Source :- PERTH NOW NEWS
Hayden Young has labelled his superb preliminary final goal a “fluke” after producing one of the biggest clutch moments in Fremantle’s 32-year history.
The Dockers are through to the AFL grand final after coming from 28 points down to defeat Sydney by 12 points in an SCG thriller on Friday night.
Fremantle looked dead and buried as the clock ticked down to three-quarter time with the deficit still standing at a whopping 27 points.
But in what will go down in Fremantle folklore, Young took a mark on the boundary line about 45m out from goal with just 25 seconds remaining in the quarter.
He was on the wrong side for a left-footer, and by the time he was ready to take his kick the siren had already sounded.
But with fans yelling abuse at him as he started his run-up, Young nailed the 49m set shot to spark some much-needed hope among his Fremantle teammates.
The goal started a run of six consecutive majors as Fremantle stormed to the 12.11 (83) to 10.11 (71) win.
“I was pretty lucky to be honest. I wasn’t overly confident to be fair,” Young told Fox Sports about his goal.
“It was a fluke. I was getting a mouthful from the boundary line, so I was pretty happy when it went through.
“We definitely needed a little bit of a spark. I’ve got so much faith in this group. Whenever we’ve been challenged this year, we always respond. I’m really proud of this group.”
Fremantle will face either Brisbane or Hawthorn in next week’s grand final, with the Dockers aiming to snare their maiden flag.
“Clearly it’s something we’ve all thought a lot about,” Fremantle skipper Alex Pearce told Channel 7.
“But thinking about it doesn’t win it though. Playing footy like we did in that last quarter, that’s what’ll win it for us.
“We’ll do what we normally do. We’ll review this game, look at the good stuff, look at the bad, connect together, and go again and try and play like that, because that was pretty special in the end.”
