Sydney v Fremantle player ratings: Brightest stars and stunning moments on a night of agony and ecstasy

You have reached your maximum number of saved items.

Remove items from your saved list to add more.

Some fairytales just don’t come true.

After the events of last month in Melbourne, the second-on-the-ladder Swans couldn’t have seemed further away from another grand final berth.

But what happened since – despite missing a host of their best players after they were handed season-ending suspensions by the Swans for failing to meet the club’s standards after their round 23 win over Essendon – has been nothing short of remarkable.

On Friday night, they finished just 13 points shy of the decider as the Dockers roared home.

Marc McGowan (Sydney) and Steve Barrett (Fremantle) run their eye over every player in from the preliminary final at the SCG.

(2) Hayden McLean: Relieved Brodie Grundy in the ruck and comfortably won those stints against Mason Cox. His intercept marking was also a feature. 6/10

(4) Brodie Grundy: Grundy took the first-half honours against Luke Jackson and was a key reason the Swans started so well, but the star Docker rose to the occasion after half-time. It was a great ruck battle. 6.5/10

(6) Logan McDonald: McDonald was excellent again, after kicking six goals in the Swans’ qualifying final drubbing of the Lions. He was often Sydney’s deepest forward and constantly presented, and was rewarded with a game-high three goals. 8/10

(8) James Rowbottom: Had a series of defensive efforts that led to Angus Sheldrick’s third-quarter goal and there is never any question on his effort. 6.5/10

(9) Jesse Dattoli: A quiet night for the second-year Swan, who otherwise grabbed his opportunity late in the season. 1/10

(11) Tom Papley: Papley was sensational in the opening half, whether kicking or setting up goals, executing diving smothers or stealing handballs. But he would have loved a better return than 1.3. 8/10

(12) Angus Sheldrick: Sheldrick is as tough as nails and kicked a goal in the third quarter, but won only 12 disposals. 6/10

Only one of the Serong boys will reach the grand final this year. Their mum is already taking sides

(13) Jai Serong: Who would have picked the ex-Hawk at the start of the year to be a centre-bounce midfielder in a preliminary final? Serong’s been a bargain recruit and was a strong performer on the night. 7/10

(15) Sam Wicks: Wicks won enough of the ball, but was a bit sloppy with his disposals, and wasn’t quite as good defensively as usual. 5/10

(16) Braeden........

© The Age