AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon stood beside a bar in the Steve Waugh Room at the Sydney Cricket Ground and cracked open a cold bottle of Carlton Draught.
Parked up in a busy corner of the AFL’s official Opening Round function on level two of the Victor Trumper Stand on Thursday night, Dillon was in buoyant mood, surrounded by the game’s movers and shakers, all in town after the AFL’s AGM in Sydney earlier in the week.
What transpired next was nothing short of remarkable as the Swans booted 12 goals – and 75 points – in a third quarter where majors felt like they arrived more frequently than sixes at a T20 match. It was the third-highest tally in a single term in AFL history.
The breathtaking blitz – the most points by a team in a quarter since Essendon piled on 94 against Gold Coast in 2011 – saw Sydney’s vociferous red-and-white army lose its collective mind.
At 9.13pm, came the moment the marketing department had been waiting for.
Charlie Curnow of the Swans celebrates a goal on Thursday night. Credit: AFL Photos via Getty Images
Lining up against his old club, Charlie Curnow slotted his first goal after a couple of tentative behinds, pressing his claim to become Sydney’s newest poster boy and their latest forward star – a mantle previously held by Lance Franklin, Barry Hall and Tony Lockett before him.
The SCG erupted, with rock anthem Black Betty pumping around the stadium to mark a moment in Swans history. As far as sporting atmospheres go, it was right up there.
The city of Sydney needs a new Franklin, and the AFL needs Sydney to find another Buddy.
Curnow finished with three goals against his old teammates, who had tried all night to get under his skin. Dillon and his team breathed a sigh of relief. The AFL has pumped big money into Opening Round to give the code a kick-start in Sydney, and the CEO had negotiated a week of tough questioning by the media and potshots from rugby league supremo Peter V’landys.
Swans coach Dean Cox and spearhead Charlie Curnow share a laugh after the game.Credit: AFL Photos
Curnow’s last goal came from the exact patch of turf – the north-eastern pocket near the Dally Messenger Stand – where Franklin famously kicked his 1000th career goal in 2022.
After their thumping, 63-point victory, Swans players sprayed Curnow with Gatorade in the rooms as he fumbled his way through the club song – something he’ll need to practice in the coming weeks.
“It’s our biggest ever first game at home,” Swans coach Dean Cox said after the match. “To have over 40,000 shows this works. We understood the responsibility.
“The first half wasn’t a great show, but when we played the way we wanted to, that 40,000 was as loud as I’ve heard in a long time.”
AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon. Credit: Getty Images
Their patchy start aside, the Swans leave the opening night of the AFL season with invaluable momentum. Chairman Andrew Pridham and new chief executive Matthew Pavlich mingled with guests upstairs as canapés and drinks flowed.
Pavlich, a Fremantle legend who kicked more than 700 goals, has settled with his family in Bronte, while Curnow has found a home a few minutes up the road in Tamarama with fiancée Tiana Simic. Curnow and Pavlich have sometimes found themselves together at the same beach. No prizes for guessing who might attract more attention over the coming years.
“You can tell he’s had a good pre-season,” Pavlich said. “A lot of eyes have been on him.”
Former Swans chief executive Tom Harley was also in attendance in his new role as the AFL’s chief operating officer. Venues NSW chairman David Gallop was there too, along with an eclectic guest list of administrators, influencers, media and even Dr Chris Brown of Bondi Vet fame.
At full-time, the Sydney Swans mascot danced where the cricket pitches usually sit as “cheer, cheer the red and the white” echoed around the SCG.
“I could bore you with numbers about our uplift in ticket sales or our uplift in memberships … but just seeing how much red and white is around the streets, it is all about participation and eyeballs around our game,” Pavlich said. “Long may it continue.”
With a nine-day break before the Swans face the Brisbane Lions at the SCG on March 14, midfielder Chad Warner told Triple M he was looking forward to a few celebratory cocktails at a “nice long lunch” on Friday.
The question is now whether the GWS Giants can maintain the momentum created by the Swans when they face Hawthorn at Engie Stadium on Saturday night.
The Giants will be keen to avenge their elimination-final loss to the Hawks last season, but injuries have not been kind.
Tom Green (knee), Josh Kelly (hip) and Sam Taylor (hamstring) are all missing round one, but the inclusion of gun midfielder Clayton Oliver from Melbourne is a significant boost.
Western Sydney has always been a tougher market for the AFL to crack, and it will not usurp rugby league any time soon.
But if Thursday night was any guide, the Swans remain a serious drawcard – and their supporters are already salivating at the prospect of a new star lighting up the harbour city.
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