Sydney Swans Tundukkan Collingwood Magpies Usai Cedera Oscar Steene

Sydney Swans berhasil mengalahkan Collingwood Magpies dengan selisih enam poin di SCG pada Jumat malam setelah momentum pertandingan berbalik akibat cedera lutut parah yang menimpa ruckman Magpies, Oscar Steene. Kemenangan ini diraih setelah Swans sempat tertinggal 33 poin pada kuarter kedua.

Pemain bintang Swans, Brodie Grundy, mendominasi lini tengah dengan mencatatkan 34 disposisi, 46 hitout, dan 12 clearance untuk memenangkan Medali Goodes-O'Loughlin. Cedera yang dialami Steene membuat Collingwood terpaksa mengandalkan ruckman darurat seperti Jack Buller dan Ned Long.

Pelatih Collingwood, Craig McRae, mengonfirmasi bahwa Steene diduga memerlukan rekonstruksi lutut dan kemungkinan besar akan melewati pertandingan pekan depan. Tim medis dijadwalkan melakukan pemindaian lanjutan saat skuad kembali ke Melbourne pada hari Sabtu.

"It’s not looking good, unfortunately," kata McRae, Pelatih Collingwood.

McRae menyayangkan cedera tersebut karena Steene sedang tampil impresif dalam meredam pergerakan Grundy di awal laga. Kehilangan pemain berusia 22 tahun tersebut dinilai mengubah drastis jalannya permainan yang semula dikuasai oleh Magpies.

"To see what he was capable of against Brodie [Grundy], who clearly is one of the better ruckmen in the competition, he was really holding his own, and we had a lot of ascendancy from that. I think we might have been 16 points up, or close to it, around that time and then, the game changes," ujar McRae, Pelatih Collingwood.

Grundy yang menjadi motor kebangkitan Swans mengakui situasi tersebut sangat menguntungkan timnya. Dirinya juga menyampaikan simpati mendalam atas cedera serius yang menimpa mantan rekan setimnya tersebut.

"Obviously, tonight I was rucking against some of Collingwood’s midfield players, so you’ve got to acknowledge that," kata Brodie Grundy, Pemain Sydney Swans.

Grundy memuji talenta muda Collingwood itu dan berharap kondisi Steene tidak seburuk dugaan awal tim medis. Cedera tersebut menjadi pukulan telak bagi lini tengah Magpies.

"It was disappointing for them, I hope Oscar’s OK. He looked quite bad, so best wishes to him, he’s a great young talent, and I’ve been watching him all year," tutur Brodie Grundy, Pemain Sydney Swans.

Grundy menambahkan bahwa pergerakan Steene sempat menyulitkan strateginya di area tengah sebelum insiden itu terjadi.

"He’s given me a few headaches there in the centre ... he can jump through the roof, I just hope he’s OK," kata Brodie Grundy, Pemain Sydney Swans.

Collingwood sebenarnya tampil menekan sejak kuarter pertama lewat performa Jordan De Goey dan Nick Daicos yang mencetak dua gol. Namun, efisiensi mereka menurun tajam di kuarter kedua dengan hanya mencetak 1.7 dibandingkan 2.2 milik Swans.

"You lose by a goal, [and] it’s all those moments, isn’t it?" kata McRae, Pelatih Collingwood.

McRae menyoroti banyaknya peluang gol yang terbuang dari kedua tim akibat kondisi lapangan yang basah dan licin.

"Someone had a set shot, someone could have stabbed a goal – both teams kicked 15 behinds [for the game]. It was tricky conditions," ujar McRae, Pelatih Collingwood.

Kendati kalah, McRae mengapresiasi kerja keras anak asuhnya dalam mempertahankan wilayah pertahanan.

"With that energy and effort that we had tonight, plus [the way we are] defending the ground, we’re going to be in a lot of games," kata McRae, Pelatih Collingwood.

Di kubu Swans, Nick Blakey tampil menonjol dengan mengemas 39 disposisi dan 10 mark sepanjang pertandingan. Namun, ia memilih memberikan pujian kepada James Rowbottom yang melakukan tackle krusial di akhir laga terhadap Dan Houston.

"We were up against it and could have easily folded over and said it was too hard. But we never say die," kata Nick Blakey, Pemain Sydney Swans.

Tackle dari Rowbottom tersebut menggagalkan upaya serangan terakhir dari Collingwood untuk menyamakan kedudukan.

"[It was] Rowy’s 150th, and it was fitting that the toughest man on the ground lays that last tackle [on Dan Houston]," ujar Nick Blakey, Pemain Sydney Swans.

Blakey menilai Rowbottom sering kali tidak mendapatkan apresiasi yang layak atas kontribusi besarnya di dalam tim.

"They were off [looking to pump the ball forward], and they are so good at playing those moments and they are never out of it," tutur Nick Blakey, Pemain Sydney Swans.

Ia menegaskan hubungan dekatnya dengan Rowbottom di luar lapangan membuat momen tersebut terasa semakin spesial.

"He doesn’t get a lot of recognition. He’s my best mate, and we live together and are thick as thieves, and he’s very underrated," kata Nick Blakey, Pemain Sydney Swans.

Pelatih Swans, Dean Cox, turut memuji kedewasaan Nick Blakey dalam beradaptasi ketika taktik utama tim berhasil diredam oleh Collingwood.

"What I’m really excited about is how mature [we are]. We can become a team that, if something’s thrown at us, we can adapt and move and do it a different way," kata Dean Cox, Pelatih Sydney Swans.

Cox menilai pemahaman peran yang baik menjadi kunci perkembangan permainan Blakey dalam beberapa pertandingan terakhir.

"Whether that’s around the contest, stoppage, defensively or offensively. I think Nick’s in that space at the moment – he’s a mature player, he’s played a lot of footy. He understands his role, but he doesn’t push it too far, which has been really good, and that’s been part of his development," ujar Dean Cox, Pelatih Sydney Swans.

Kemenangan Swans juga dipastikan oleh dua gol penting masing-masing dari Tom Papley dan Logan McDonald. Mengenai keputusan mencoret Hayden McLean, Cox menegaskan hal itu murni kebutuhan taktik.

"I think as a coach they’re the hardest decisions to make, but they’re ones that you have to make, and they’re ones that you’re hopefully in a position to make," kata Dean Cox, Pelatih Sydney Swans.

Cox lebih memilih membawa kembali Charlie Curnow untuk melengkapi formasi lini depan menghadapi Collingwood.

"It means everyone plays their role, to bring Charlie [Curnow] back in was important, but Hayden [McLean] and Logan [McDonald] and Joel [Amartey] had been playing their roles, and did last week against North," tutur Dean Cox, Pelatih Sydney Swans.

Cox menutup penjelasannya dengan menyatakan bahwa formasi dengan empat pemain jangkung tidak cocok untuk skema pertandingan kali ini.

"It was just unfortunate we weren’t going to go with four talls. The set-up we’d been using with Logan had been working, so that’s what probably held him in favour," kata Dean Cox, Pelatih Sydney Swans.