Well, we made it. Just. After looking like we might drop out of the eight altogether, the Swans pulled out a good bit of form, winning three from their last four matches - all against top 4 opponents. Our only loss was at the hands of the Hawks, without arguably our two best players in Lance Franklin and Luke Parker. As good as ruled in ... Continue Reading »
The Swans' 2017 campaign finally came to an end on Friday night, an antithesis ending to the sensational resurrection of a season long thought gone. The Swans continued their impressive membership growth this season - increasing every season since 2011 - signing up another 2,500 members on last year to smash the membership barrier for the fifth consecutive season. Passing last season's record membership ... Continue Reading »
Right to it then. These ratings are brought to you stat-less, from our observations at the game and nothing more. B: Nick Smith, Heath Grundy, Callum Mills HB: Jarrad McVeigh, Dane Rampe, Zak Jones C: Isaac Heeney, Josh P. Kennedy, Jake Lloyd HF: Gary Rohan, Lance Franklin, Tom Papley F: Kieren Jack, Callum Sinclair, Sam Reid FOL: Sam Naismith, Dan Hannebery, Luke Parker I/C: ... Continue Reading »
All good things must finally come to an end. For those that bleed red and white, the Swans season came to a grinding halt against the irrepressible Geelong Cats on Friday night. After a long season, every game virtually an elimination final, the last match of them all was just one too many for the jaded Swans. The odds were firmly stacked in the Swans ... Continue Reading »
The Swans have resisted the urge to swing the axe after their emphatic 65 point win against Essendon last Saturday. Not for the first time this season the Sydney Swans have named an unchanged line up, but for the first time in a very long time, the Swans go into a final unchanged. Coach John Longmire all but declared Lance Franklin's inclusion during his post ... Continue Reading »
The Swans go into the heavy weight semi final clash against Geelong on Friday night as overwhelming favourites, despite finishing 4 positions beneath them on the AFL ladder. Geelong finished the season on a high note, sneaking into second with favourable results in the final round, but have since seen their season teeter on the brink after a first round finals loss to red-hot Richmond. ... Continue Reading »
Swans Captain Josh Kennedy put in another masterclass on Saturday afternoon as he lead the Swans to victory in emphatic fashion. A proven finals player and reigning MVP from the inaugural 2016 season, Kennedy was one of two players to poll maximum votes from the weekend, giving him an early lead in the award. The player not only caught the coaches eyes, but those of ... Continue Reading »
Every team that plays in the finals eventually has a hard luck story, with Ben McGlynn, Jeremy Laidler and Aliir Allir among those for the Swans in recent seasons. This season, another hard luck story is brewing with big man Kurt Tippett firmly on the outer after the combination of Sam Naismith and Callum Sinclair worked superbly. Both players dominated their respective opponents in the ... Continue Reading »
What a way to keep the run going, winning 15 from 17 and setting up a semi-final show down with Geelong. A competitive first quarter was put firmly in the rearview mirror as the Swans rampaged in the second quarter, belting the hapless Bombers off the park. If ever was a final with the result all but guaranteed in the 2nd quarter this was it. ... Continue Reading »
The Swans put to bed any lingering doubts of their premiership credentials with a finals record-breaking performance. Despite Essendon holding numerical supremacy in patches throughout the game, replays more than numbers, will give a far better idea of how absolute the Swans' domination was. The first half was nothing short of a demolition, with the Swans kicking 10 unanswered goals either side quarter time, and ... Continue Reading »
The best news of the bye is that the Swans are expected to head into the elimination final against Essendon on Saturday afternoon injury free, following a strong showing at training on Tuesday. All but two players (Cameron - season, Fox - knee) are expected to be available for selection, with Dan Hannebery, Tom Papley, Callum Sinclair, Kurt Tippett and Sam Naismith all in the ... Continue Reading »
Big news today from the Adelaide Crows with star midfielder Rory Sloane admitted to hospital with appendicitis. Sloane, 27, reported abdominal pain on Tuesday morning and and it was determined that surgery was needed to remove his appendix. Adelaide is hopeful that he'll be available for the qualifying final next Thursday evening. While there is precedent for players returning from surgery within a week, given ... Continue Reading »
The Swans have today survived the MRP lotto, with key defender Heath Grundy cleared of who knows what this afternoon. An MRP preview video posted this morning, attempted to cast aspersions for a Grundy bump on the calamitous Casboult, who had turned into Heath without looking. Anyone with half-a-brain would have figured that this should have been left on the scrap heap, along with the ... Continue Reading »
With post season news that Sam Naismith has undergone a shoulder reconstruction and Lance Franklin had arthroscopic surgery on one of his shoulders, it's clear that the Swans had MacGyver keeping the players together with gum and duct tape.If there's anything the Swans team can do, he can do better. Going into the finals with a stable and mostly health squad, the Swans looked ... Continue Reading »
Brilliant Swans midfielder Josh Kennedy, who went beast mode in the grand final and almost dragged the Swans over the line, is the inaugural winner of the AFLCA Gary Ayres Award for the best player of the finals. While most of the team struggled against GWS, he was one of the few shining lights, even after having his head practically knocked off his shoulders by ... Continue Reading »
