Player Ratings: vs Western Bulldogs Round 12, 2017

Well, a timely week off has been the panacea the Swans desperately needed, as they look to turn a poor start to the season around in their bid to play finals.

Easily accounting for last years golden child, ably assisted by those in green, the Swans have moved up the ladder, boosted their percentage, and send a warning to the rest of the AFL - they're not done yet.

B: Nick Smith, Lewis Melican, Dane Rampe
HB: Dean Towers, Heath Grundy, Jake Lloyd
C: Zak Jones, Josh P. Kennedy, Callum Mills
HF: Isaac Heeney, Lance Franklin, Will Hayward
F: Tom Papley, Sam Reid, Kieren Jack
FOL: Sam Naismith, Luke Parker, Dan Hannebery
I/C: Callum Sinclair, Nic Newman, George Hewett, Harry Marsh

	40: Nick Smith	7.5	Another solid game, pretty close to his best. Stats won't show much, but kept his opponents scoreless when he was lined up against them, so ignore the AF score.
	43: Lewis Melican (R)	7.5	Lewis certainly MeliCAN, no longer MeliCAN'T! Did well throughout and Travis Choke, despite having a 'mare, was held to nothing
	24: Dane Rampe	7.5	My oh my, how we've missed this guy. Superb in defence, great pressure and lead well.
	22: Dean Towers	7	Another one of those 'the stats don't do it justice' games. Did some really good work in tight and was uncharacteristically efficient with his disposal. 17 pressure acts playing in a defensive role.
	39: Heath Grundy	8	Another bloody good game, enough said.
	44: Jake Lloyd	8	Back in, tidy disposal, 31 disposals and spread it superbly, capping it off with a goal.
	10: Zak Jones	7	Really dynamic at times and was superb in the build up to Papley's first goal. At times inconsistent, but with 16 disposals and 21 pressure acts, had plenty of impact.
	12: Josh Kennedy	9	Another delicious game from a player who is really out of this world. 37 disposals, 1 goal and 7 inside 50s. Was instrumental and lead the Swans when they needed it the most.
	14: Callum Mills	7	Was OK. He did some superb things, but defensively exposed - it's not his best role playing 1-on-1, just doesn't have the nous yet.
	5: Isaac Heeney	8.5	16 disposals 10 minutes into the 2nd quarter. Was absolutely massive in the first half and finished the game off well. Polished display and that's pretty close to his best.
	23: Lance Franklin	8	Threatened to blow the game wide open in the first half and had he been more accurate (3.5), the game would have been over.
	9: Will Hayward	7.5	Another 'the stats lie' - 22 pressure acts, 4 marks in the first 5 minutes, finished with 6 for the game and 11 disposals. Kicked two behinds but laid some massive chase down tackles.
	41: Tom Papley	8.5	Superb 2 goal performance. Is this guy a forward or a midfielder? I don't really know. That tackle on Bontempelli, supoib.
	20: Sam Reid	8	10 marks, 7 contested! He was superb! 16 disposals, 2 goals and was fantastic as a forward.
	15: Kieren Jack	7	Good return to senior footy. Played just 61% game time and dislocated his finger in the 2nd half. Still had 144 metres gained from 16 disposals and 16 pressure acts, to go with his two tackles and three inside 50s.
	35: Sam Naismith	7	Tippett, you've got to watch how this guy plays. 33 hit outs and some big tackles in the first quarter and several really big efforts when the game was on the line. Faded later on, but was really important when it mattered.
	26: Luke Parker	8	Great return to form. Great game really, can't fault it. Only 23 disposals, but got himself a goal, 4 goals and equal team-high 8 tackles along with Papley. 29 pressure acts, 360 metres gained, and a delightful chip pass to Franklin.
	4: Dan Hannebery	8	Another superb game from the superb midfielder. Too a crunching hit late on from Easton Wood but was straight back out there. Didn't hit the scoreboard, but hurt the Dogs in every other possible way.
	18: Callum Sinclair	7.5	Superb game as 2nd ruck. Dominated in the forward 50 contests. 31 hit outs, 16 disposals and 10 contested, 3 marks, 5 clearances and 4 tackles. Tippett is going to have to work his ass off if he wants to play again this season.
	28: Nic Newman	7.5	Doing it at both ends now, 5 inside 50s, 4 rebound 50s and some really good disposals. 7 marks to go with his 18 disposals capped off his performance.
	29: George Hewett	7.5	Kept pretty boy out of the match with 9 disposals, looked like he didn't want to be there at the end. Sacrificed his game, but got a goal in the last quarter
	31: Harry Marsh	7	Solid in defence, and I was a bit shocked too, 15 disposals with 6 marks! Granted, the Swans had it on a string at times, but he was solid throughout.

Bonus rating: 10/10 umpires performance, first time we haven't been bent over a barrel against the #bravedogs for a long time

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