A Fraser Fort-inspired South Barwon has sent St Mary’s packing from the GFNL finals in straight sets with a 25-point win at West Oval this (Sunday) afternoon.
The reigning joint Mathieson medallist kicked seven goals, including five in a stunning second quarter to take his season tally to 59 in the 14.10 (94) to 10.9 (69) result.
The Swans will face St Joseph’s in next week’s grand final for the final spot in the September 27 decider against Leopold.
Trailing by 17 points at quarter time after kicking into the southerly breeze in the opening term, Fort produced 30 minutes that some observers rated better than Dale Carson’s heroics for Joeys in the third quarter of the 2015 grand final.
Fort told krockfootball.live post-game, the Swans have plenty of respect for the Saints.
“They’ve been the best team for five years, and we go, ‘Yep. We’ve got to be on our A game to play against them’,” he said.
“It’s super challenging. We’ve come away with a couple of good wins in finals against them.”
GFNL: SCOREBOARD – SEMI-FINALS
South Barwon has strung together five consecutive wins since suffering a 74-point loss to grand final-bound Leopold in Round 15.
Fort says the Swans are “playing with no fear”.
“Taking those 45 (degree) kicks and handball receives,” he said.
“Within the last five weeks, that vibe’s definitely come back, and (we’re) starting to believe.”
As influential as Fort was, key defender Rowan Gough’s performance in repelling the Saints’ numerous forward thrusts was crucial.
Fellow backman Jack Driver and hard-nosed midfielder Doyle Madigan were also important.
The only downside for South was a shoulder injury that resulted in vice-captain Taylor Mulraney being taken to hospital.
For St Mary’s, it was their second straight-sets exit and fourth consecutive finals loss since winning the 2022 premiership.
The loss ends Glenn Keast’s six-year tenure at Anthony Costa Oval, with Luke Rayner continuing in 2025.
Rayner says the Saints were powerless to curb Fort’s influence.
“He’s obviously cemented himself as a great player in this competition over the past couple of seasons,” Fort said.
“He’s a tough match-up. We threw two or three different ones at him, plus roll a plus-one around.
“But, I think he kicked three (goals) through the period we had ‘Ruddy’ (Michael Rudd) as our plus-one.
“It was just one of those things and one of those runs where we, unfortunately for us, couldn’t contain him.
“And it also comes down to the supply that was coming out of the midfield.”
X: @krockfootball
