Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither is an AFL midfield.
But instant construction seemed to be the task for the Sydney Swans after suspending five key players following last month’s post-match incident at the Pullman Hotel in Melbourne.
While the suspensions were the catalyst for major change, smaller moves had been afoot in the weeks and months beforehand.
No midfield has been hotter than the Swans over the past five games. Sydney has gone from a league-average side across the middle to perhaps being the best.
This is despite losing three-time All-Australian Isaac Heeney, fellow superstar Chad Warner and premiership player James Jordon.
Two weeks ago, Sydney surprised the AFL by comprehensively beating reigning premiers Brisbane.
That victory was largely driven by this makeshift force in the middle dynamically (and aggressively) moving the ball while protecting their defence.
Instead of star power, the Swans are relying on structure and balance to drive them deeper into the finals.
System against talent
There’s long been a debate in the footy world about system against talent. The Swans have placed themselves firmly in the camp of the former.
In their first game after the suspensions, Sydney tried new combinations, testing them in real footy.
It indicated coach Dean Cox was exploring how the available talent would fit the much-vaunted system, a message he had been preaching all year.
“One thing we want to make sure is that we are a system-based team and role-focused team,” Cox said of covering injuries to Heeney and Gulden in March.
The changes to the frontline are the most visible. Sydney relied heavily on Heeney, Warner and Jordon to drive their midfield engine.
Those three accounted for about half of their midfield centre-bounce contributions, let alone their impact around the ground.
But that role focus may have made it easier to replace the suspended stars and, along the way, find a better balance.
Pieces of the puzzle
Midfield balance is often a delicate beast.
If a team is too aggressive, it can be beaten back the other way in transition.
Too passive or defensive, and you can struggle for territory and scoreboard pressure.
As a result, replacing Heeney, Warner and Jordon required some lateral thinking.
Excluding ruck Brodie Grundy, arguably the most important player is James Rowbottom.
Shuffled in and out of different roles, Rowbottom’s flexibility within and between games has become a strength.
“I just do what the team needs,” Rowbottom told reporters ahead of the qualifying final against the Lions.
“I sort of have done that for the last eight years or so. My role’s been ever-changing this year.
“I’ve played a lot of half-forward, a lot of midfield, a bit of wing.”
However, Rowbottom does his best work hunting the ball and his opponent at the bottom of packs and contests.
Rowbottom sits sixth all-time for tackles per game.
In the past fortnight, he has applied the clamps with 56 pressure acts over the two games, which is a league-leading rate.
He’s unafraid to do the dirty work to make his teammates look better.
The reignited star
Two years ago, there were few more valuable young players in the league than Errol Gulden.
However, two injury-struck years dulled his star. It took just a month and a half for that supernova to reignite.
Since their round-20 win over cross-town rivals GWS, Gulden has quickly re-emerged as Sydney’s attacking focal point.
Few see angles and hit potential kicks on the field better than Gulden.
As a result, the Swans look to get the ball into Gulden’s hands more often than any other player in the league.
Gulden doesn’t just blaze away. He’s second among midfielders and sixth overall for retained metres gained, normally the specialty of defenders landing safer kicks.
In every way, Gulden finds ways to advance the ball with threat.
Without Heeney and Warner, Gulden is getting even more opportunity with ball in hand. This has improved their overall ball use and added more danger to their impressive attack.
Like all players, Gulden does have flaws.
While his attacking side is nearly unmatched, he is far from a defensive powerhouse.
At just 175 centimetres tall, he can be muscled out and pushed off balance when unable to use his speed.
It means his impact is best realised next to bigger bodies willing to do the hard yards.
The converted defender
While Jai Serong made last year’s VFL Team of the Year at Hawthorn, he was unable to crack the stellar Hawks defence or in a wing role.
Given this, few expected Serong to be thrown into the heart of the contest.
But, needing a defensive boost around contest and given his aerobic ability, the Swans decided to explore using Serong as an inside midfielder.
His arrival at stoppage in round 22 accompanied a heavier dose of Gulden at the middle, with Serong further protecting the elite ball-user.
With Serong in the heat of battle, the Swans have become a dominant stoppage force.
He not only provides a safety blanket but has done damage off his own boot, much like Rowbottom.
Young gun
Like many young players in good teams, former first-round pick Angus Sheldrick had to bide his time with short stints on the edges of the midfield rotation.
Sheldrick has firmly established himself as an impact player, both as a regular sub last year and on limited time this season.
But he has made that time count, focusing those minutes on high-impact, stoppage play.
He is able to cover the gaps of the other three with minimal drop-off so far.
The second layer
Often the pinch isn’t felt in the front line when changes are made. Instead, it’s beyond the main group where depth is really tested.
The Swans are suddenly fielding a slew of names only briefly seen at the top level. Billy Cootee, Tom Hanily, Jesse Dattoli and Caiden Cleary have made leaps in relatively unsung roles around the outside midfield and high half-forward.
Pressure, holding position and supporting structures have been the order of the day. These players, hungry and well-educated, are tasked with forming the outside layer and impacting post clearance.
Alongside more senior figures such as Tom Papley, Jake Lloyd, Braeden Campbell and the potentially returning Justin McInerney, they have helped control the middle of the ground.
Formidable Dockers
In the Swans’ path to the grand final stands self-proclaimed minor premier “underdogs” Fremantle.
The Dockers, with a midfield led by Serong’s brother Caleb, can pile on points and defend with aplomb.
Winning territory through the middle is critical for the Swans’ chances of staying alive one more week. But it’s an area that the Dockers have been susceptible to in the past.
The Swans may have had an advantage in the element of surprise against Brisbane. Few knew exactly how Sydney would set up.
But Fremantle may have more of an idea now, unless Cox and the Swans have yet another surprise up their sleeves.
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