The Swans made hard work from a relatively straight forward fixture on Friday night, facing a dogged but injury riddled Carlton outfit on Friday, kicking off the Sir Doug Nicholls round of football. Isaac Heeney won the Goodes-O’Loughlin medal for best on ground, but it was the performances of Callum Sinclair and Oliver Florent that turned heads. Carlton held sway at half-time with many ... Continue Reading »
Sydney coach John Longmire was impressed with the Swans’ even performance on Saturday night, in their 59-point win against Fremantle at the SCG. Longmire’s delight at having Franklin available for Saturday night’s win over Fremantle, was replaced by the joy of watching his gun forward do what he does best. Even with their superstar forward back in the team, the Swans found a ... Continue Reading »
The Swans fell agonisingly short against North Melbourne on Saturday night at the SCG, twice coming from 14-points down, only to fall two points short at the final siren. Still missing a significant number of tall players, the Swans opted to go small for the second week in a row. Where the Swans found a way to win their Round 6 match against the Cats, ... Continue Reading »
Sydney’s key position shortage could force the Swans into a new-look forward line against the Cats on Saturday afternoon at GMHBA Stadium. The Swans were already without Sam Naismith, Kurt Tippett and Sam Reid, but will now travel to Geelong without their superstar forward, Lance Franklin, already ruled out this week with a bruised heel. The Swans still have several youthful backup options, but ... Continue Reading »
On a night the Sydney Swans were expected to win, and win comfortably, a surprisingly poor performance from their midfield brigade left them chasing the game. With their first-half major ball winners being their defenders, especially Rampe, Lloyd, Smith and Mills, there was significant room for improvement. Despite an improved third quarter, four consecutive goals to the Crows put an end to the Swans spirited ... Continue Reading »
A dreadful first half by the Sydney Swans against the Adelaide Crows on Friday night consigned them to their second loss of the season at the SCG. The Crows stifled the Swans midfield and defence from the outset, pressuring them relentlessly and forcing them into numerous turnovers. The Crows midfield was decimated by injury with Sloane and both Crouch brothers missing, but it was Laird, ... Continue Reading »
Sydney Swans coach John Longmire is confident that his unconventional forward line setup can get the job done against Adelaide at the SCG on Friday night. Aliir Aliir returned to the senior side for the first time since round 4 last season, playing the second-tall forward role, occasionally pinch hitting in the ruck and in defence. While the Swans overcame the Bulldogs in a thrilling ... Continue Reading »
14-gamer Oliver Florent was the hero for the Swans on Saturday afternoon, kicking the winner with just 23 seconds left in the match. Remarkably like Papley's goal against Adelaide last year, a speculative long kick out of defence created the chance, that fortuitously landed in the hands of a Sydney player. Florent marked uncontested and instantly played on, with Bulldogs ruckman Tim English giving chase, ... Continue Reading »
The Swans on Saturday afternoon turned around a dreadful first half into a thrilling 7-point win over the rallying Bulldogs. Fresh of two successive beltings, the Bulldogs returned to form against the Bombers in round 3, and pushed the Swans all the way in round 4. Their possession machine was unstoppable early on, and they capitalized on the Swans mistakes, racing to a 22-point lead ... Continue Reading »
Conventional footy wisdom says that games are won in the third quarter, and the Swans were thrilled with their performance in the premiership quarter on Saturday night. Flashbacks to the Swans 23-point loss in round 2 against Port Adelaide were certainly at the forefront of most supporters’ minds, when the Giants booted the first two goals of the third quarter. The Swans rallied and kicked ... Continue Reading »
Sydney Swans coach John Longmire insists his side isn't too reliant on superstar forward Lance Franklin, and he was happy to see a spread of goal kickers in the Swans 16-point win over the Giants in Sydney Derby XIV. Behind by 33 points early in the last quarter, the Giants kicked four unanswered goals to trail by just 10 points with six minutes remaining. Franklin ... Continue Reading »
The Sydney Swans were left lamenting a error-riddled game, failing to capitalise on their first-half dominance before going down by 23-points at the SCG on Sunday night. Swans coach John Longmire fronted the press after the match and was frank about the teams' performance and where things went wrong. “We didn't use the ball well when we had possession of it,” Longmire said. “We thought ... Continue Reading »
Longmire has heaped praised on his superstar forward Buddy Franklin after his match-winning 8 goal haul against the Eagles on Sunday night. Franklin's 5-goal first half haul set the game up for the Swans, despite a dogged display from the Eagles, drawing within 5 points at three quarter time. Despite the Eagle's domination of possession and territory, Franklin was instrumental in keeping the Swans' ahead ... Continue Reading »
After a career spanning 178 games for two clubs, Kurt Tippett announced his immediate retirement from football on Monday morning. Citing doubts over his body's ability to return from injury, he battled persistent ankle, hip and hamstring issues in the past two seasons. Despite the setbacks over the past few seasons, he was working to strengthen his ankle following post-season reconstructive surgery. Tippett remained optimistic ... 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 »
