‘Best game I’ve ever seen’: Cornes on grand final

IN an era of grand final blowouts, fans were treated to a historical decider in 2023.

The final scoreline read Collingwood 90 to Brisbane 86, the first grand final to be decided by less than a goal since 2018 and only the fourth by one kick or fewer since the turn of the millennium.

While we’ve had a few grand final thrillers since the year 2000 and plenty more prior to that, Port Adelaide great Kane Cornes believes Saturday’s game was the best he’d ever seen. Not only in terms of deciders, but in AFL history.

Whether it was the big stage, the skill level, the end-to-end feel of the game or the tight finish, Cornes was wowed by the spectacle put on by the Magpies and Lions and he expects the 2023 Grand Final to go down in history.

“It was unbelievable,” Cornes said on Nine’s Sunday Footy Show.

“The 11 goals that were kicked in the second term, some of the goals that were scored, the high marks and the skill level particularly with the ball movement.

“To do that in front of 100,000 on the biggest stage of all… I thought it was the best game that I’ve ever seen, let alone a grand final.

“That’s in terms of what we witnessed yesterday. It’s going to go down in history.

Cornes’ co-host and 2000 Essendon premiership hero Matthew Lloyd said he agreed with the sentiment, adding that it was the best grand final he’d seen since the famous 1989 decider where Hawthorn beat Geelong 144 to 138.

“I always talk about 1989 which is when I fell in love with footy, Hawthorn versus Geelong,” Lloyd said.

“It was brutal that game, but I think it was the best one I’ve seen since then and the best one since I’ve been covering footy.

“Probably since the year 2000, this one has been the best.”

The premiership win was Collingwood’s 16th in VFL/AFL history and their tightest win in a decider in 120 years.

– LACHLAN GELEIT/ SEN