Oh Errol, Sydney Can’t Do Anything Without Him
Or
Who Killed Kenny?
Disco Monagle
The Headings
This article needed two headings, one for the victor and the other for the loser.
To the victor goes the spoils, and the missing link for the Swans, Errol Gulden, returned for his first match of the year, and my oh my what a difference he makes. Gulden was one four other key players who returned for this match, with Matt Roberts slotting in down back, while Joel Amartey and Tom Papley boost the Swans forward line to give it structure and purpose – something it has been missing all year.
There comes a time and place whereby the gig is over, and for Kenny Hinkley the time is nigh for his coaching. Kenny has been a very good coach for the Power and, for much of his tenure, the team has made finals, albeit without being able to win a Preliminary Final. I watched the Power players closely today, and there was no cohesion and they turned the ball over way too easily.
The Power players are not playing as a unit with a common purpose, and they haven’t for most of the season. There is a lot to like in Port Adelaide’s list, but they are caught up in Josh Carr’s gap year.
It maybe time for Carr to take over for the last few games of the season and installing his imprimatur before season 2026.
Preamble
Late last season at the same point, the Brisbane Lions were in a slightly worse position than the Power and Swans are this year, before their run of late season wins allowed them to obtain absolution on the grandest stage of all.
The Lions long road to redemption started about now this time last year, and nobody took any notice of their winning streak until the finals began. Brisbane played the perfect rope a dope and took home the silverware.
Why bring up old history in this review?
Both Port Adelaide Power and Sydney Swans long for the same hunger as the Lions had at this stage in season ’24. Both clubs were humiliated in the finals last year and the only pass mark for both clubs this year is to at least make it to a Preliminary Final
This is not an ‘eight point’ match, but rather it is a season-defining game, and for the winner HOPE returns, while the loser will be left licking their wounds.
The Game
Power: 00:02:02 / 02:04:14 / 04:06:20 / 07:10:52 were defeated by the
Swans: 01:06:12 / 04:10:34 / 05:16:46 / 09:17:71
Goals:
Power: Georgiadis 1, Powell-Pepper 1, Richards 1, Rioli 1
Swans: Haywood 3, Heeney 2, Campbell 1, McLean 1, Blakey 1, McInerney 1
Best:
Power: Powell-Pepper, Butters, Burgoyne, Richards, Drew, Burn-Jones
Swans: Grundy (BOG), Heeney, Mills, Roberts, McInerney, Blakey, Sheldrick
Missing Easy Shots
‘Bad kicking is bad football’ has been a mantra in the AFL since day dot. It has been a mantra handed down from one generation to next and so on.
Last week I was scorned when I questioned players who miss set shots. The reason I was scorned was because I didn’t praise the pressure acts of the back six that force them into more difficult shots at goal. There are exceptions to all general rules and cliches, but…..
At Adelaide Oval yesterday, both Sydney and Port Adelaide both had the yips and butchered the ball – big time.
Seventeen points by the Swans could have, and should have in normal circumstances, seen them lose, but the opposition was even worse.
There was no applied pressure on the Swans forwards by the Powers defenders. Midway through the third quarter Port Adelaide had a pressure rating of 130 (whatever that means, but I know 130 is bad) and were at 25 percent for disposal efficiency.
To put the Power’s turmoil in context, one of the Fox Commentators stated, “it feels like the Swans are 60, even 80 points in front, yet they (Port) are still chance..”
As bad as Port Adelaide’s numbers did read, they were always a chance of stealing the victory from the Swans, but the above numbers it really meant the Power should have been further behind, albeit for the Swans inaccuracy. For most of the afternoon the Swans held a three or four goal margin but missing easy and gettable set shots at goal did leave the door ajar for the Power.
Mitch Georgiades was the main culprit for the Power, while Joel Amartey could hit the side of a barn even if he tried.
Georgiades kicked one goal and three behinds for the day, which on paper doesn’t read that bad, but the goals he missed from set shots were clutch goals that would have put the Power right back in game.
With Charlie Dixon retiring last year, the onus has fallen on Georgiades to step up and be the ‘man’ this year. While he has tried his hardest to fill the Dixon void, it must be noted that Dixon was ‘THE MAN’ during his time in the Powers forward line, while Mitch is still learning to fill that role.
Georgiades is a darn fine player, and if he keeps improving, he will be known as ‘The Man’, however, he is still at the stage where inconsistnecy will keep him from becoming that.
Joel Amartey
Sydney had four massive inclusions coming back from injury for this game, including Joel Amartey.
Joel Amartey’s season thus far has been weird. Injured, can’t get a kick, suspended for three weeks and first week back he kicks six points and two out of bounds on the full from his eight very gettable scoring shots.
The only consistency for Amartey this year has been his inconsistency, however, it wasn’t until yesterday that I noted that what he brings to the team is vital to the Swans chances.
Many, including myself, have been hypercritical of Will Hayward this season and to a lesser extent Hayden McLean, but both players are more dangerous with Amartey in the team.
With injuries to the Swans’ three talls and Papley out for most of this season, Hayward has had to step up and be the number one target in the forward half – but that is not role.
It doesn’t surprise that with Amartey and Papley back in the team that Hayward had his best game of the season as he was able to cut loose and create carnage. Sydney’s forward synergy retuned for the first time in season 2025, with Papley as the the aggressive small, Hayward the dangerous mid, and Amartey/Mc Donald (when he returns) as the tall targets.
Hayden McLean is lacking zeal and/or confidence this season, and I believe in part it is due to the workload that has fallen on his shoulders with the absence of both Amartey and McDonald. Hopefully for McLean’s sake, with Amartey back and McDonald getting closer to selection, he finds his mojo.
Errol Gulden, Matty Roberts, Tom Papley and Joel Amartey (also Callum Mills)
Injuries can ruin a season for any club, but on the flips side when the wounded warriors return to the fray then anything is possible.
The return of Matt Roberts strengthens the Swans backline, freeing up Tom McCartin and Lewis Melican to concentrate solely on their direct opponent and taking big defensive marks. Roberts is the mortar in the Swans backline filling the cracks between the bricks.
Every team needs a little mongrel forward who has class, skill and arrogance, and with the return of Tom Papley, the ignitor is back where he belong – being in his opponents faces and sticking it up them. His return was relatively quiet, and he looked like he needed the run, but when the heat was on and the game and on the line, he was there.
Little forwards are meant to be hungry and selfish and Papley fits that mould, except for when he decides to be a team player and pass the ball to another player. In Preliminary Final of 202,2 Papley was running into an open goal, but for reason unknown he passed the ball to another teammate, the kick was cut off, and it led to the Pies fighting their way back into the game from six goals down.
Since the 2022 Preliminary Final, I have lost count of how many times I have screamed at the telly, “you are paid to kick goals, stop trying to be a team player, it doesn’t suit you”, with an explicit word or two thrown in.
Enough has been said about Amartey already, which brings us back to the guts.
Errol Gulden is a superstar of the competition. In a year where the Swans have flopped around like a fish out of water, Issac Heeney has been the class with a lot of very good, polished grunt players around him, but he can’t carry the team on his back.
The return of Gulden gives the Swans a two headed snake for opposition coaches to worry about. While Errol didn’t have a high number of possessions on his return, he did bring the class back to the Swans midfield.
If Heeney don’t get ya, Gulden will.
Mad Monday Mills has had a terrible run of misfortune since that fateful Monday madness, however, for the first time in two years he showed why he is the captain of the team. It was his best performance since 2023, and the team’s best performance this year, and I don’t think that is coincidental.
In short, the Swans had their best win of the year thus far, but will they carry that form for the rest of the season and attempt redemption in the same manner as Brisbane last year?
Time will tell.
Port Adelaide
Dermott Brereton really states that ‘emotion’ is only good for a limited amount of time, and with the fate of Kenny Hinkley signed, sealed and delivered his team is riding a rollercoaster of emotions, being up one week and down the next.
The ‘Let’s do it Kenny’ spark is hard to maintain for an entire season, and when it bottoms out, like it did against the Swans, then the spent emotion and effort from the previous week is followed by a lacklustre performance the next.
Port Adelaide from years past would have run over the Swans who were digging their own grave by missing easy shots at goal, but they were flat out on their feet.
The was no real fight from the Power, and even when they got within ten points of the Swans there was nothing left in the tank as they were literally running on empty.
Regardless of where the Power finish up this year, they players deserve a mulligan for this season, but not the knobs in front office. It sounds harsh, but giving Kenny a farewell season has backfired, and it is now taking a toll on the club’s on field performances.
Jason Horne-Francis – Who Are You?
Jason Horne-Francis made it abundantly clear when he was at North Melbourne he didn’t want to be there, and as such, he didn’t give 100 percent when he was on the field. Most would say nothing to see here, keep moving, however, bad lessons practiced are hard lessons to undo.
A consistent knock on JHF’s career has been his ability to sustain form from week to week, or even from quarter to quarter. When the game was in the balance in the last quarter against the Swans, JHF went missing in action again.
On pure pedigree, Jason Horne-Francis should be a regular in the All-Australian Team as his best is brilliant, and when he is hot, he is really hot, but when he is cold, it is freezing.
Sam Powell-Pepper and Darcy Byrne-Jones
I never realised Alberton was home to four players with hyphenated last names (Brandon Zerk-Thatcher is the fourth).
Sam Powell-Pepper is not the most gifted player (not the worst either) in the AFL, but what he lacks in skill when compared with higher pay packets he makes up for with endeavour and pure grunt persistence.
If one player tried to drag the Power to the finish against the Swans, it was SPP who never gave up.
Darcy Byrne-Jones is like a mini-me of SPP, and like Powell-Pepper, his grunt and persistence means he would be one of the first players selected every week.
Mani Liddy
As mature age recruit, the Power are getting bang for buck with Liddy, however, he has habit of dropping to his knees when tackled. Yes, he will get a free kick or two from this action, but after time the umpires will stop paying him frees.
As 23 years of age Liddy is ready made AFL player with a bright future.
Final Wrap
Both the Power and the Swans have six wins and eight losses for the year, and technically both have a chance of barnstorming into the finals, while on the other hand both could completely bottom out by seasons end.
Having said that, I would favour the Swans to be the team on the move, especially given their team is nearing full strength, while the Power are showing signs they are looking for the season to end.
Next week the Power host the injury-riddled Blues on Thursday night, while the Swans host the inconsistent Bulldogs on the Friday night.
