Sydney Swans v Port Adelaide Power: AFL preliminary final – live

2nd quarter, 9 minutes remaining: Port Adelaide 3.4.22 – Sydney 8.1.49

Sydney are starting to dominate this preliminary final now with 14 marks for the Swans to Port Adelaide’s three so far this quarter. And now Blakey has slithered onto a loose ball and speared a ball to Tom Papley who snaffles it from the night sky and has a chance for a second goal. He cops a clear high tackle on the way and the little big man makes Port pay with another goal! Sydney starting to run away with this contest.

2nd quarter, 12 minutes remaining: Port Adelaide 3.4.22 – Sydney 7.1.43

Here’s Heeney! Nine disposals and three marks so far tonight but until now just the minor score. But again Aliir was left flat-footed and the blondf bombshell didn’t even have to jump, he simply muscled his way in front of Burgoyne. That’s another Sydney goal! The margin is now a handsome 21-points and Port fans are starting to sweat a little.

2nd quarter, 14 minutes remaining: Port Adelaide 3.4.22 – Sydney 6.1.37

Port Adelaide respond through Rozee! They cleared from the ruck and the Power skipper spun and sent it through on the bounce. But their next advance is scuppered by Fox and Lloyd and Sydney turn it around at speed and Blakey the Lizard slithers through the pack and sends a low ball inside 50 where it’s Amartey with the lead. He marks and scores from 40m out. Sydney restore their lead!

2nd quarter, 16 minutes remaining: Port Adelaide 2.4.16 – Sydney 5.1.31

Port saddle up through Drew then Burton. They rider the rails own the right boundary but Amartey gets in front and quickly plays on, jagging a kick across the field. It bounces for Harry Cunningham but he gathers and lobs a lovely ball right into the sticky mitts of Logan McDonald who’s got himself into space. Clean mark and he shows it a clean pair of heels, splitting the big sticks to put Sydney 15 points ahead!

2nd quarter, 18 minutes remaining: Port Adelaide 2.4.16 – Sydney 4.1.25

Here we go again. And within seconds Sydney have swooped, surged and had a shot. We have a goal review here. Grundy won the ruck and Sydney moved swiftly to Heeney who snapped with his left. Aliir looked to have grabbed it before it crossed the line… and replays show he did. And a lovely mark from Georgiades salts the wound. He’s 50m out from the left but it’s a whisker off the left upright and one flag waves.

1st quarter: Port Adelaide 2.3.15 – Sydney 4.0.24

1st quarter, 1 minute remaining: Port Adelaide 2.2.14 – Sydney 4.1.25

Heeney sets up a fresh wave of attack. He finds Rowbottom who spears one to McLean. And here’s Luke Parker scooting clear of Aliir and marking. He’s way out and the angle is wide and it’s too much for the Sydney veteran and it’s their first minor score. The crowd sigh but they’re quickly roaring as Heeney channels his rugby league youth and lays a brilliant tackle. “Ball!” is the bellow from the SCG crowd but no joy from the men in yellow. It’s play on… and Heeney swoops and sends a bullet to Tom Papley as the siren sounds. Can the Sydney sparkplug deliver a major blow on the break? Yes he can!

1st quarter, 4 minutes remaining: Port Adelaide 2.2.14 – Sydney 3.0.18

Aliir marks safely when Hayden McLean was seemingly distracted by a tray of beers and pies in the crowd. Can Port make them pay? No. The kick goes out of bounds. Sydney aren’t out of trouble yet though. Rampe bombs it upfield but it’s Burgoyne again who intercepts and he puts it inside 50 where McCartin clouts Ratugole and gives away a free. It’s well within range but the kick sails wide.

1st quarter, 8 minutes remaining: Port Adelaide 2.1.13 – Sydney 3.0.18

Horne-Francis was tackled from behind by Rampe – where was the call of ‘Yer hot!’ from his teammates I wonder? Ollie Wines crumbs beautifully and a kick over the top finds Georgiades. He cops a bump from Rampe – a high tackle in any code that one – and draws an easy free. The next kick is an arrow that hits Kennedy square on the chest and he swivels and snaps… and scores!

1st quarter, 10 minutes remaining: Port Adelaide 1.1.7 – Sydney 3.0.18

Sydney clear again and there’s a big bump on Amartey but there’s no free paid and play goes on. Joel took his revenge with a heavy tackle and this one draws a free. Horne Francis beats his man and this time it’s a Sydney turnover that gives Port a sniff. There’s a shot.. but it’s sprayed across the face and only a minor score ensues. Sydney clear quickly, VERY quickly and Logan McDonald snaps truly for Sydney’s third goal!

1st quarter, 12 minutes remaining: Port Adelaide 1.0.6 – Sydney 2.0.12

Jaker Lloyd evens it up with a goal 30-metres out. Good response by Sydney. That was a dreadful stabbed clearance from Boake and the veteran Swans defender took the easiest of marks. The Swans have their tails up now through Florent and this time he finds Amartey who beats former Swan Aliir Aliir to a low kick. This should be the lead…. and it is! That’s two goals from Port turnovers. Ken Hinkley will not be happy!

1st quarter, 14 minutes remaining: Port Adelaide 1.0.6 – Sydney 0.0.0

It’s early but Sydney will be having flashbacks to their first quarter blot-out earlier this season. Port had 71 points before the Swans even troubled the scorers. Now it’s Cunningham in the back pocket clearing to Warneer but his chip ‘n’ chase misses Joel Amartey and Port turn the tide and attack from the centre. Ollie Florent diffuses that charge with a clean mark just outside 50 and an error from Travis Boake sets Sydney up for a shot at goal.

1st quarter, 16 minutes remaining: Port Adelaide 1.0.6 – Sydney 0.0.0

The Swans are under siege here but it’s Midas Man Isaac Heeney who gives them their first spurt, with a leaping mark on the boundary. Dane Rampe follows the kick downfield and dovetails nicely with Brodie Grundy but it’s Errol Gulden who gets the free. Here’s Nick Blakey snaking his way inside 50 and sending a left-footer to the sticks. But it doesn’t have the wheels or the radar.

1st quarter, 19 minutes remaining: Port Adelaide 1.0.6 – Sydney 0.0.0

Early free to Port and they set up camp inside 50. Umpires call heavy contact against the home side and another free to the visitors. And within a minute, there it is – first blood to the Power as Jake Burgoyne slots the opening goal! Another slow start for the Swans.

Conditions are perfect tonight, both teams are limber and ready to rumble and the atmosphere around the ground is electric and play is imminent. Strap yourselves in, folks, this is going to be a battle for the ages…

Here’s a fun fact: the Swans have played just two preliminary final fixtures at the SCG and they won both games by one point. Sydney coach John Longmore will back his side’s ability to finish strongly but I’m sure his heart wouldn’t mind a fast start for a change.

We are minutes from the bounce now and the preliminaries of the preliminary final are upon us. Uncle Lloyd Walker, former Wallabies star and possessor of two of the most magic hands ever to grace a football field, is welcoming us to Gadigal land.

Before tonight’s action gets under way, a quick moment of pause for one of the great gentleman of the Australian media, legendary Melbourne photographer Terry Phelan, who woke from the dream of life yesterday surrounded by family.

Aside from his magnificent eye for an image and instincts for a story, Terry was an empath, a man deeply attuned to the energies and emotions of the public he served so wonderfully over four decades in journalism. As a mate of his son Matt, I was honoured to challenge his inate humility on a few occasions and, weirdly, the story I most remember of Terry’s was one he told me of a shot he missed: that of a Tasmanian Tiger captured in the glare of his car headlights on a bush road late one night.

There was not a tremor of disappointment in Terry that he had missed what might’ve been one of the shots of the century, an image that might’ve graced front pages around the world. Instead I got the feeling he was happy to have saved the supposedly extinct thylacine the frenzy of media that mwould surely have followed. That was Terry Phelan – aside from the million of photos he captured, even the moments he missed were epic. Vale Tezza.

The first bounce for this first preliminary final is minutes away now. It’s been a beautiful sunny scorcher of a Spring day here in Sydney but the temperature is slowly dropping. At the SCG, the floodlights are on and the trickle of red and white has become a torrent as Swans faithful pour in from the posh pubs of Paddington, the reduxed Bloodhouses in Surry Hills and the swank swillhouses of the CBD and eastern suburbs.

And a good whack of them are here to cheer a blond kid from Newcastle, two hours north, who tonight plays his 200th game…

Geelong have steamrolled their way to another prelim despite the absence of their goal glutton and games record holder, 36-year-old full forward Tom Hawkins. “The Tomahawk” has been rehabbing a foot injury since mid-season and has already announced that 2024 will be his last season. Although the big fella had a run in the VFL 10 days ago, the dream of another flag hangs on tonight’s game.

But as Jack Snape says, the facts the Cats are here again means the future looks rosy post-Tom anyway:

There are AFL clubs that invest thousands of hours into reviewing high school talent, hoping they can recruit the kind of players who can some day kick three goals in a high-pressure final. The Geelong Cats just went to Werribee.

Whoever wins tonight’s preliminary final will face the winner of Brisbane v Geelong in the big dance next Saturday. Jonathan Howcroft reckons the oft-maligned Lions’ talisman might yet prove the difference…

At face value, Joe Daniher is straight off the footballing peg. He’s 201cm, an excellent mark, a thumping kick and moves like a gazelle. If he was a yearling at the sales, they’d have taken one look at his bloodlines and his physical scope, and paid record prices for him.

How did Port amass so awesome a winning record over the minor premiers? Well, in their last eight clashes Port has done it chiefly by dominating contested possession and bossing the clearances. More significantly, they find a way to nullify Sydney’s stars.

The records of both small forward sparkplug Tom Papley, gun wing Errol Gulden, running halfback Nick Blakey and midfield maestro Chad Warner all bottom out when they play the Power where all four register their lowest disposal numbers.

The Giants seemed to have purloined a copy of the Ken Hinkley blueprint a fortnight back and for most of the game it worked a charm. But slowly yet surely Sydney’s fab four broke loose late in the game and made their crosstown rivals pay…

Our own Martin Pegan ran the rule over both teams and, noting Port’s 8-0 record over the Bloods but also the heavy weight of history the visitors will carry into this match…

Port have not lost to the Swans since 2016, winning all eight matches since then by an average 34 points, but will arrive at the SCG with their own history to rewrite. This will be Port’s fourth preliminary final in 12 seasons under Hinkley; they are still hoping to reach a first grand final since 2007, let alone end the club’s now 20-year wait for a second flag.

Here’s how the two sides line up this evening…

SWANS
B: D.Rampe – C, T.McCartin, N.Blakey
HB: M.Roberts, H.Cunningham, L.Melican
C: J.Lloyd, Ch.Warner, O.Florent
HF: L.Parker, L.McDonald, E.Gulden
F: T.Papley, J.Amartey, W.Hayward
FOLL: B.Grundy, I.Heeney, J.Rowbottom
I/C: J.Jordon, B.Campbell, R.Fox, J.McInerney, H.McLean
EMG: A.Francis, C.Cleary, P.Ladhams

The injury-plagued season of Sydney’s captain Callum Mills has continued with his hamstring twinge at training this week. In a bit of a surprise, 31-year-old defender Robbie Fox, who has appeared in 16 games in 2024, will replace Mills NOT Taylor Adams, the former Pie who has played 19 fine games in his first season in red and white. It makes two straight years Adams has watched September football from the dugout, with the former Collingwood star missing their 2023 Grand Final victory with injury.

POWER
B: La.Jones, B.Zerk-Thatcher, M.Bergman
HB: J.Sinn, A.Aliir, L.Evans
C: J.Burgoyne, O.Wines, W.Drew
HF: D.Byrne-Jones, E.Ratugolea, W.Rioli
F: M.Georgiades, C.Dixon, C.Rozee – C
FOLL: J.Sweet, J.Horne-Francis, Z.Butters
I/C: T.Boak, Q.Narkle, J.Mead, F.Evans, R.Burton
EMG: W.Lorenz, D.Visentini, O.Lord

Port Adelaide’s Todd Marshall remains under concussion protocols so Charlie Dixon comes into the side following his late scratching from last week’s game due to illness. That’s a huge addition for the Power. Ryan Burton is back in the side for Will Lorenz.

Preamble