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Thread: Swans v Demons - The Wrap

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    Swans v Demons - The Wrap

    After the Swans came from 20 points behind at the final break to win by four goals, Swans coach Paul Roos was stunned.

    "I didn't expect what happened to happen, but obviously it was very pleasing," Roos said. "It's only one game and it's only one win but for a lot of them, it was just above and beyond the call of duty tonight, some of the efforts out there were just outstanding."

    "I think it was a just a really, really good win. All night we played some good footy but again just a few mistakes a crucial times cost us so the effort over four quarters ? even in the third quarter when they kicked five goals ? we still were working really hard."

    "Some of them were out on their feet as really we only had one guy on the bench in the last quarter that was fit. Nicksy wasn't fit to go back on, but he had to go back on. So there was only young James Meiklejohn, so really we had 19 players."

    But Roos cautioned that a 2-3 win-loss ratio was nothing to get carried away with.

    "It's important for their confidence," he said. "But, again, we've only won two games ... we need this effort week in, week out. They need to savour this but remember what makes us a competitive team."

    At three-quarter time, Roos asked his players to keep working hard as he felt they were always a chance.

    "The main thing was not to kick it to centre half-forward because we seemed to want to bomb it into that really dangerous area too often and they just rebounded so quickly running it back the other end of the ground," Roos said. "Also to really give it an effort, just to keep working and anything could happen, though I didn?t expect what happened to happen but obviously it was very pleasing.?

    Jason Ball put in a dominant display for the Swans, finishing with 10 kicks, 10 marks, 12 handballs plus two of the Swans' 10 goals in the final term.

    "I was a bit crook through the week and have sort of been up and down this year but Anzac Day is a special day to me and I just wanted to play some good footy," Ball said. "It was a really good win and we have worked hard in the last three weeks but haven?t really put it on the board but to play almost four quarters of football and get away with the win was just sensational."

    "I was worried about my calf cramping more than anything else," he said. "The crowd started to get behind us which is important to us in Sydney. The boys lifted. We had a bad three weeks but we really dug deep and the boys came through."

    Roos was full of praise for Ball, who is still a little short on fitness.

    "What he has been able to do with a year off, a number of guys have said to me over the last month how the level of football has increased on last year, so to miss a season of football is a very difficult thing to do," Roos said. "I think his form generally has been very good this year and tonight he was just outstanding. It is a really credit to him to come back and play like that after having 12 months out of football."

    Jeff White was one of the Demons' best against Sydney. He said the fadeout was a worrying trend that had to be stopped.

    "We've been trying for five years to organise an Anzac Day clash, and fortunately we got the chance to play in one. And we let ourselves down so everyone's very upset," White said. "To Sydney's credit, they were running the ball out really well and we just weren't getting enough players to the ball."

    In summing up, Roos was looking ahead to the next two matches.

    "They just really worked hard above and beyond what they probably would normally go. They need to enjoy the game and almost put it in their memory bank," he said. "I think it's pretty important for the confidence. They're two very good teams. Collingwood away, and then Brisbane anywhere is a very, very difficult game. What it shows again is we need every player playing pretty well to win a game of football."
    Last edited by RWO News; 27th April 2003 at 08:58 PM.

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