THE PAST two losing Grand Finalists are back in the decider, but the scars for Sydney and Brisbane are far different.
In 2022, the Swans were humiliated in an 81-point loss to Geelong, while last year the Lions lost a classic to Collingwood by four points.
Two contrasting defeats on the biggest stage and, on Saturday, one of them will be crowned premiers to bury the demons.
So what does history tell us about teams returning to the Grand Final so soon after losing one?
In good news for the Swans, teams that return to the biggest stage within two years of a heavy Grand Final defeat have historically fared well. In VFL/AFL history, 13 teams have lost a decider by 50-plus points and returned to the biggest stage within two years. Of those 13, nine won their next Grand Final (including Melbourne in a replay in 1948).
Interestingly, five of those 13 played in deciders in each of the two years following their thrashing, with three winning consecutive premierships following their Grand Final thumping.
It includes some of the fiercest rivalries and most famous teams, including Hawthorn and Essendon in the 1980s.
Inspired by six goals from Leigh Matthews, the Hawks handed the Bombers an 83-point thrashing in the 1983 decider. Essendon exacted its revenge the following year, flying home in the final quarter to win by four goals before crushing Hawthorn by 78 points in the 1985 decider.
The Hawks would then beat Carlton by 42 points the following year to rebound from a Grand Final thrashing of their own.
Before becoming the first – and to this day only – side to win four consecutive flags from 1927-30, Collingwood lost a decider to Melbourne by 57 points.
And prior to their run of three straight premierships from 1955, the Demons were well beaten in a decider by Footscray (51 points).
However, the past two sides to return to a Grand Final after a thrashing haven't delivered.
Most recently, the Swans lost the 2016 decider after being well beaten by Hawthorn in the 2014 Grand Final. Before that, Geelong suffered heavy Grand Final defeats in 1994 and again in 1995.
As for the Lions, who have embarked on a remarkable run to become just the fourth team in history to make a decider after being 0-3, their ability to bounce straight back into a Grand Final is relatively unique.
They are just the seventh team in history, and first since West Coast in 2005-06, to lose a decider by a goal or less and make it again the following year. The previous six have gone 3-3 when they have returned to the biggest stage (including Essendon's loss in the 1948 replay).
"The really intriguing part about this is that the two sides that are playing this weekend have both been Grand Final losers in the last two years," Alastair Clarkson, whose Hawthorn side lost the 2012 decider before rebounding to win three consecutive premierships, told AFL.com.au's Finals Focus.
"There's going to be significant redemption in a sense for the Sydney Swans because they will want to erase that terrible memory of getting beaten so convincingly against Geelong two years ago, then the heartbreak of being so close last year by Brisbane, they have got their own redemption story too.
"It's going to be a really, really intriguing battle. They will, no doubt, whether it's the coaches or the players themselves, be thinking back to last year, in Brisbane, or two years ago Sydney, is a significant motivator.
"Desire is the greatest motivating force there is and they've both got this enormous desire to try and win this Grand Final. Sometimes, it's going to take this moment of redemption to try to be the thing that fuels just the extra effort, the extra contest, the extra winning effort that might just be the thing that gets them over the line."
Brisbane has embarked on a fairytale finals run, and whether they can back it up yet again remains to be seen.
While the Lions' elimination final win over Carlton was comfortable, they needed a miraculous comeback to get past Greater Western Sydney (by five points) and were pushed hard in the enthralling 10-point win over the Cats on Saturday.
Brisbane is just the 12th team in history to win two finals by 10 points or less on its way to a Grand Final, and those previous sides have struggled to go all the way. Of the previous 11, only two won the decider.
The Lions were on the receiving end of one of those last year, when Collingwood completed a run of finals thrillers to win the flag, while Adelaide also achieved the feat in 1997.
