Sydney has defied the weight of 72 years of history, logic, a better-credentialled opposition and the critics to win an historic AFL premiership.

The Swans fought back from a 10-point deficit early in the last quarter to beat West Coast 8.10 (58) to 7.12 (54) in front of 91,898 fans at the MCG.

It will go down as one of the great AFL grand finals and the four-point margin was the tightest since the North Melbourne-Collingwood draw of 1977.

It was also the lowest winning grand final score since Carlton's 7.14 (56) in '68.

But the most important piece of history was the South Melbourne-turned-Sydney club winning its first flag since 1933.

"Clearly, I think it just puts an exclamation mark on the Sydney Swans - we're no longer the only team that hasn't won a premiership, we're now a premiership team," said coach Paul Roos of the club that relocated north after the 1981 season.

"I don't think that can be understated how significant that is - Sydney Swans footy club, 2005 premiers - that will be there forever.

"It can only help, there's no question."

The game was full of drama, but All-Australian Leo Barry's amazing pack mark just seconds before the final siren deep in the West Coast attack became an instant classic moment of AFL history.

Barry did not hear the siren and was in a daze as team-mates mobbed him.

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