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Their season may have ended in barely an unexpected whimper, but 2014 should still be considered a success for the Sydney Swans.
Why? Because their rather controversial acquisition of Lance “Buddy” Franklin paid off massive dividends, as we are about to see later.
A first minor premiership in 18 years and the resurgence of Adam Goodes were among the many other highlights.
Let’s take a look back at the season that was for the Sydney Swans.
Sydney Swans
Final ladder position: first (17 wins, 5 losses, 142.9%)
After finals: second
Rising Star nominees: Harry Cunningham (Round 15), Jake Lloyd (Round 21)
Retirees/delistees/departees: Lewis Roberts-Thomson, Ryan O’Keefe, Jordan Lockyer, Matthew Dick, Tommy Walsh, Patrick Mitchell, Nick Malceski
What went right?
After a slow start to the season, the Swans compiled their best winning streak in almost 80 years, winning 12 consecutive matches between Rounds 5 and 17.
Buddy and partner in crime Kurt Tippett proved unstoppable, bearing the responsibility for most of the Swans’ victories in 2014. Only once did either man (Tippett in Round 12 against the Gold Coast Suns) fail to kick a goal in the 12 games they played together.
Buddy brought up his 200th game against St Kilda in Round 21 and marked the occasion with nine goals, also somewhat burying the demons of his 100th game, which saw him held goalless in a 25-point loss to the same team in 2009.
Adam Goodes also made a strong comeback from what appeared to be a season-ending knee injury in Round 6, notching up his 350th game in the preliminary final against North Melbourne and showing no signs of slowing down.
What went wrong?
Three losses in the first four rounds of the season had the critics questioning the Swans’ premiership credentials, and a few wrote them off after a poor 43-point loss to North Melbourne in Round 4.
Among those losses included a humiliating 32-point loss to little brother Greater Western Sydney, who demonstrated that Buddy (who was being heavily linked with the AFL’s newest franchise) wasn’t the player they needed going forward.
Additionally, the media must have regretted jumping on the Swans bandwagon in the week leading up to the grand final, as the pressure of being favourites got the better of the team in the biggest match of all, going down by 63 points.
Best win: defeated the Geelong Cats 22.16 (148) to 5.8 (38) at the SCG in Round 11
Having been given the honour of kicking off the AFL’s Indigenous Round on the Thursday night, the Swans celebrated with an unbelievably astonishing victory against one of the powerhouse teams of the last decade.
It was when the Swans’ multi-million dollar forward pairing of Lance Franklin and Kurt Tippett went out to play, kicking nine goals between them as the Swans romped to a 110-point victory, handing Geelong their first triple-figure defeat in eight seasons.
The win was set up by a great defensive first half which saw the Swans restrict the Cats to only one goal. Their attacking flair was then there for all to see in the second half as they unloaded with 14 goals to officially inherit the tag as premiership favourites.
Worst loss: lost to Hawthorn 21.11 (137) to 11.8 (74) in the grand final at the MCG
For the dominance that the Swans showed during the regular season, sadly it all turned to dust as they suffered a humiliating 63-point dismissal at the hands of the Hawks in the grand final.
They did start well by kicking two of the first three goals, but quickly fell behind by the quarter-time siren and although they would breathe some life by kicking the first goal of the second quarter, were on the back foot for the remainder of the match.
In the end, the final margin of 63 points was to be the worst by any minor premier in a grand final since 1926, when Melbourne defeated Collingwood by 61 points.
But should any Swans fan dare to be optimistic, it’s that the Pies would then embark on a run of four straight flags, a feat which remains unmatched in AFL history. Could this mark a good omen for the Swans?
The future
Having been a top four side for the last three years, many will expect the Swans to continue to contend for another premiership in the years to come, however it will not come very easy at all, as we are about to see.
Premiership veterans Lewis Roberts-Thomson and Ryan O’Keefe have retired from the game, leaving Adam Goodes as the only survivor from the club’s 2005 premiership. Defender Nick Malceski has also been lured away to the Gold Coast Suns where he will very likely finish his career after debuting for the Swans in 2005.
Forward Tim Membrey, who could only manage one game since being drafted in 2012, has signalled his intentions to continue elsewhere, with wooden spooners St Kilda looming as his likely new home.
Goodes has announced he will play on in 2015, meaning he will be 35 by the time the season starts. Rhyce Shaw will also go around for another season, while Gary Rohan may have to shift to defence to cover for the loss of Malceski.
Despite the losses of several key players, the Swans will still be expected by many to contend for another flag next year. Or is this a sign that their premiership window might be starting to lower after all these years?
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