Sam Mitchell says ‘this feeling is the pits’ after loss to Brisbane
AFL Fans Association says bottle throwing an ‘ugly look for our game’
Brisbane and Hawthorn fought out one of the all-time great AFL finals, but when the siren sounded the biggest noise in the MCG was the booing.
Hawks players James Sicily, Tom Barrass and Jack Ginnivan had words with the umpires, who then had bottles thrown at them from Hawks fans as they left the stadium on Saturday night.
Ruckman Lloyd Meek swore while speaking to reporters in the rooms. Coach Sam Mitchell kept his emotions in check throughout a fraught post-game media conference, where he spoke of mourning.
“This feeling is the pits,” Mitchell said.
At the heart of Hawthorn’s collective rage was the holding-the-ball free paid against Jarman Impey in the last minute of the match. It was the most controversial of a number of contentious umpiring calls during the game.
Brisbane’s Hugh McCluggage then kicked the match-winning goal – the ninth lead-change of the game and the fourth in the last few frenetic minutes.
Meek was near Impey when the free was paid. “It’s heartbreaking... Excuse the profanity, you can edit that one out,” Meek said. “We pour our heart and soul into this.
“I was standing right next to him – I will be replaying that one for a while.
“I just feel like I probably could have jumped on and knocked the ball out or done a ‘stacks-on’ – something... It’s hard, in the dying moments.”
Mitchell said he was aware of the bottles being thrown on to the ground.
“At the end of the game, part of me wanted to break down in tears, part of me wanted to scream with rage, part of me wanted to throw chairs, you don’t know how to react,” he said.
“So when you’re in the stand, you need to continue to be feeling that emotion, because that’s why we love it, but how it manifests itself – we shouldn’t be throwing things on the field and doing those types of things.
“But the passion in the stand and the passion of the game is why we love it so much. So I hope that for the vast majority it was felt responsibly.”
The AFL Fans Association condemned the behaviour of a section of the Hawthorn crowd where fans threw bottles and cans on to the field after the match.
The AFLFA president, Ron Issko, said supporters had every right to be passionate and frustrated but there was a line that must not be crossed.
“Fans are entitled to disagree with umpiring decisions. They can boo, barrack and express their frustration. That’s part of being a passionate football supporter,” Issko said.
“But it is never, ever an excuse to throw bottles or cans on to the ground or at the umpires. What we saw was an ugly look for our game.”
Mitchell believed the performance had showed the football world that Hawthorn could be considered a “legitimate” team.
But the competitive mentor said this was the angriest he had been after a game and said it was too early to consider how his players could reflect.
“I think we’re in a mourning phase. What’s the first part, is it anger? I think I’m still half in anger, probably sense it in my body language,” he said.
“What’s after anger? I don’t know, last is acceptance and – I nearly said a bad word – I’m a long way from acceptance right now.
“I will sit in anger for a bit longer, I’m sure all the players will too.”
Mitchell spoke of his pride in the Hawks, who staged a comeback in the final quarter.
“If you want to strive for great things, you will open yourself up for all sorts of emotion, the greatest of joy, and the deepest of pain,” he said.
“That was a game for the ages. I’m sure I will appreciate it at some point,” he said.
For the Lions, Kai Lohmann was brilliant with five goals, including three in the third term. Harris Andrews again starred in defence, and McCluggage capped his return to form with the match-winning goal.
“That was bonkers – just a rollercoaster of emotion,” Andrews said.
“It’s hard to digest right now. I’m just so proud of the way the boys were able to handle those moments late.”
Charlie Cameron put the match on a par with Brisbane’s comeback 2024 semi-final win over GWS, when Brisbane rallied from 44 points down to get up by five points.
“The Giants semi-final was probably my favourite game of all time,” he said. “But yeah, that was up there. Hughy McCluggage. What a star.”
Brisbane’s 20.11 (131) to 19.8 (122) win booked them a meeting with Fremantle in the grand final next weekend.
The Lions last played the Dockers at the Gabba on 30 May, when they lost by 25 points amid a run of form. But the Lions have experience on their side in their first final against the Dockers, who are chasing a maiden premiership.
Coach Chris Fagan urged the Lions to lean into that experience to seize the prize of an AFL premiership three-peat.
“It’s very exciting to be in the position where we can achieve something like that,” Fagan said.
“But it’s not worth thinking about that because you get caught up in thinking the wrong way.
“We’ve just got to get back, recover well, come back down and just follow our process.”