SYDNEY 15.12 (102) d COLLINGWOOD 10.9 (69)
KEY POINTS
IS THIS A PREMIERSHIP HANGOVER? This is a question that is sure to be fiercely debated until the Pies wake from their early season slumber. A hangover implies the Pies over-celebrated their premiership success at the expense of preparing for the season. At face value, the optics do not look great.
To have two meek losses follow the release of a movie into their premiership adds to the narrative. So to the unfurling of a flag before a 33-point loss. The margin, like last week, flattered the Pies.
This side included 19 members of their grand final side from last year, so reinforcements alone will not make up the significant gap between the Pies and their rivals.
Apart from Nick Daicos and Darcy Cameron, there have been few other Pies to enhance their reputations over the first two rounds.
The Swans’ ability to run the ball through the Pies’ defensive system will be a concern for Craig McRae, who watched the Giants do the same thing last week.
Nor are they playing with the hunger they showed last year when they had not tasted the sweet taste of champagne from the premiership cup.
If there was a play that showed the gulf in intensity, it came in the second term when Robbie Fox, outnumbered one to three, attacked the ball in the air with more gusto than his opponents to kill the contest.
It’s only two weeks in but the Pies, as Geelong did last year, start their defence with two losses. The only saving grace is they may have come across the two best sides in the league. They have a lot of work to do.
SPIDERCAM: There was high drama during second quarter when Errol Gulden’s long kick inside 50 hit Spidercam. The contact affected the trajectory of the ball, the drop favouring Collingwood’s Brayden Maynard. It allowed the Pies to win the ground ball and ferry the ball to the other end though, fortunately for the AFL, it did not lead to a score. The AFL is happy with how the umpires handled the incident. The guidelines say if the umpire sees the contact they must call a ball-up, but as they did not play on was the correct call. One could say Spidercam had more impact on the game than the Pies’ defence, coming amid a run of five unanswered goals for the Swans.
HEENEY’S TIME HAS COME: This is shaping as the year where Isaac Heeney can go from a player who occasionally hits the heights of the best to a bona fide elite footballer. With Lance Franklin retired, Heeney is now the Swans’ pin-up player, and playing like a man who enjoys being the face of the club.
As good as he has been in his 178 games, Heeney has played his best football as a forward but is relishing increased exposure in the midfield. These are opportunities he may not have had if the midfield grunt of Callum Mills, Luke Parker and Taylor Adams were available.
Though not a noted clearance player, Heeney had 13 clearances against the Demons, and was again a key figure on the inside with 18 contested possessions and a goal against the Pies.
It is a big ask to expect him to become the dominant player Dustin Martin was at his peak, but there is no reason why he cannot play a similar role for the Swans as a ball-winning midfielder who can kick close to 40 goals.
In the first two weeks, Heeney has been a central figure in a young Swans midfield which looks tougher and stronger than the unit prone to being bullied by bigger-bodied on-ball brigades since their coming of age in 2021.
The question for John Longmire will be how he manages the returns of Parker and Adams in the coming weeks.
They will add extra midfield muscle but it may come at the expense of the slicker combination they currently have with Heeney, Chad Warner and James Rowbottom.
Parker will provide Longmire with the flexibility of having either he or Heeney to split their time between the midfield and forward line.