Michael Crowley - The Age - 11 September

When Barry Hall rode onto the SCG a year ago, the faithful stood, cheered and brought a tear to his eye as he bade farewell.

But now they had turned. Hall had endured crowd abuse throughout his career but with even the children of Swans fans branding him a traitor, it seemed like the bond built between Hall and Sydney over nine seasons had been broken.

It was three weeks ago and Hall was back in Sydney, this time as a Western Bulldog. While not expecting them to cheer him, Hall felt Swans fans would welcome him. While some offered encouragement, others jeered, abused and even let their children do their dirty work.

''I was really disappointed, very disappointed,'' Hall said. ''I thought they were better than that. I would nearly put them in the category of a Collingwood supporter now.

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