Currently the Swans sit in seventh spot on the ladder only leading the Bombers by the barest of percentage points. This game is vital to the final aspirations of both teams with the winner virtually assured of September action.
Sydney and Essendon first played for the Marn Grook Trophy in Round 9, 2002. Essendon recorded a thrilling two-point victory that night in Stadium Australia’s first ever AFL match. The game hung in the balance right up until the final siren, which sounded with the ball in the Sydney forward line. Only a minute before young Ricky Mott took a mark 40 metres out for the Swans and had the chance to put his team three points in front but agonisingly for him, missed to the right.
Steve Alessio was the Bombers’ best player and finished with three majors for the match. After the game acting captain Sean Wellman and coach Kevin Sheedy accepted the inaugural Marn Grook cup from Evonne Goolagong Cawley.
In Round 11 last season, Sydney evened the ledger at Stadium Australia when they beat the Bombers by 54-points. Only one point separated the two teams at the major change, but a nine goal to two third quarter blew the Bombers away. Matthew Lloyd booted five goals in the losing side.The traditional game of Marn Grook, which was possibly the inspiration for Australian Rules Football, was played by Indigenous Australians with a ball made of a possum skin and filled with pounded charcoal and, or grass and tied with kangaroo sinews. This was kicked and tossed by two opposing teams of up to 50 players.
AFL has a rich history of involvement in, and promotion of Indigenous issues. Both Clubs have had outstanding Indigenous players, particularly in recent times, including Michael Long and Dean Rioli from Essendon and Adam Goodes and Michael O’Loughlin from the Sydney Swans.
