By Vince Rugari
The look of incredulity on Isaac Heeney’s face said it all - about Sydney’s season, and the penultimate outing of it, a disappointing 43-point loss to Geelong on Sunday.
When you have nothing to play for but pride, sometimes it’s hard to keep going. Especially against a team still in contention. And especially on a dirty day like this, when it feels like absolutely nothing is going your way.
Heeney is so used to bending situations to his will that, when it doesn’t happen, he seems almost offended. It wasn’t happening against the Cats. Mark O’Connor took him out of the game - and in response, Heeney may have gone close to taking himself out of next week’s trip to face the West Coast Eagles, their last assignment of a miserable 2025.
Held to just 15 touches and one goal - the week after a commanding best-on-ground display against reigning premiers Brisbane - Heeney will face scrutiny from the AFL’s match review officer for a jumper punch on O’Connor, having lashed out at him in pure frustration after being taken down by a fair tackle.
That was in the second quarter; in the last, with the game already in the bag for Geelong, Heeney took O’Connor down in a dump tackle which, had it been delivered with a touch more force, might have inflicted serious damage.
Heeney gave away three free kicks in total, but it was the ones that weren’t awarded in his favour - including a clear push in the back from O’Connor - which seemed to drive him to the brink of implosion.
Tom Papley is dealt with at the SCG.Credit: Getty Images
“It’s about trying to … not get frustrated, control what you can. They played Isaac really well,” said Swans coach Dean Cox, who said he spoke to Heeney during breaks about regulating his emotions.
“That’s one thing we need to understand: he’s been followed numerous times over his career. Tonight was another one of those occasions … at times when players are close checking, frustration can get the best of you. It happened a couple of times. They did a really good job [on him].”
Cats coach Chris Scott said the decision to send O’Connor to Heeney was not a complicated one.
“Like you, we’ve watched him play, so [we’re] aware of what he can do,” he said. “And even last week wasn’t an outlier. We thought that was a good battle.”
Geelong’s Tyson Stengle in action at the SCG.Credit: Getty Images
With Heeney’s focus off, and with his partner in crime Brodie Grundy (concussion) watching from the stands, the usual sources of inspiration for Sydney this season were not providing it, and so Geelong, with almost all of their stars on deck, easily ran away with the game.
Though the Swans started brightly by kicking the first three goals of the match, they were quickly reeled back in by the visitors, who restricted them to just two goals after half-time while they piled on eight.
“Since the bye, it’s been a lot of steps forward … unfortunately, the second half, we let ourselves down,” Cox said.
The 16.15 (111) to 10.8 (68) victory has lifted Geelong into second on the ladder, and another win next weekend at the MCG against lowly Richmond will ensure a top-four berth and the double chance that comes with it.
Led by Brownlow Medal fancy Bailey Smith (30 disposals, seven clearances) and forward Shannon Neale (four goals), the Cats were the better team across all facets of the game, but especially in the air, where Sydney’s deficiencies at both ends of the field were exposed.
The only disappointment for the Cats was that Jeremy Cameron, in his unlikely pursuit of a 100-goal season, was held goalless for the first time since round 13 - and almost scoreless, with the one behind he registered coming in the final seconds of the game, just before the siren sounded.