When I prepare to watch a game like this – a rivalry game between two of the crosstown teams in the AFL – I start to look at where and how one team will gain an advantage over the other.
What I end up with is about eight or nine lines of things to watch for – certain matchups that could, or should, have an impact of proceedings, and additions of absences that will make a difference. It gives me a great base to formulate how the game might play out, and sometimes, it guides the review process.
At quarter time of this contest… and I use the word “contest” very liberally, I tucked those notes away.
I didn’t need them.
It was painfully apparent that one team came ready to play, and the other… well, the other was the GWS Giants.
The Swans comprehensively smashed GWS in the first half of this game, running around, and through, them at every occasion, and made the Giants look like someone had snuck up with an office stapler and secured them to the ground, as they had no answer for the powerful Sydney midfield that dominated possession and gave their forwards first use.
At the man break, the Swans held a commanding 53-point lead. The game was over, and frankly, anything that occurred after that point was happening in glorified junk time.
Without further ado, here are the Big Statements from the Swans’ smashing of the Giants.
The remainder of this article is for our members. Option to join below.
Feel free to stick to your rage bait on Monday nights. Listen to Caro and Kane bang on about garbage on the periphery of the game. Or, you could join The Mongrel, and get a different take on the AFL. Your membership will support the site, and grant access to the content that makes people happy to be Mongrel Members.
