Turnovers kill. Speed kills. Unfortunately, on Saturday afternoon at Simonds Stadium in Geelong, the Swans coughed up the football far too many times and weren't nearly fast enough for a Cats outfit that, you get the feeling, are locked and loaded for a really deep run into September. If this 44-point win was a tune-up against the sort of opposition they're likely to face in the Finals series - it's still theoretically possible that these two teams will meet in either Sydney or Melbourne in the first week of the Finals - then the rest of the AFL should take huge notice.
At times, that's all the Swans did. They seemed completely in awe at times, watching the Cats machine as it went into over drive. Lead by their inspirational captain, Adam Selwood, Geelong had complete domination of the midfield at times. Thankfully for the Swans, they could not, for the most part, covnert that domination on the scoreboard. In fact, if there is one chink - based on tonight's effort - in the Geelong armour, it's that they had trouble kicking straight. By all rights, the Cats should have one by far more than they did. Some shots were rudimentary and were missed. Of course, Swans spearhead Kurt Tippett had a howler in the first quarter, too. Fair to say, goal-kicking was not particularly sharp at either end. Getting the ball into the 50m arc with any fluency or direction proved difficult for the Swans.
The Swans just didn't get enough of the football. When they managed to scrap the ball out of the attacking 50m, it seemed to come straight back more often than not. Pressure was intense. Normally steady hands like Jarrad McVeigh seemed flustered. It was a disease on Saturday night not limited to our inspirational captain. Too many players just didn't answer the bell, too many players had that deer-in-the-headlights look about them. It was one of those nights where veterans like Goodes, Bolton and Roberts-Thomson were sorely missed. Those veterans in the line up - I'm looking at you, Ryan O'Keefe - didn't have nearly enough impact. Bad misses in front of goals, poor decisions, not enough of what's gotten him to where he is in a glittering career. Nick Malceski seemed under siege all night, too, though he was often devoid of options ahead.
It would be quicker to mention those in red and white who did: Ted Richards did, as he always does, Dan Hannebery (injury and all) did, Ben McGlynn chimed in with some trademark toughness, Jesse White tried his hardest, a pleasant surprise, for it's normally against elite opposition when White goes MIA. Kieren Jack was somewhat subdued. Mike Pyke did what he could, taking exceptional marks, and kicking goals when not many others did or could. Kurt Tippett, with limited opportunity against standout Geelong defender Harry Taylor, did what he could, but when your big-time spearhead is roaming the defensive 50m, you know things aren't going well for your team.
Getting pumped is one thing, and it was always likely at Fortress Geelong, but the worst thing for the Swans, going in, was getting pumped and sustaining injuries. Bad news when Rhyce Shaw, who kick-starts so much of the Swans offensive thrusts from half back, went down with a knee injury, which, by the looks of his tears, is at the very least season-ending. The game seemed to be lurching from one disaster to another when Hannebery looked like he'd done a serious injury. Thankfully. #4 was back after not too long. But it scarcely mattered. 44 points was about the difference between the two teams.
And so, the Death March to Geelong has claimed another victim. Truthfully, the Swans weren't really in the contest at all, save for the Cats' inconsistencies in front of goal. At the end, the siren couldn't come quickly enough, and was made worse by horribly biased TV coverage, during which Dwayne Russell openly fawned over Geelong as a whole, and Paul Chapman and Harry Taylor especially. It was uncomfortable, but not a surprise because Melbourne media is still talking about how the Hawks lost the 2012 Grand Final, rather than how the Swans actually won...
But I digress, and rapid improvement will be the name of the game this week for the Swans, because the road doesn't get any easier next week, when Hawthorn roll into ANZ Stadium for a Friday night game. Thankfully, the Swans are in no danger of falling from the Top Four, which is probably just as well, given their unimaginably tough run home.
The Bloods have work to do.
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