Showing great character and determination, the Sydney Swans have scored a win against the odds to defeat Melbourne by 24 points on the back of a scintillating final quarter at the SCG.
After trailing by 20 points at the final change, the Swans piled on 10 goals to three in the last term, storming home to win 17.7 (109) to 13.7 (85) and claim the Barassi Cup for the first time.
Making the win all the more special was the fact that Sydney lost to injury its first two defensive options on Melbourne spearhead David Neitz, who was the leading goalkicker on the ground with six majors.
Andrew Schauble was Neitz’s first opponent, but he succumbed to a hamstring injury after the Coleman Medallist had booted two early goals.
The undersized Craig Bolton was Neitz’s next opponent and conceded a further four goals before being knocked out by an accidental elbow from teammate Stuart Maxfield, late in the third quarter.
Play was delayed for several minutes as trainers attended to the defender after the sickening knock.
Neitz was held goalless by Jason Saddington in the last quarter, but it was more to do with the dominance of Sydney’s midfield.
After a dour first half which saw the Swans lead by six points at the long break, Melbourne took control of the match in the third quarter, kicking five goals to one.
The Demons had too may tall options up forward, with ruckmen Jeff White and Darren Jolly providing great support to Neitz with three and two goals respectively in the second half.
Despite being held scoreless for the third quarter, until Michael O’Loughlin snapped truly at the 24-minute mark, Sydney refused to throw in the towel at three-quarter-time.
Goalsneaks Nick Davis and O’Loughlin provided a spark with early goals, but Melbourne seemed able to find the answers with replies from White and Jolly.
But the move of ruckman Jason Ball up forward onto the smaller Clint Bizzell proved a winner for Swans coach Paul Roos, with the big man kicking two vital last term goals.
Ball was a key contributor around the ground in the first half for Sydney, gathering 16 possessions and seven marks, until he appeared to be restricted by a calf problem in the third stanza.
After admirably being led by the unheralded Brad Miller – who was ultra tight on Barry Hall - and Luke Williams for three quarters, the Melbourne defence was under siege in the last quarter, as the Sydney midfield surged on top.
Paul Williams had been kept quiet by James McDonald for much of the night, but had a greater influence after half-time, while 18 year-old Adam Schneider was a real livewire with two last term goals, making it three for the night.
In an exhilarating final term, Sydney hit the front at the 14-minute mark after two goals in two minutes from Schneider and O’Loughlin.
The Swans looked to well and truly have the ascendancy with Ball and Williams scoring again in the next seven minutes, to open up a 13-point lead.
A goal to Melbourne youngster Scott Thompson against the run of play gave the Demons some hope, but with only four minutes remaining on the clock, Sydney skipper Stuart Maxfield goaled to give his side some breathing space.
Further majors to Jude Bolton and Schneider stretched the final margin to 24 points, with Sydney’s victory leaving both teams on two wins and three losses after five rounds.
The Swans will be able to take some confidence into their match with Collingwood at Telstra Dome next Saturday night, while the Demons face another week of soul-searching before hosting the West Coast Eagles at the MCG that same afternoon.
SYDNEY: 2.3 6.4 7.4 17.7 (109)
MELBOURNE: 3.2 5.4 10.6 13.7 (85)
Goals: Sydney: Davis 3, O’Loughlin 3, Schneider 3, Ball 2, Hall, Goodes, Nicks, Williams, Maxfield, J.Bolton. Melbourne: Neitz 6, White 3, Jolly 2, Moorecroft, Thompson.
Best: Sydney: Ball, Cresswell, Schneider, O’Loughlin, Maxfield.
Melbourne: Neitz, Yze, Brown, Johnstone, White .
Injuries: Sydney: C Bolton (concussed), Schauble (back)..
Reports: Nil
Crowd: 24,286 at the SCG
