The Grand Final. The season is dead: long live the season!

[neilfws]

That was quite the comeback and turnaround!

Have to admit I was concerned in the late second - early third. Looked like Gawn had gone into the wrong headspace for a while, and other players were struggling. I noticed they moved him forward out of the ruck and I suspect, tweaked a few other things too, some clever coaching going on behind the scenes. Got their confidence back with the late Q3 goals and that was that!

Good on them and their long-suffering fans. I think we can relate, as another "premiership drought" team.

[Bloods05]

Of course we as Swans supporters would never do that

Can't speak for you mate, but I never would, not at the start of a Grand Final. I was there. It was ungracious in the extreme, and the fact that it was so loud made it seem like more than half the crowd. It felt oppressive and unbecoming on such a grand occasion. It was in keeping with the overall sense that everyone, umpires, football pundits, unaffiliated footy fans and all, wanted one result and one result only. It changed my thinking about where the GF should be held.

[KTigers]

Bontempelli is a awesome player but yesterday he was just in a team that got rolled. I thought his speech after the game was fine. Obviously
he was pretty flat after the Dogs were squashed by the Demons. Sometimes the opponent is on and you are off by a few per cent and there
is nothing you can do about it and you lose. And I'm sure that was very disappointing for him. Towards the end of last set of the final of the
US Open recently Djokovic sat in his chair with a towel over his head sobbing as he knew whatever he had in him that day wasn't going to
be enough and he was going to lose. And with it his chance to win the first mens Grand Slam in over 50 years. As good as these guys are
at their chosen sport they are going to lose sometimes and be disappointed and it's not surprising in the slightest their speech afterwards
will reflect that.

[Bloods05]

Bontempelli is a awesome player but yesterday he was just in a team that got rolled. I thought his speech after the game was fine. Obviously
he was pretty flat after the Dogs were squashed by the Demons. Sometimes the opponent is on and you are off by a few per cent and there
is nothing you can do about it and you lose. And I'm sure that was very disappointing for him. Towards the end of last set of the final of the
US Open recently Djokovic sat in his chair with a towel over his head sobbing as he knew whatever he had in him that day wasn't going to
be enough and he was going to lose. And with it his chance to win the first mens Grand Slam in over 50 years. As good as these guys are
at their chosen sport they are going to lose sometimes and be disappointed and it's not surprising in the slightest their speech afterwards
will reflect that.

I thought his speech was gracious and dignified.

[Faunac8]

Can't speak for you mate, but I never would, not at the start of a Grand Final. I was there. It was ungracious in the extreme, and the fact that it was so loud made it seem like more than half the crowd. It felt oppressive and unbecoming on such a grand occasion. It was in keeping with the overall sense that everyone, umpires, football pundits, unaffiliated footy fans and all, wanted one result and one result only. It changed my thinking about where the GF should be held.

Two things
One) we are not mates so please don’t call me it in such a passive aggressive manner
Two) either would I but it doesn’t mean that there are not Swans supporters who would. I love this club but like any group of supporters of any sports team we have idiots amongst us.

[dejavoodoo44]

Melbourne scored 101 points in the 2nd half! It was a very watchable game. Good contest until the mid 3rd qtr, then Melbourne blew them away. Great result.

Petracca was great. He came in the same 2014 draft as Angus Brayshaw and Isaac Heeney. I think Heeney needs to move to the midfield and become our Petracca. Similar players. Both can make a huge impact on games. This is especially true now that Dawson is gone.

It's going to take some doing to get to the level of the Demons that played today. WB will be a top team for years to come as well.

I only recently managed to watch the replay of our loss to GWS. Afterwards, it occurred to me, that losing meant that Heeney's performance has been a bit underrated. Especially his second half. In a what if scenario; if Melican had managed to see and spot up a free Heeney, and if Heeney then kicked the winning goal, then I think we would have been talking about Heeney's game as Dusty like, or even like the Nick Davis game.

Hopefully next season, he'll finally get a clear run with injuries and become one the game's elite hybrid forward/midfielders.

[dejavoodoo44]

The only reason we don't like the Dogs is because we got screwed out of a premiership in 2016. But it wasn't their fault that the umps gave them the game and Vic-centred media wanted them to win. If not for that game, I wouldn't have anything against the Dogs. I like their coach and I think their players are pretty much like any other team.

Prior to 2016, the Bulldogs were on of my favourite non-Swans teams. Bob Murphy was one of my favourite players and I did appreciate that they were one of few other clubs, to publicly come out in support of Adam Goodes. And like you, I didn't hold them responsible for the one sided GF umpiring. But since then, my opinion has slowly hardened.

That's largely due to them, more often than not, being on the plus side of the free kick count; despite the fact that they seem to relentlessly dispose of the ball illegally. And at the risk of seeming a touch paranoid, I think it might be something of a deliberate strategy. In that, the coach and/or the senior midfielders, have decided that in heavy traffic, it's very difficult for the umpires to spot all the incorrect disposals. So, they take the odds that they will often get away with: rugby throwing a loose ball; getting a one handed 'hand pass' away when the other hand is pinned away from the ball; just letting the ball go when being slung in a tackle, etc. And not being penalised as much as they should, leads to them getting the sort of frees that drive me crazy. Which are hanging on too long or falling into the back, after the ball has been disposed of illegally.

Of course, I can't prove that it's a preconceived strategy, but their good fortune seems to have been going on for the last five years or so. Which makes it hard to believe that it's just coincidental.

[Bangalore Swans]

Everyone has the right to express an opinion it’s when you declare that no one can dispute your proclamations that annoys many of us as it comes across as arrogance even if it is possibly just misguided confidence.
The Bont has indisputably been a great player over the last couple of years but if you conduct a career comparison with Luke you see that they have very similar statistics with Bont only significantly ahead in metres gained. Luke is 3 years older and 10 cm shorter and was selected with pick 40 Bont was of course pick 4. One player has certainly outperformed on early expectations.
I know it’s early days for Bontempelli but in my opinion Luke stacks up pretty well against him.
Also have a look at Clayton Oliver compared with Bont he outperforms him in most areas was drafted two years later and isn’t even the best player in his team. ( would definitely find a place for him in our side if he wanted out of the Melbourne fishbowl )
So yes in your opinion he is the best player in the game but there are plenty of others that other supporters would argue deserve that mantle.

As much as Parker is admired by everyone in the competition, I don’t think he’s quite at Bont’s level. Parker probably matches Bont for strength, toughness, football intelligence, tackling, speed, endurance, overhead capabilitiy and leadership. Where Bont has Parker beat is distribution. He’s a better kick than Parker. The left foot of Bont is beautiful.

Those two contested marks in the 2 quarter were elite. The 3rd goal was good as well.

If Bont wanted to ever come to Sydney, it would be met with huge joy by Swans supporters.

[Bloods05]

Two things
One) we are not mates so please don’t call me it in such a passive aggressive manner
Two) either would I but it doesn’t mean that there are not Swans supporters who would. I love this club but like any group of supporters of any sports team we have idiots amongst us.

Thank you for that salutary lesson in social media etiquette. Here's me thinking we were all mates here. Well I've been told now, haven't I?

[Sandridge]

Prior to 2016, the Bulldogs were on of my favourite non-Swans teams. Bob Murphy was one of my favourite players and I did appreciate that they were one of few other clubs, to publicly come out in support of Adam Goodes. And like you, I didn't hold them responsible for the one sided GF umpiring. But since then, my opinion has slowly hardened.

That's largely due to them, more often than not, being on the plus side of the free kick count; despite the fact that they seem to relentlessly dispose of the ball illegally. And at the risk of seeming a touch paranoid, I think it might be something of a deliberate strategy. In that, the coach and/or the senior midfielders, have decided that in heavy traffic, it's very difficult for the umpires to spot all the incorrect disposals. So, they take the odds that they will often get away with: rugby throwing a loose ball; getting a one handed 'hand pass' away when the other hand is pinned away from the ball; just letting the ball go when being slung in a tackle, etc. And not being penalised as much as they should, leads to them getting the sort of frees that drive me crazy. Which are hanging on too long or falling into the back, after the ball has been disposed of illegally.

Of course, I can't prove that it's a preconceived strategy, but their good fortune seems to have been going on for the last five years or so. Which makes it hard to believe that it's just coincidental.

This is so spot on!

I didn't mind the Bulldogs before 2016 either but their run of positive treatment from umpires has been astounding.

They played 26 games in 2016 and only lost the free kick count 4 times! They shouldn't have even been in the Grand Final against us as the umpires got them over the line in the Preliminary against GWS!

And the preferential treatment has continued since. From the start of 2016 to last night, the Bulldogs have played 137 games. They've won the free kick count 88 times, drawn it 12 times and lost it 37 times.

I know they can't be "blamed" for umpiring but they've certainly worked out what they can get away with and how to use it to advantage. The rugby throws are a major feature of their game and although it didn't matter, they again got away with some of those last night. Since 2016, I've gone from feeling relatively positive towards the Bulldogs to wishing that they suffer abject failure.

Thank you Dees for the smashing you gave them last night!

[Go Swannies]

Watching the joy of the Dees supporters - and partially sharing in it - had me go back to find this - one of the best calls of any AFL game ever. The last few minutes of the 2005 Nick Davis semi final by 3aw. Still brings tears. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsRE9bMwvd4

[Ludwig]

Prior to 2016, the Bulldogs were on of my favourite non-Swans teams. Bob Murphy was one of my favourite players and I did appreciate that they were one of few other clubs, to publicly come out in support of Adam Goodes. And like you, I didn't hold them responsible for the one sided GF umpiring. But since then, my opinion has slowly hardened.

That's largely due to them, more often than not, being on the plus side of the free kick count; despite the fact that they seem to relentlessly dispose of the ball illegally. And at the risk of seeming a touch paranoid, I think it might be something of a deliberate strategy. In that, the coach and/or the senior midfielders, have decided that in heavy traffic, it's very difficult for the umpires to spot all the incorrect disposals. So, they take the odds that they will often get away with: rugby throwing a loose ball; getting a one handed 'hand pass' away when the other hand is pinned away from the ball; just letting the ball go when being slung in a tackle, etc. And not being penalised as much as they should, leads to them getting the sort of frees that drive me crazy. Which are hanging on too long or falling into the back, after the ball has been disposed of illegally.

Of course, I can't prove that it's a preconceived strategy, but their good fortune seems to have been going on for the last five years or so. Which makes it hard to believe that it's just coincidental.

I agree with your account of what's transpired and that it seems more than coincidental. Blocking in marking contests is another of those ploys that get scrutinized from time to time, and the Swans were often accused as being lead perpetrators of blocking out illegally, but doing it well enough to escape penalty. I don't think anyone on RWO suggested that we should stop the practice because doing it well was gaming the system, so to speak.

The rules of the game are so difficult to umpire that it's open to exploitation, especially with constant changes in rule interpretation. Every team is trying to get away with as much as possible. Just some do it better than others and it would seem that the Dogs have been the best at it the past 5 years.

Just from reading the game time comments on here shows how annoyed everyone gets about the level of influence umpiring and 'cheating' have on the game. If by some miracle all this could be cleaned up, AFL would be such an incredible spectacle, free from the blight of so many wrong umpiring decisions.

Maybe the belting the Bulldogs got yesterday shows that they should be practicing other aspects of the game instead of how to make a throw look like a handball. Richmond were a dominant team for the previous 4 years, and never got a good run from the umps.

I know it's hard to do, but maybe it's best to simply accept that all of this is just part of the game and not get angered by it. Longmire is one proponent of focusing on what you can control and letting the rest go.