Hopes for this year?

[pillowtalk]

It would be great to win every game, but if we have to lose some, the early ones are least damaging I think, provided the coach and players are smart enough to learn from the mistakes.

I agree with them being better off losing earlier games. The only problem with that is if they get their confidence down (I think it was 2002 when they had that huge losing streak) Playing well later gets them on a roll and their confidence up like last year!

My hopes for this year would be that everyone who played with new found improvement last year like J.Bolton will keep up that standard. Win some or lose some we shouldn't take a step back, whatever the secret was last year it worked. With someone like Cressa retiring it's hard to throw the kids in at the deep end and expect them to perform miracles but they live, breathe and play with the senior players which will hopefully help them out. I believe we should play to our expectations, win the games we are expected to and if we lose against the harder ones, I hope we go down fighting.

Main hope for this year is an injury free one for all!

[Nico]

I watched the FOX Footy 2004 Preview last night. The whole 2 hours. They went through every team and by 10.30pm I was ready to run out onto the ground.

Terry Wallace gave us a great rap and gave compelling reasons why we would make the GF. Wayne Schwass, while not as glowing put us right up there. I was not a great fan of Wallace as a coach but having now listened to him for 12 months I reckon he certainly has about the best in depth knowledge of the clubs as anyone.

When you look at most of the Arrivals and Departures of most teams it looks pretty clear that most clubs hope/expect improvement from last years players.

Our list stacks up pretty well and we go as deep as 30 players, which I doubt many other clubs would.

We have an excellent blend of young, middle age and older players with many of them smack in their "stellar years" bracket.

[Damien]

I expect the swans to make the finals, we certainly have a competitve team that is now relatively experienced but that is about where it ends for my hopes so far. I will begin the premiership daydreaming in the first week of September. .

I will be very dissapointed if we don't make the finals this year, IMO there would want to be a very obvious "excuse".

[CureTheSane]

Ask Mark Webber how the best laid plans, and great preparation can fall in a flat heap if everything doesn't go your way....

[dimelb]

It was interesting to see The Age predictions. Three of them had us as runners-up, Brereton placed us third.
If we make any of those I'll be very happy. But the most important thing is that they play for each other, do the best they can and enjoy the game to the hilt. If they can do that I don't care too much where they finish, but likewise if they do that they'll finish near the top. They have the ability.

[sharpie]

I want to see the guys play with 100% commitment at all times. If that's the case, then if they win lose or draw they've given it the best go they can. And with the team that we have, surely it will be good enougn to set us up for September. I think the real premiership race only begins in the first week of finals, and at that point it will be time to reassess how we are going.

[bloodboy]

I have had a vision of what is going to happen...

Swans make the Grand Final against Essendon.
Bazz kicks seven in GF (capping off his great Coleman/Brownlow year with a Norm Smith).
Swans beat Essendon by a solitary point in GF.
Kevin Sheedy gets sacked.
Eddie announces that he is moving overseas after Collingwood finish Wooden Spooners.
We all live happily ever after.

I gotta tell you though people, I have had certain parts of this vision before and they have not yet once come true! However, if I remember correctly, the year 2004 was in top right hand corner in all of my visions!

This is our year...got out and get 'em bloodboys, show 'em what you're made of!