'Pretty s***t': Inside Swans' rooms after GF disaster.. and moment '05 ...

The silence in the Swans rooms in the aftermath of their second devastating grand final loss in three years was an indication of a side shell shocked by what had unfolded on the MCG in their 10 goal loss to Brisbane.

Parents bore thousand-yard stares as they tried to contemplate what to say to their sons. Officials looked ashen-faced as they considered the throng of families shattered by the minor premiers 60-point loss on a day when so much was at stake.

Will Hayward, who sparked Sydney initially when kicking the first goal of the match, was also the initial Swan to exit the meeting room after a brief meeting and was hugged by his dad.

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Soon after Isaac Heeney emerged, his shirt off as he limped past the Swans teammates who had not played on the day, offering each a brief handshake, before embracing his family, who looked shattered for him.

James Rowbottom found his partner. Others reached for the Maccas sitting on a side table. For now, the eskies were ignored.

The Lions rooms were doused in XXXX but the sobriety in the Swans rooms matched the funereal feeling that follows a shocker of a grand final performance.

Sydney great Michael O’Loughlin, who was with family members, did his best to lift the spirits of those who filtered into the room.

The 2005 premiership star embraced Errol Gulden, putting his forehead to his forehead as he whispered into his ear, speaking to him for a couple of minutes and then returning to offer him some more words of wisdom.

And then he did the same with several Swans, offering each words of encouragement while consoling with them after another extremely difficult loss. This was leadership.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - SEPTEMBER 28: Chad Warner of the Swans is seen in the rooms after the AFL Grand Final match between Sydney Swans and Brisbane Lions at Melbourne Cricket Ground, on September 28, 2024, in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Daniel Pockett/AFL Photos/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images

Speaking of leaders, Callum Mills has endured an extremely testing year in his first year as captain and looked shattered as he chatted with his agent Paul Connors, who was in the rooms to console those whose affairs his company manages.

It has been a difficult week for the 27-year-old, who injured a hamstring during training after the Swans come-from-behind triumph over the Giants in the qualifying final.

Having been ruled out with a hamstring injury on Wednesday, he watched with despair as first Logan McDonald and then Isaac Heeney were brought undone by problems they brought into the match. The “footy Gods” can be cruel, as Chad Warner would later say.

Gulden, who has enjoyed a great year and battled hard to win 24 possessions, was desolate as he became the first Swan to address the defeat publicly in the rooms.

“We are just devastated by the way we performed and obviously the result of the game,” he said.

“Just our pressure in the contest probably wasn’t up to the same level that they had it in that second quarter and in finals and grand finals, if you don’t match them at the contest, you genuinely won’t win the game.

“It sucks a fair bit. But that is sport at the end of the day. That is why we love it. It’s why the highs are so good but the lows, they are pretty shit. It is pretty raw.”

Chad Warner was the next to front and, in contrast, put on a braver face while shovelling French fries down his throat. He was not sure what stage of grief he was in.

“We have been in a delusional stage and then a crying stage and I am now in a ‘move on with it’ stage. I keep going between the two. It is just pretty crazy,” he said.

“The funny thing is we actually started well for once. To be honest with you, I don’t think we could have prepped any better and mentally we went into the game great, physically as well. guess the ‘footy Gods’ had something else to say on this day.”

Sydney's Chad Warner after their loss after the 2024 AFL Grand Final between the Sydney Swans and Brisbane Lions at the MCG on September 28, 2024. Photo by Phil Hillyard (Image Supplied for Editorial Use only - **NO ON SALES** - ©Phil Hillyard )Source: News Corp Australia

He lamented the Swans lack of pressure, noting it was rated 158, which is something “we’ve never probably done in my career since I’ve been here”, with Brisbane especially dominant during the second term of the grand final.

The electric midfielder said the loss to Brisbane was “a lot worse” than the 81-point thrashing at the hands of Geelong two years ago because “we were more prepared than last time”.

“I felt like we had to win a lot more than last time as well, so it is a lot worse, but a similar vibe though,” he said.

As mothers wiped away tears nearby, Warner noted the Swans were a resilient team.

“At the end of the day, life moves on. It is not the end of the world,” he said.

“The reality is that you are not going to get anywhere by sooking and sitting there and saying, ‘Woe is me’. So we’ll be back next year.”

About 6.20pm, Sydney chief executive Tom Harley emerged from an inner-meeting room and watched from afar as the volume in the rooms slowly started to pick up.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - SEPTEMBER 28: Chad Warner of the Swans speaks to media after the AFL Grand Final match between Sydney Swans and Brisbane Lions at Melbourne Cricket Ground, on September 28, 2024, in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Daniel Pockett/AFL Photos/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images

It was about this time that some family members, clearly keen to wash away what they had just witnessed, began raiding the eskies in the rooms. Notably, very few Swans joined in.

Meanwhile Dane Rampe, the stand-in captain in the absence of Mills, said the “emotions are still pretty raw” and that he did not know “what to make of it”.

“We are at peace knowing our preparation was as good as it has been. Unfortunately I have been in this place a few times, but I am completely at peace with our prep,” Rampe said.

“That is what makes it so hollow, that we don’t know where we went wrong, apart from what we did today. But we will lick our wounds and have a look at it and figure out how to go again.

“What I know about this group and this club is that we’ll fight like buggery to get back there. And that is what we are intent on doing.”