan.Credit:Scott Barbour
There were some unexpected match-ups, including Swans defender Robbie Fox manning Jeremy Cameron, and Ryan Clarke – the Swans’ chief tagger – heading to playmaker Tom Stewart. However, the switched-on Cats dominated contested possession, generally controlled the ball, and forced their opponents to go long down the line. The signs were ominous.
Selwood botched his first kick but by quarter’s end the midfielder was best afield, with 12 touches. Dangerfield and Isaac Smith were kick-to-kick partners in the pre-game warm-ups, and were soon busy early when it mattered. Wingman Smith, seeking a fourth flag, having had three with the Hawks, joined Hawkins with two first-term goals, both of which were opportunistic. He would later add another goal among his 32 touches, and was named Norm Smith Medal.
When Dangerfield’s clever long pass found Mark Blicavs in the pocket, leading to another goal, the engine was humming.
The stunned Swans had to make a statement in the second term. They lifted their pressure rating, and threw a few punches, but the Cats always responded.
Tyson Stengle, the All-Australian small forward, and one of the great tales of redemption this season, followed Hawkins and Smith in having multiple goals. He finished the afternoon with four.
Swans co-captains Callum Mills and Luke Parker worked hard, a Mills long bomb providing some momentum. Chad Warner was also busy, the Swans looking to retain possession and make the Cats work. But too many teammates failed to have an impact.
Isaac Heeney, with five goals when the teams met in round two, took until the 18-minute mark to have his first touch – from a free kick. He delivered a late goal, but his team still trailed by six majors. Franklin, with Jack Henry, and not Sam de Koning as expected, as his opponent, had only three touches to half-time, and was possessionless in the third. He pushed up the ground but could not mark.
Sam Reid, in doubt all week as he dealt with an adductor injury that he suffered against Collingwood, could not run, and was silenced by De Koning, who finished among the Cats’ best.
Reid was a non-factor, and had treatment in the dressing room just before the main break. He was subbed off just after half-time, sparking questions as to why he was selected.
The Cats, however, had made their tough call on injured youngster Max Holmes, and had Irishman Mark O’Connor fit and healthy.
The Swans, the No.1 ranked pressure side in the competition, needed to reprise this early in the third term, a period dubbed the “premiership quarter” when Carlton ran amok in the early 1980s. On this day, it was when the Swans fell apart.
It may be unfair to single out players, but Tom McCartin won’t be tuning in to a replay anytime soon. First, he was too slow to kick and was tackled, leading to a Mitch Duncan goal. The lack of awareness summed up his team. Minutes later, his short pass across goal was intercepted by Brad Close, who also converted. The Cats’ lead was out to eight goals. Game over.
Smith and the relentless Cam Guthrie then joined the party, while Dangerfield’s contested work was a sight to behold. A robust handball to Stengle for a goal will linger in the memory. Duncan and Zach Tuohy were also in the thick of things.
Fox was one of the Swans’ few winners, Cameron struggling to have an impact until the final term, while Clarke stalled Stewart’s run. It mattered little.
A 74-point lead at three quarter-time meant the final term was nothing short of a celebration, and a chance for a handful of Cats to press for the Norm Smith Medal. A hamstring strain to Guthrie was a mildly sour note, but his elation when medical substitute Brandan Parfitt accepted a handball and kicked a goal epitomised the Cats’ spirit.
Scott and his men thoroughly deserved this flag, the Cats’ ability to remain in contention for most of the past decade since their 2011 success a tribute to all. The Swans also know how to rebuild on the run. Don’t be surprised if both teams are back on this day next year.
GEELONG 6.5 9.8 15.11 20.13 (133)
SYDNEY 1.0 4.2 4.3 8.4 (52)
GOALS
Geelong: Stengle 4, Smith 3, Hawkins 3, Close 2, Cameron 2, De Koning, Duncan, Blicavs, Selwood, Guthrie, Parfitt.
Sydney: Warner 2, Papley, Hayward, Heeney, Mills, McCartin, McLean.
