{"id":882042,"date":"2026-09-06T11:38:17","date_gmt":"2026-09-06T11:38:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/882042\/"},"modified":"2026-09-06T11:38:17","modified_gmt":"2026-09-06T11:38:17","slug":"sydney-swans-finals-win-how-the-team-reclaimed-their-club-image-and-reputation-after-weeks-of-turmoil","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/882042\/","title":{"rendered":"Sydney Swans finals win: How the team reclaimed their club image and reputation after weeks of turmoil"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Michael<\/p>\n

September 6, 2026 \u2014 7:39pm<\/p>\n

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Key pointsThe Swans reshaped an image of themselves in just two hours.When Jack Ginnivan said what he said, it felt like he was dead right.Oh, Errol!: What could have been goal of the year.The ovation for Matthew Nicks showed the Crows board what the fans thought.<\/p>\n

Sydney\u2019s image reshape <\/p>\n

The Swans did, if not the impossible, then the highly unlikely. In some ways, winning the game was their least surprising achievement.<\/p>\n

Somehow, they made themselves likeable. Admirable even. That outcome seemed more implausible for the past three weeks than the prospect of them winning a final against the reigning premiers.<\/p>\n

The shamed club reshaped an image of themselves<\/a> in two hours on the SCG. Even long-term fans had spoken of finding it hard to support the club, or to reconcile what they felt for them, after the embarrassment of the Pullman Hotel saga. So the real consequence of Saturday\u2019s win was not the upending of the finals series \u2013 and they certainly did that \u2013 it was the reclaiming of an image of them as a club.<\/p>\n

\"PlayingPlaying with pride: Sydney\u2019s Charlie Curnow.Getty Images<\/p>\n

After three weeks of ignominy and opprobrium that tainted the club and undermined what it had represented they performed in such a manner on the field, doing the thing they exist for, that it moved you to want them to win.<\/p>\n

You found yourself barracking for them. Maybe that is just the enjoyment of watching an underdog win. Maybe it is the simple sympathy for the players and coaches who were collateral damage from what happened at the Pullman that left the whole club gasping for air.<\/p>\n

Another perspective\"Dane<\/a><\/p>\n

This is not a comment that implies winning excuses behaviour or is a salve for any hurt. It is a recognition that those not suspended responded in a way to repay or reclaim fans and members.<\/p>\n

It is recognition that the club said when they punished their players that they were prepared for the fact the players\u2019 behaviour which prompted the suspensions might have torpedoed the season. And yet, the players and coaches left to play out the year said \u2018no it hasn\u2019t, we\u2019re better than that and we will show you\u2019.<\/p>\n

So the Swans, five players down, three of them bona fide elites of the competition, lose their captain early in the game and still thoroughly outplay the best side of the last two years.<\/p>\n

The Swans will hope that the two hours on the SCG were as influential to mould the idea of what Sydney stands for as the early morning hours in the Pullman.<\/p>\n

The fact is, this was one of the great finals wins by any club. Full stop. That\u2019s the point.<\/p>\n

As a contest, it was absorbing. As a game, it was exhilarating. But that element alone didn\u2019t make it great.<\/p>\n

\"MatthewMatthew Pavlich with Swans chairman Andrew Pridham on Saturday.AFL Photos<\/p>\n

It was great because of the narrative in which it occurred, because of the cast of heroes on the field and villains barred from being there. It was great because the captain was injured early<\/a> and it didn\u2019t stop them. It was great because it included one of the great goals of the year. It was great because it was played in conditions that fluctuated from winter storm to light spring \u2013 all in a quarter.<\/p>\n

It was great because the stars they had left all shone and played like they understood the burden of extra performance they now carried, and they wore it lightly.<\/p>\n

Editor’s pick\"Callum<\/a><\/p>\n

The pantomime provocateur Tom Papley kicked five goals and had one more nicked from him on the goal line by the shaggy-haired adonis Charlie Curnow, who dismissed doubts about his own ability to perform in finals.<\/p>\n

Logan McDonald decided now was the time to play his best-ever game, indeed his best ever three games in a row. James Rowbottom offered a singlemindedness and aggression that compensated for any missing midfielder.<\/p>\n

The Swans were great because of Errol Gulden. The man whose name sounds like a London law firm, he played with a speed and class superior to anyone on the field. The Swans\u2019 midfield might now be called Errol Gulden and associates.<\/p>\n

It was a great final because Brisbane got back to three goals down and could have and should have had the greater depth of class to prevail, and didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

\"PausingPausing for thought: Brisbane coach Chris Fagan.AFL Photos<\/p>\n

Chris Fagan could not resist thinking his players, like the rest of us, had agreed with Andrew Pridham that the Swans had torpedoed their season.<\/p>\n

\u201cSomewhere back in the deep recesses of their mind, I just wonder whether they really thought it was going to be as hard as what it was,\u201d Fagan said.<\/p>\n

\u201cDid you really think that Sydney were going to be that good, or did you think it was going to be maybe a walk in the park? Because that\u2019s how it had been painted by all and sundry that\u2019s following football. And probably quite rightly so.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jack\u2019s oopsy<\/p>\n

Jack Ginnivan after Thursday night\u2019s win delighted in the fact Hawthorn were now on the \u201cright side of the (finals) draw\u201d. That is, they had either Adelaide, the Bulldogs or Sydney.<\/p>\n

And when he said it, it felt like he was dead right. Everyone had discounted the idea of Sydney winning, or being any form of threat in the finals. Now it is far less clear which side of the draw is right.<\/p>\n

\"SimplySimply pumped: Hawthorn\u2019s Jack Ginnivan.via Getty ImagesOh, Errol \u2026 goal of the year contender <\/p>\n

Errol Gulden can\u2019t win goal of the year. But he should. He kicked it on Saturday afternoon. Izak Rankine offered up a similarly disallowed challenger hours later, but Gulden\u2019s was still better.<\/p>\n

Nights earlier Jordan Clarke might have taken mark of the year. Also not allowed.<\/p>\n

Gulden\u2019s was special. Sam Draper had just kicked a goal for the Lions 30 minutes into the third quarter. Strangely, with only a couple of minutes of playing time left, he ran off to the interchange. The Lions had if not a sniff, then a whiff. They were 34 points down but with a flush of momentum.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

The next bounce and Gulden takes it away lifts the ball out of the grasp of Hugh McCluggage and runs by the rest of the centre back. He takes a bounce, runs through centre half forward drawing and handballing over a Lions defender, got a handball back, ran to his left baulking another Lions defender and snapped the ball at goal on his left. All at full pace.<\/p>\n

It had striking similarity to Noah Anderson\u2019s goal of the year last year, but this had far greater consequence.<\/p>\n

Later on Saturday Rankine\u2019s crumb and snap on his right foot from the right point post while he was facing the crowd had to bend in a way it shouldn\u2019t have.<\/p>\n

Neither can win goal of the year because, like mark of the year, the eligibility period doesn\u2019t include finals. Which is silly really because firstly, it deserves to at least be considered, and secondly and yes, it\u2019s a bit pedantic but rename it goal of the season not year if you are not going to include finals.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Nicks of time for win<\/p>\n

Football boards get twitchy. The idea that Matthew Nicks was coaching for his job was silly given his team were minor premiers last year, lost their most dynamic player to suspension for the whole finals series, and he\u2019d made finals again this year. Silly perhaps, but that doesn\u2019t mean it was not true.<\/p>\n

The board, any football board, would wonder if they had the right coach to take them further if they went out of the finals again. Geelong famously did with Mark Thompson as did Richmond and Damien Hardwick. Chris Fagan\u2019s Lions went out in straight sets twice in his first three finals series. He was one win and five losses in his first six finals over three years. They stuck with him. He turned out alright.<\/p>\n

Nicks took over a team before it had bottomed out and he drove them up the ladder. As is the odd thing in coaching he started with a three-year contract when they were poor but when they won the minor premiership he got the shortest of his contract extensions, just one year.<\/p>\n

The ovation for him when he was on screen and could not suppress his smile in the last quarter showed the board what the fans thought.<\/p>\n

Keep up to date with the best AFL coverage in the country. Sign up for the Real Footy newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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\"MichaelMichael Gleeson<\/a> is an award-winning senior sports writer specialising in AFL and athletics.Connect via X<\/a> or email<\/a>.From our partners<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"September 6, 2026 \u2014 7:39pm Save You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":882043,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[560],"tags":[638,64,63,55,639,85],"class_list":["post-882042","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-afl","tag-afl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-australian-football-league","tag-australianfootballleague","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/882042","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=882042"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/882042\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/882043"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=882042"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=882042"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=882042"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}