Callum Mills injury compared to Matthew Primus in 2004, Sydney Swans v Brisbane Lions grand final, Port Adelaide premiership 2004, Mark Williams, John Longmire, latest news #adessonews

Sydney Swans captain Callum Mills missing this weekend’s Grand Final cast Mark Williams’ mind back 20 years.

Mills, who missed the preliminary final victory against Port Adelaide with a hamstring injury, was ruled out on Wednesday despite completing Sydney’s main training session and the news made 2004 Port Adelaide premiership coach Williams think of former Power skipper Matthew Primus.

“Matty Primus is the one that didn’t play, who sat in the box with me the whole game, who supported our team for half of the season,” Williams recalled on Fox Footy’s AFL 360.

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“It’s not all that much different to what’s happening now with Callum Mills.

“The idea that the captain’s not there and he deserves to be there – because he was so much a pillar of strength for us to get there – and then on the big day he wasn’t there.”

If Sydney prevails against Brisbane on Saturday, Mills will become the first current club captain to not be a member of a premiership side since Robert Murphy missed the Western Bulldogs drought-breaking triumph in 2016.

Before Murphy, Primus was the last captain to be forced to watch from the sidelines as his teammates tasted premiership glory.

Williams joined AFL 360 on Wednesday night ahead of the second leg of Port Adelaide’s 20-year premiership union in Melbourne – the playing group along with staff all got together in Adelaide several weeks ago – and he found the similarities between Mills and Primus eerie.

The Power’s 2004 triumph came after a third consecutive minor premiership but preliminary final losses in 2002 and 2003.

Primus was an All-Australian in 2001 and 2002 – a year when he also won the club’s best and fairest – but was hampered by injury in 2003 before rupturing his ACL in Round 3 of their premiership season.

Mills meanwhile has played in two losing Grand Finals – 2016 and 2022 – and two years ago was an All-Australian on his way to winning the Swans’ best and fairest.

A Swans victory could therefore spark scenes between coach John Longmire and Mills reminiscent of Williams and Primus.

Port Adelaide’s only AFL premiership coach charging down the steps of the Shane Warne Stand late in the last quarter holding his tie aloft to make fun of the chokers moniker his side had been labelled with for the two years prior is part of Grand Final folklore, but Williams revealed a little-known story from those moments on AFL 360.

It was assumed that his tears were of relief, but they were in fact for Primus.

“My tears at the end of that was a lot to do with the fact I’d just spoken to Matty Primus and reflected on his effort and what it was that helped us get there,” he said.

More tears may flow at this week’s reunion as Williams shared the pain of not being able to share the moment with two of his former assistant coaches.

“It was beautiful to be back with the players again,” he said.

“The disappointing thing for me at the end of this reunion stuff, Phil (Walsh) is not there, Dean (Bailey) is not there.”

Walsh – who was senior coach of the Adelaide Crows at the time – died in 2015, while Bailey – who coached Melbourne from 2008 to 2011 – passed away a year earlier.