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Jude the man of his century
By TIM MORRISSEY at the SCG
May 24, 2004
RUNNING fast out of options and time, Sydney were on a collision course for a fifth consecutive loss.
Enter Swans star midfielder and glamour boy Jude Bolton, playing in his 100th AFL.
Steven Spielberg could not have written a better script.
Trailing by four points with three minutes left, Bolton burst on to a handball from Amon Buchanan, sprinted several paces and fired from 40 metres to kick the match-winning goal.
"It was just good to kick one in the last [quarter] and put us back in front," Bolton said. "You dream of that as a kid but to do that in your 100th game and also end a four-game losing streak is pretty special.
"It takes a bit of the weight off our shoulders. It sort of starts our season off again I supposed and all that hard work keeps going from now."
Both teams' seasons were on the brink going into the match, which was why Hawthorn, desperate for any extra help, asked former three-time world boxing champion Jeff Fenech to give the players a pre-game and halftime motivational talk.
Bolton provided the Hollywood heroics with his knockout goal, but it was the courage and determination shown by several Swans players under incredible pressure as the seconds ticked away which sealed the game against a desperate Hawthorn who refused to give up.
Swans Brownlow medallist Adam Goodes was inspirational playing at centre halfback just nine days after rupturing the posterior cruciate ligament in his right knee.
"It can definitely turn a season around a win like that," he said. "If we went down by a point it would've been demoralising.
"But [this win] could certainly turn the season around and it sparks the club back up."
At times Goodes looked like he was playing on just one leg, then with no legs in the final quarter when fatigue took its toll and Hawthorn's Trent Croad kicked two vital goals on him as the visitors launched a comeback.
Swans coach Paul Roos switched Leo Barry on to Croad and moved Goodes to full forward. But in the final minutes the Swans star was back in the thick of things doing the ruck work.
Bolton said: "He's an inspiration, Goodesy and it was fantastic to have the [Brownlow] medallist out there."
The Swans led by 21 points going into the final term, but the Hawks kicked four unanswered goals to grab a four-point lead with eight minutes left. Hawks captain Shane Crawford and ruckman Peter Everitt combined to have two chances of stealing victory in the final minute.
Crawford's shot from 50 metres went just to the left of the goals. Everitt leaped skyward but just failed to grab the ball as he landed over the line, resulting in a behind and Sydney recording their fourth win of the year.
With the Western Bulldogs in town on Saturday night, the eighth-placed Swans have a chance to get their season back on track.
Hawthorn's heart-breaking loss leaves them languishing second to last on the ladder and Hawks coach Peter Schwab under more pressure to keep his job.
Barry's role on Croad in the last 10 minutes and Jason Ball's job on Everitt for the entire game were keys to the Swans victory.
Roos said: "I thought Leo Barry and Jason Ball were probably the two biggest reasons we ended up winning."
But the game wasn't without controversy, with Croad not paid a clear mark in a good scoring position shortly before three quarter time.
The Swans rebounded and Jared Crouch scored a goal with seconds left in the quarter, handing Sydney a 21-point lead.
Schwab took the controversy on the chin, saying: ""It wasn't [a mark] because they didn't pay it. That's footy."
By TIM MORRISSEY at the SCG
May 24, 2004
RUNNING fast out of options and time, Sydney were on a collision course for a fifth consecutive loss.
Enter Swans star midfielder and glamour boy Jude Bolton, playing in his 100th AFL.
Steven Spielberg could not have written a better script.
Trailing by four points with three minutes left, Bolton burst on to a handball from Amon Buchanan, sprinted several paces and fired from 40 metres to kick the match-winning goal.
"It was just good to kick one in the last [quarter] and put us back in front," Bolton said. "You dream of that as a kid but to do that in your 100th game and also end a four-game losing streak is pretty special.
"It takes a bit of the weight off our shoulders. It sort of starts our season off again I supposed and all that hard work keeps going from now."
Both teams' seasons were on the brink going into the match, which was why Hawthorn, desperate for any extra help, asked former three-time world boxing champion Jeff Fenech to give the players a pre-game and halftime motivational talk.
Bolton provided the Hollywood heroics with his knockout goal, but it was the courage and determination shown by several Swans players under incredible pressure as the seconds ticked away which sealed the game against a desperate Hawthorn who refused to give up.
Swans Brownlow medallist Adam Goodes was inspirational playing at centre halfback just nine days after rupturing the posterior cruciate ligament in his right knee.
"It can definitely turn a season around a win like that," he said. "If we went down by a point it would've been demoralising.
"But [this win] could certainly turn the season around and it sparks the club back up."
At times Goodes looked like he was playing on just one leg, then with no legs in the final quarter when fatigue took its toll and Hawthorn's Trent Croad kicked two vital goals on him as the visitors launched a comeback.
Swans coach Paul Roos switched Leo Barry on to Croad and moved Goodes to full forward. But in the final minutes the Swans star was back in the thick of things doing the ruck work.
Bolton said: "He's an inspiration, Goodesy and it was fantastic to have the [Brownlow] medallist out there."
The Swans led by 21 points going into the final term, but the Hawks kicked four unanswered goals to grab a four-point lead with eight minutes left. Hawks captain Shane Crawford and ruckman Peter Everitt combined to have two chances of stealing victory in the final minute.
Crawford's shot from 50 metres went just to the left of the goals. Everitt leaped skyward but just failed to grab the ball as he landed over the line, resulting in a behind and Sydney recording their fourth win of the year.
With the Western Bulldogs in town on Saturday night, the eighth-placed Swans have a chance to get their season back on track.
Hawthorn's heart-breaking loss leaves them languishing second to last on the ladder and Hawks coach Peter Schwab under more pressure to keep his job.
Barry's role on Croad in the last 10 minutes and Jason Ball's job on Everitt for the entire game were keys to the Swans victory.
Roos said: "I thought Leo Barry and Jason Ball were probably the two biggest reasons we ended up winning."
But the game wasn't without controversy, with Croad not paid a clear mark in a good scoring position shortly before three quarter time.
The Swans rebounded and Jared Crouch scored a goal with seconds left in the quarter, handing Sydney a 21-point lead.
Schwab took the controversy on the chin, saying: ""It wasn't [a mark] because they didn't pay it. That's footy."
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