AFL: New England Nomads defy odds to defeat Tamworth Swans in grand final

Having defied the odds to make their way through the finals series, the Nomads were significant underdogs in the clash against the Tamworth Swans.

And when Charlie Paine was sent tumbling headfirst into the white picket fence encircling No. 1 Oval early in the first quarter, New England coach and player, Clarrie Barker, began to fear for the worst.

"He dislocated his shoulder, so he was out and we were down a man early, which wasn't great," Barker said.

"It was hard, because we gave Charlie a really big role in the game, and him bowing out early wasn't the greatest for our game plan."

But, he added, the resilience shown by the side to make it through the first two rounds of finals despite their underdog status came to the fore again after Paine was injured.

Instead of struggling to compensate for the loss of a key player, the Nomads were inspired to pull together and work as a team to cover for his absence.

"That really made us play well as a team and use each other to do what Charlie was supposed to do today," Barker said.

"We didn't have the greatest end to the regular season ... but we set a game plan for these finals and improved each week."

It was far from a simple task for the Nomads to overcome the Swans, who had led the competition from the outset.

The lead changed hands multiple times during the game and Tamworth never felt out of the contest at any point. Indeed, there were several scuffles between the two sides throughout the match, which reflected the intensity running through both camps.

But it is in these moments, under the pressure of a grand final, that Barker said the Nomads shine brightest.

"We're a team that really thrives on pressure being put on us," he said.

"We do well when we bounce back from pressure and put it on other teams. That's when we start to play our best footy, when we start pressuring other teams to do the right thing."

That pressure paid off in spades, and though their 11.10.76 to 10.10.70 victory was "quite a good team performance", Barker highlighted the contributions of two players as key to the outcome.

The skill and versatility of players like Noah Connick and Tommy Hunt, who Barker said "can play forward and back", made them "irreplaceable".

In just his second year as coach, the 23-year-old was "over the moon" to have claimed the premiership.

But that success was not his alone, and primarily came down to the "absolutely great bunch of blokes" with whom Barker shared the field.

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