THE class of former AFL star Adam Schneider was not enough to get Coolamon home as Griffith continued a fine start to the season with a thrilling 11-point victory on Sunday.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The scores were level with five minutes remaining but it was the Swans who rose to the occasion to sneak home, 12.14 (86) to 11.9 (75) at Kindra Park.
Schneider spent most of the game forward where the 31-year-old former St Kilda and Sydney star gathered 15 disposals and kicked 1.3.
Ultimately, it was his opponent for much of the day, two-time Jim Quinn Medallist, Guy Orton, that proved the difference in a tense final term.
Orton started the quarter on Schneider and kept him under control before going into the midfield to play a starring role in Griffith’s win.
Orton got the Swans going again when challenged by Coolamon and kicked a classy goal running away from a centre bounce that put Griffith back in front late in the game.
Griffith director of coaching Adrian Pavese lauded his new-look Swans.
“That was our new found resilience. I think last year we would have lost that game,” Pavese said.
“We were down to nothing on the bench in the last quarter, playing blokes injured.
“I give Coolamon credit, they’re a good young side and they’re going to trouble a lot of teams but we’re more focused on us at the moment and we wanted to be a better team by five o’clock this afternoon regardless of the result and I think we done that.”
“The fact that we could play to our structure in the first quarter and a half, then Coolamon had their moment, and then we found our way and got back to the belief that if we stick to our process then we should be thereabouts.”
Griffith kicked the first five goals of the game to lead by 31 points early in the second term before Jamie Maddox helped inspire Coolamon’s fight back.
The Hoppers narrowed the margin to 13 points at half-time, 11 points at the final break and even hit the front briefly in the final term.
Orton was brilliant for Griffith, but well supported by midfielders Ben King and Will Griggs. They finished with injuries to key talls Alex Birch (calf), Kyle Lynch (finger) and Andrew Cappello (hamstring).
Maddox was best for Coolamon, in and under all day, while Chase Grintell was also very good. Will Graetz also did well at full-back.
Pavese is happy to head into Saturday’s showdown with Leeton-Whitton with two wins from two games.
“We’ll take it, absolutely. The early wins are going to be important because when we do fall over while we are learning the new game plan, they are the wins you need to get,” he said.
