With the Sydney Swans playing Collingwood at ANZ Stadium on Saturday, Classic Matches looks at a champion Swan’s record-breaking performance.

Sydney Swans v Collingwood
Round 10, June 6, 1999
SCG

A massive crowd of 41,280 flocked into the SCG for the round 10 Sydney Swans-Collingwood clash of 1999 fully expecting history to be created.

Swan full-forward Tony Lockett looked certain to break the VFL/AFL goalkicking record of 1299 goals.

Ironically, that record was set by a Collingwood player – Gordon “Nuts” Coventry – and Swan fans expected the Magpie defence would do everything in its power to stop Lockett from breaking the record that afternoon.

It looked a forlorn task as Lockett seemed certain to break Coventry’s record early in the match.

And that was the way it panned out, with Lockett setting a new mark in the first quarter.

The Swans had kicked six goals in that first quarter when, with a minute to go to the siren for the first break, Adam Goodes kicked long from defence for teammate Stuart Maxfield to gather.

Maxfield kicked along the boundary line to where Swan captain Paul Kelly was being tagged by Scott Burns.

Although Burns managed to get to the front of Kelly he inadvertently kicked the ball out of bounds on the full.

Kelly, on being awarded the free kick, immediately looked for a Lockett lead.

His pass was pinpoint perfect, hitting Lockett on the chest between two Magpie defenders.

Swan fans, many of them holding cardboard Lockett masks to their face, hoped beyond hope that Lockett would end their wait with an accurate shot from 35 metres on a 45-degree angle.

The quarter-time siren blared as Lockett lined up his kick, therefore eliminating the possibility of him playing on to get a better angle.

Lockett’s concentration seemed total as he kicked with his trusty right foot. And, although the ball wobbled through the air, it sailed through for a goal.

Swan fans went wild with delirium and thousands invaded the ground in efforts to pat their hero on the back.

Lockett had broken the record that Coventry had set between 1920-37.

Coventry set his goals record over 306 games with the Magpies after being recruited from Diamond Creek, about 30 kilometres north-east of Melbourne and now an outlying suburb.

Lockett went on to kick an AFL record 1360 goals from 281 games (183 with St Kilda from 1983-94 and 98 with the Swans from 1995-99 and in 2002). Lockett averaged 4.84 goals per game to Coventry’s 4.25.

The Swans, in that match against Collingwood, led by 37 points at quarter-time and from there were never in danger of defeat.

Although Collingwood tried desperately to bridge the gap, it had no answer to Lockett’s inspirational strength and the combined midfield brilliance of Kelly, Daryn Cresswell and Nic Fosdike.

Goodes at that stage of his career was one of the AFL’s most promising young players (he won the AFL Rising Star Award in 1999) and played in the ruck.

He had 24 hitouts to 14 by Collingwood veteran Damian Monkhorst, who was backed up by former Swan Anthony Rocca, who also had 14 hitouts.

Lockett capped off his record-breaking effort with nine goals straight and went on to finish the season with 82 goals.

He announced his retirement at season’s end, but made a brief comeback (three games for three goals) in 2002.  

Sydney Swans     7.4     10.5     15.8     22.13 (145)
Collingwood         1.3      7.6      12.7     14.10 (94)

Goals: Lockett 9, Fosdike 2, Maxfield 2, O’Loughlin 2, Barry, Campbell, Cresswell, Goodes, Kelly, Nicks, Saddington.