The 2024 AFL Grand Final will carry one theme into it – redemption.
In 2022, the Sydney Football Club were humiliated on the biggest stage, with a Geelong team primed to send off their champion captain, Joel Selwood, in the best way possible. In speaking to a long-term Sydney supporter, he offered some sage words about that game.
“It would have taken more than the Sydney Football Club to stop Geelong that day.”
Fast-forward 12 months, and the Brisbane Lions felt the sting of a Grand Final loss, their one-kick defeat at the hands of the Magpies perhaps more painful than the belting the Swans were handed just one year prior. So close, yet so far.
Another year down the track, and we have both these teams attempting to right the wrongs experienced in their last trip to the decider. Sydney have been the “it” team for the majority of the year. A form slump following the bye was not enough to see them toppled from the top of the ladder, and their finals form saw them dispense of their crosstown rivals in the first week, coming back from a 21-point deficit at the last change, to advance to the Preliminary Final. And it was there that the Swans kissed their poor recent record against Port Adelaide goodbye.
The Lions are the comeback kings of the post-season, with their last two games seeing the club battle back from big margins to take the wins. After handling Carlton like they were witches hats, the Lions overran the Giants after being down by as much as 44-points. And this past weekend, they clawed their way back against the Cats to advance.
Although the Swans have never really been away, and the Lions have been around the mark for five years, this does seem like a breath of fresh air in the Grand Final landscape. The last time these teams met in the decider was waaaay back in 1899, when both teams were based elsewhere. It’s funny to hear the Melbourne Media attempting to play this current clash off as Fitzroy v South Melbourne – yes, there are roots there, but both of these teams have become who they are now, based on their presence in their home states – not via anything that happened decades ago. It’s great that there are still supporters from a time when the Lions were Fitzroy and the Swans were South Melbourne, but this is now, and it is Brisbane versus Sydney in the decider.
Stars galore, match winners aplenty, and a bunch of “what ifs…” go into this clash, and as always, The Mongrel is here to dive into this one head-first to give the most comprehensive Grand Final Preview you’ll read.
Let’s get to it!
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