Dawson recorded 40 disposals, 14 marks, eight tackles, seven clearances, six inside 50s and three goals – finishing with 196 AFL Fantasy points – in the Swans 25.24 (174) to 4.4 (28) masterclass.

With eight forced changes heading into the clash, NT could ill-afford to waste their possession, especially their forward 50 entries, but their early attempts at such were not encouraging.

Their opening handful of entrances resulted not in goals to the Thunder, but to their opponents, who quickly kicked ahead with the opening two majors of the day.

Sydney did a good job of keeping goal machine Darren Ewing quiet. Up against AFL-level defenders such as Jack Maibaum, Ewing was unable to impose himself on the contest in the early goings.

However, NT Thunder held on admirably through the early stages. Helped by some errant Swans kicking, NT managed to lock down the defences, but were scarcely able to rebound well enough to score themselves.

Kurt Tippett was clearly keen to impress, kicking two opening quarter goals and boosting his bid for an AFL recall.

The second quarter started in similar disappointing fashion, the Thunder coming within inches of their first goal of the contest before the Bloods rebounded and converted a mark inside 50 into their own six points.

Thunder did well to resist their opponents through the middle of the ground, but the red-and-white have built their 2017 NEAFL campaign on defence, and used it to generate scores off half-back.

The impressive discipline of Rhyce Shaw’s side earned them a massive advantage in inside 50s, but inaccurate kicking kept the score relatively in reach for much of the first half.

That very trait was one that eluded the away team, giving away two 50-metre penalties in the quarter and handing Sydney an unnecessary advantage.

Clearly, the Thunder were struggling to adapt from the wide-open spaces of TIO Stadium to the intimate nooks of the Sydney Cricket Ground, seeming stunned by the amount of pressure their opponents were able to apply.

Ewing finally put on a major, giving his side their first goal of the evening around 25 minutes through the second quarter, but it was his striking amount of inaction for the match that stood out as a reason for NT’s struggles.

His second major popped up again a whisker before the half, putting through his and his team’s second goal, after the siren, bringing in the half-time margin to 45 points.

Keen to arrest that momentum as they were, the Swans started the second half like a house on fire, with the first six goals of the quarter. Ben Ronke provided a match highlight when he rolled one through from a tough angle.

As the match wore on, and fitness started to play a larger part, the Thunder started to feel the full weight of their eight outs for the day, as the Bloods began to run harder, faster, and get more open than their opponents.

Ewing’s third goal for the evening came almost 27 minutes through the quarter.

The scoring certainly didn’t stop as the fourth quarter started, with Sydney again coming out of the blocks with a quadruplet of goals to push their lead well out past the 100-point mark.

With finals spots up for grabs amongst the Swans fraternity, the home team was not about to take their foot off the gas pedal. Josh Stern and Jake Brown both starred as Academy top-ups for the Bloods.

Spots in the senior side are at a premium also, with Aliir Aliir doing some nice work in the centre, frequently roving his own late-game ruckwork.

Tippett and Will Hayward each booted five goals, while Jordan Foote (29 disposals) and Harry Marsh (29) were among the Swans best players.

Cameron Ilett battled hard all day for his 23 disposals and four rebound 50s for NT, with Sam Smith and Jack Shannahan impressing in a tough day at the office.

Next week, Sydney enjoy a hard-earned bye, whilst the NT Thunder return home to host the Southport Sharks in an attempt to recoup some important premiership points and percentage after a massive loss. 

SYDNEY 4.4 8.13 18.20 25.24 (174)
NT THUNDER 0.4 2.4 4.4 4.4 (28)

GOALS – Sydney: W Hayward 5 K Tippett 5 J Rose 3 J Dawson 3 B Ronke T Pink H Marsh S Fisher T Leonardis. NT Thunder: D Ewing 3 J Shannahan.
BEST – Sydney: J Dawson J Foote H Marsh W Hayward K Tippett J Rose. NT Thunder: S Smith C Ilett J Shannahan M Rosier S Talbot D Weetra.