'A rabble': Crows player's scathing swipe of Swans amid Adam Goodes appearance
The Swans were expected to make a contest of the clash having celebrated the famed Bloods team of 2005, but the the Crows battered last year's beaten grand finalists without mercy. Adelaide now move to third (8-4) on the ladder with the Swans' finals hopes hanging by a thread.
Swans coach Dean Cox described the performance as "unacceptable and embarrassing" on a night a group of legends were in attendance. "I didn't expect that on such a massive night for the footy club, when you have a 20-year reunion for a team that played desperate, uncompromising, ruthless football," Cox said.
"That was far from it." The 2005 winning team did a lap of honour at halftime to mark the 20th anniversary of their breakthrough premiership.
the '05 Swans caused me more heartbreak than I've ever experienced in my entire life.. but ngl it's good to see Adam Goodes at an AFL game with a smile on his face pic.twitter.com/4X7Re83GBG
— BRZY (@outbreezyWC) May 31, 2025
And fans were thrilled to see legend Goodes among the group. Goodes is an Australian of the Year and two-time Brownlow Medallist, and is still close with the Sydney Swans. However, his relationship with the AFL isn't as strong.
Goodes was mercilessly booed by opposition crowds before he eventually retired in 2015, and the AFL later admitted it should have done more to stop the booing. He has been eligible for induction into the AFL Hall of Fame for several years, but appears no closer to accepting the honour.
And he hasn't attended any official AFL functions since walking away from the game after calling out racism. However, Goodes was in attendance on Saturday night and the crowd adored the legend's appearance with the 2005 group in great spirits.
it's 2025 and adam goodes is SMILING while on the SCG field for a lap of honour with the 2005 premiership team pic.twitter.com/KSABMwnjp2
— jess 🫂 (@hopeurokayyyy) May 31, 2025
Adam Goodes joining the rest of the 2005 team in the walk to the SCG is so wonderful to see 🥺❤️
— Imo (@imogenrq) May 31, 2025
While the Swans were left embarrassed after the loss in front of club legelds, Crows star Wayne Milera took a dig at the side when they were down. The Swans made the final last year, before going down to the Brisbane Lions in a one-sided contest.
With John Longmire leaving at the end of the season, Cox has stepped in and struggled as injuries have hampered Sydney's season. But after the Swans were left chasing the shadows as seats emptied at the SCG, Milera took a post-match dig at Sydney.
Milera told ABC Sport the Crows could feel the Swans were rudderless at home after the 90-point drubbing "You could sort of feel it as a group," Milera said after the match. "They were sort of a bit of a rabble, just hearing them on the ground."
Speaking on the thumping, AFL great Matthew Lloyd was scathing of his assessment. "Sydney have just fallen apart. They are all at sea," Matthew Lloyd said on Channel 9 in his breakdown of the game. "They just didn't adjust, they didn't adjust...they look dishevelled as a coaching team. Right throughout."
The comment will be a dagger for the Swans who now face 16th-placed Richmond next week. Josh Rachele and Ben Keays both kicked three goals, while Alex Neal-Bullen (25 disposals) and Josh Worrell (24) dominated possession.
For the Crows, coach Matthews Nicks hailed his group for a dominant performance. "In my short time as a coach, we haven't had a lot of fun up here - we've often gone away disappointed," former Swans player Nicks said.
"We knew Sydney would come out hard, and we had to match that. I'm trying to think through who our standouts were and from a coaching point of view, that's the most pleasing part of the performance - everyone contributed. The first key (takeaway) is we don't start talking about the second half of the season because we've still got a couple of games before the bye, so we just lock in now."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
4 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Lions one win from ending wait – 5 things we learned from first Test
The British and Irish Lions are one victory away from completing their first series win since 2013 after dispatching Australia 27-19 in Brisbane, where the scoreline failed to reflect their dominance. Here, the PA news agency examines five things learned from the first Test. Now finish the job The sense of anticlimax at the final whistle contrasted starkly with the pre-match buzz around Suncorp Stadium. A gulf in class between the rivals had been exposed during the 42 minutes it took the Lions to canter out of sight and now anything other than an emphatic series whitewash will be seen as failure. Andy Farrell's men were able to butcher a host of chances and take their foot off the gas after Dan Sheehan crossed early in the second half, yet still be streets ahead. A long couple of weeks awaits the Wallabies. Test match animal The term coined by Sir Ian McGeechan to describe a special breed of player who rises to the occasion on the biggest stage was typified by Tom Curry, the full-throttle England flanker who terrorised Australia in contact and at the breakdown. Described as a 'machine' by Andy Farrell, Curry shrugged off his indifferent form in previous tour matches to set the physical tone from the moment he pulverised James Slipper in the opening seconds. Just a fraction behind him were Tadhg Beirne and Tadhg Furlong, who also fully justified why they were picked on reputation. Russell shines For periods of the first half, Finn Russell cast a spell on the home defence. His range of passing released team-mates, created openings and set-up tries to leave former Lions fly-halves Dan Biggar and Ronan O'Gara purring in the commentary box. If Australia had a plan to take him out of the game, it clearly did not work as the Scotland ringmaster cut loose behind a dominant pack. Fresh from steering Bath to the treble, Russell is operating at the peak of his powers and, on current form, is the best 10 in the game. Farrell's wing woes Apart from the failure to crush the Wallabies, thereby breaking their spirits heading into the second Test, Farrell will be most concerned about his wings. James Lowe continued the dismal form he has shown all tour while Tommy Freeman made too many wrong decisions game and both would be fretting over keeping their places if there were strong alternatives. However, Mack Hansen is struggling with a foot injury and Duhan van Merwe's defensive shortcomings have been exposed repeatedly ever since the curtain raiser against Argentina. Blair Kinghorn was seen as the first-choice full-back but with Hugo Keenan proving solid enough in the first Test, the Scot could be picked on the wing if he recovers from his knee injury. Skelton and Valetini The return of powerful forwards Will Skelton and Rob Valetini cannot come soon enough for Australia. Having missed the first Test with calf injuries, they have been given the all-clear for the attempt to level the series at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Skelton's sheer physical presence will prevent the Wallabies from being bullied in quite the same way, while Valetini provides a destructive carrying option. It is upon their availability and the fight shown in the final 30 minutes at Suncorp Stadium that Australia's hopes rest.
Yahoo
4 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Fever destroy Swifts to secure netball grand final spot
West Coast Fever have secured a grand final berth and destroyed the confidence of the NSW Swifts in the process after posting a dominant 77-45 win in the major semi-final at RAC Arena. In a performance for the ages, West Coast led 46-20 at half-time and 60-28 late in the third quarter as the Swifts imploded in front of a bustling Green Army crowd of 11,838 in Perth. Sunday's result means the second-placed Swifts will now need to dust themselves off for next week's home preliminary final against the Melbourne Vixens, who defeated two-time defending champions Adelaide 58-56 in the minor semi-final earlier in the day. The ladder-leading Fever will enjoy a week off before featuring in the August 2 grand final at Melbourne's Rod Laver Arena. Star Fever goal shooter Jhaniele Fowler-Nembhard finished with 65 goals from 66 attempts to go with one Super Shot, while goalkeeper Sunday Aryang was huge with seven gains and two intercepts. Cool as you like 😮💨Watch every game live on Kayo Sports, Foxtel and Binge. — Suncorp Super Netball (@SuperNetball) July 20, 2025 Swifts goal shooter Grace Nweke endured a shocker, hitting just 23 goals from 28 attempts while committing a whopping nine turnovers. The Fever's rise to the grand final is remarkable given they were 0-2 and bottom of the ladder before Fowler-Nembhard's return sparked a run of 13 straight wins - a Super Netball record. "I'm just really proud of the team," Fever coach Dan Ryan told Fox Sports. "Their performance across the 60 minutes was amazing. "To play that quality of netball under the pressure of semi-finals is just amazing." NSW opened the season with a perfect 8-0 record but limped into the finals with four losses from their last six games. With no Paige Hadley (foot) or Teigan O'Shannassy (back), the Swifts were simply no match for the Fever. Fowler-Nembhard was a dominant force in the opening quarter, nailing 20 goals to give the Fever a 20-11 lead at the first break. At the other end, Nweke was struggling. The star NZ shooter committed a whopping five turnovers to go with three penalties in the opening term. In a further blow for the Swifts, centre Verity Simmons rolled her ankle late in the quarter and had to go off for treatment. Nweke's nightmare continued early in the second term when she missed two easy shots in the space of a few minutes. By the time Simmons was able to re-enter play with eight minutes remaining in the half, the Fever already led 31-17. Nweke was benched in favour of Sophie Fawns as the Swifts desperately searched for answers. West Coast scored the last 12 goals of the second quarter to enter the long break with a 26-goal lead, meaning the second half was effectively junk time. The final margin - 32 goals - was the largest in a Super Netball semi-final.
Yahoo
10 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Australia's Tasmania on track for minority government after poll
SYDNEY (Reuters) -Australia's island state of Tasmania appeared on Sunday to be heading for a minority government as vote counting continued after an election that did not produce a clear winner. The conservative Liberal government was on track to win more seats than the main Labor opposition in the new parliament but would probably fall short of a majority after Saturday's election, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. projected. The Liberals' strong performance under Jeremy Rockliff, premier since 2022, follows a heavy defeat suffered at May's national election, which returned Anthony Albanese-led Labor for a second term with an increased majority. Saturday's vote showed Tasmanians have "no confidence in the Labor party to form government and they have voted to reendorse our Liberal government," Rockliff said in televised remarks from the state capital of Hobart. The result for Labor, on track to win nine seats of a possible 35, was shaping as the party's worst-ever result in Tasmania, the Guardian Australia newspaper said. On Sunday, state Labor leader Dean Winter said the result was disappointing for the party, but he did not concede defeat. The election was triggered by a no-confidence vote against Rockliff initiated by Labor on concerns about public debt and plans to privatise assets. It came less than two years after the state's most recent poll, in which a majority eluded the Liberals. The only Australian state to elect its lower house on the basis of proportional representation, Tasmania has a long history of minority governments. Wilderness or protected areas make up 40% of the island, which is 445 km (275 miles) away from Melbourne, usually requiring a flight of an hour, or a ferry crossing 10 times longer, to cover the distance. Solve the daily Crossword
