Swans coach ‘lost for words’ in emotional finals triumph
The Sydney Swans are now one match away from a grand final but will likely continue their finals surge without Callum Mills, who is suspected to have ruptured his ACL in a 21.15 (141) - 13.10 (88) win over the Lions at the SCG.
Sydney’s dominance comes after going into the match as underdogs with Isaac Heeney, Chad Warner, Riley Bice, James Jordon and Nick Blakey all not featuring due to the club-imposed suspension.
Errol Gulden celebrates kicking a goal. Getty Images
The temperature in Sydney when the match started hovered around 30 degrees for the 37,261 strong crowd before the weather changed to rain and wind at half-time.
At that break, the Swans were leading 10.8 (68) - 5.8 (38) after Logan McDonald kicked three goals.
The injury to Mills came in the first quarter when the Swans had a massive 32-point lead.
The Swans captain had attempted to put pressure on Will Ashcroft but the Lions star stepped around him which led to Mills’ knee buckling.
In the third quarter, Tom Papley owned the occasion with three goals to take his match tally to five. Going into the final term, that lead had broken out to 16.13 (109) - 9.9 (63).
In the fourth quarter, Charlie Curnow and Logan McDonald also took their goal tallies for the match to five and six with the Lions never getting a sniff.
As Brisbane’s Logan Morris lined up the final set shot of the match, the camera panned to Sydney’s coaching box with Dean Cox sharing warm embraces with his staff.
“They’re entitled to be happy with themselves, it’s a coaching masterclass from Dean Cox today,” Jason Dunstall said on Fox Footy.
Leigh Montagna added: “The coaching staff should be so proud of the plan they put in place today”.
Cox was “lost for words” post-match.
“Incredibly proud of the group. To lose your captain early, to rally, execute the roles we wanted, I couldn’t be prouder,” he said to Fox Footy.
“We’ve worked hard on this game style for 10 months, and we want to make sure anyone who comes into the team can execute their role and do what’s required when required, and they did that in spades. I’m really proud of them.”
Errol Gulden was the star for the Swans, finishing with 34 disposals from 75 per cent of time on ground.
Dean Cox emotional after beating Brisbane. Fox Footy
The 24-year-old also kicked a brilliant solo goal in the third quarter to dent any hopes of a Lions comeback.
The Lions will now play the winner out of the Crows and Bulldogs in Brisbane.
