A flying snap from Swans forward Ryan O’Keefe sailed through for a behind with 50 seconds remaining, to give the Swans a share of the spoils of a match they led nearly all day.
The Swans were ahead by as much as four goals at one stage in the third term before the Demons mounted their comeback. A freakish mid-air soccer goal from new Melbourne skipper Brad Green with two minutes to go gave Melbourne the lead for the first time in the match, but the remainder of the match was played in the Swans' half of the ground. A rushed behind, followed by the O’Keefe snap ensured the draw.
The first half was played at a frantic pace, befitting two sides champing at the bit for several months to play meaningful footy. The Swans looked more damaging early with key forwards Adam Goodes and Sam Reid threatening to take the game apart, but they were less effective after half time and it was left to Jude Bolton to take some important marks and kick three second half goals for the Swans to keep his side ahead.
At the other end, Melbourne livewire Liam Jurrah showed some spark and finished with two goals, but Swans fullback Ted Richards had the best of that duel.
Melbourne got back into the game by winning the contested possession. Brent Moloney and Jack Trengove led the way, while Green, Aaron Davey and Colin Sylvia were also important with some key touches in the second half.
Influential players
Ryan O’Keefe had 31 touches for the Swans including the all-important match-saving behind. Rhyce Shaw was singled out by the Swans post-match for some hard, late running on the wing just as Melbourne appeared to have the ascendancy. Colin Garland deserves praise for curbing Adam Goodes after the Swans star looked threatening early on. Jack Trengove played a terrific second half as the Demons got back into the match, while Brent Moloney also provided midfield drive.
What it means
Melbourne now faces an angry Hawthorn at the MCG in next Sunday’s twilight match, but will give itself a big chance of springing an upset. The Swans' winless streak at the MCG is now six games and 11 of the last 12. They return to play Richmond in round 21.
The next four
Melbourne: Hawthorn (MCG), Brisbane Lions (MCG), Gold Coast (Gabba), bye.
Sydney Swans: Essendon (ANZ Stadium), West Coast (Patersons Stadium), Geelong (SCG), bye.
What the coaches said
Dean Bailey (Melbourne)
“I think both teams had opportunities to win the game to be honest. Especially with the fatigue factor coming late in quarters and particularly in the second half, goal kicking, decisions going inside 50 and kicking through the middle of the ground under some fatigue were relevant today. Both teams had opportunities to get that extra two or three [goals] in front from set shots but unfortunately from our point of view we didn't take the opportunities and the Swans did the same.”
John Longmire (Sydney Swans)
“I’m not quite sure what to make of it. There were things that we didn’t get quite right and didn’t nail, so we get a draw and we move on. We were smashed in contested footy, that’s one thing we didn’t get right, but we’ll learn from it. We had some opportunities in the third quarter that we should have made a bit more of.”
Winning move
Adam Goodes and Sam Reid were marking everything early for the Swans early on, but Melbourne coach Dean Bailey maintained the faith and kept his key defensive match-ups in tact, particularly with Colin Garland on Goodes. Sensing the need to shake things up a bit, John Longmire moved veteran Jude Bolton to full-forward in the second half, where he kicked three goals including the Swans' final goal of the match, a one-handed lunging grab in the goal square. Melbourne really needs All-Australian defender James Frawley back in the side and will sweat on his return for the Hawthorn clash next week.
Magic moment
Brad Green famously trialled with Manchester United in his teens and his soccer skills came to the fore in the last few minutes when, in a frantic goal square contest, he poked the ball with his toe in mid-air and it poked through for a goal. It was his second for the day and prompted one of Green’s trademark celebrations. Sadly for him and the Demons, they couldn’t hold the lead. Making the goal even better, Green wasn’t even off-side.
Dreamteam highlight
Ryan O’Keefe is a $358,000 midfielder/forward in Dreamteam, who averaged 86 points last year. But 31 possessions, including 10 of them contested, earned him 119 points on Sunday in a fine start to the year.
Match details
Melbourne 3.2 5.8 8.12 11.18 (84)
Sydney Swans 5.3 7.5 10.14 11.18 (84)
GOALS
Melbourne: Green 2, Dunn 2, Jurrah 2, Sylvia, Jetta, Moloney, Jones, Bennell
Sydney Swans: McGlynn 3, Bolton 3, Goodes 2, Reid, Everitt, White
BEST
Melbourne: Sylvia, Garland, Moloney, Trengove, Tapscott, Green, Dunn
Sydney Swans: Richards, Jack, Bolton, McGlynn, O’Keefe, McVeigh, Grundy
INJURIES
Melbourne: nil
Sydney Swans: nil
Reports: Davey (Melb) for head high contact with McGlynn (Syd)
Umpires: McBurney, Armstrong, Jeffery
Official crowd: 33,951 at the MCG
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
