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Training drill injury ends season
By TIM MORRISSEY
April 3, 2004
TADHG Kennelly's unlikely comeback for tomorrow's first Swans home game of the year has been overshadowed by a season-ending knee injury to Jarrad Sundqvist.
The promising 21-year-old utility player snapped his right anterior cruciate ligament during a marking drill at the SCG after yesterday's final hit-out ahead of the match against Fremantle.
"It was just an innocuous marking drill, a bit of push and shove, pretty low key," Swans coach Paul Roos said. "Sunny [Sundqvist] was practising with Barry Hall and just snuck around the back of him when he just kind of fell over the top of his bottom leg."
The picture of Roos and the team's elite performance manager Dave Misson assisting the shattered Sundqvist off the ground spoke volumes.
"I tried to talk to him on the way off but the kid was pretty devastated, his season is finished," Roos said.
Sundqvist wasn't in the team for tomorrow's Fremantle clash but Roos was confident that all the signs were there that his AFL career was on the verge of taking off after a great pre-season campaign on the back of a solid 2003 season.
After his solitary game in 2002 Sundqvist made eight senior appearances, recording a goal, two behinds, 25 kicks and 13 marks, and was named as an emergency on another nine occasions, showing how close he was to becoming a regular.
Sundqvist played in rounds 21 and 22 last year, but hamstring problems prevented him from being considered for either of Sydney's two finals appearances.
"We had pretty high hopes for him and expected Sunny to play senior football this year," Roos said.
The only good news coming out of yesterday's training session was that both Kennelly and Adam Schneider got through the workout and were named in the 22-man list.
After last Saturday night's heartbreaking two-point loss to the Brisbane Lions at the Gabba, Kennelly has been the feelgood story of the week.
The Swans' 22-year-old Irish-born star underwent arthroscopic knee surgery just nine days after tearing his medial meniscus cartilage.
Kennelly's remarkable recovery has been uplifting for the team and helped to shift some of the focus off Jason Ball's costly miss inside the final minute against Brisbane.
Schneider will also be a welcome sight in his new "lucky" No. 13 Swans guernsey tomorrow with the exciting teenage forward's deadly left boot providing another key scoring target.
The 19-year-old pocket dynamo kicked 30 goals in his debut season but missed the opening game of the season after tearing his hamstring in the Swans' Wizard Cup game against Carlton.
Schneider will replace flamboyant forward Nick Davis, who is out for a month after tearing his hip flexor muscle against Brisbane, while promising youngster Mark Powell will play in the seconds to make room for Kennelly.
"Obviously it's great to get two quality players back in the team and I don't expect Tadhg to miss a beat," Roos said.
By TIM MORRISSEY
April 3, 2004
TADHG Kennelly's unlikely comeback for tomorrow's first Swans home game of the year has been overshadowed by a season-ending knee injury to Jarrad Sundqvist.
The promising 21-year-old utility player snapped his right anterior cruciate ligament during a marking drill at the SCG after yesterday's final hit-out ahead of the match against Fremantle.
"It was just an innocuous marking drill, a bit of push and shove, pretty low key," Swans coach Paul Roos said. "Sunny [Sundqvist] was practising with Barry Hall and just snuck around the back of him when he just kind of fell over the top of his bottom leg."
The picture of Roos and the team's elite performance manager Dave Misson assisting the shattered Sundqvist off the ground spoke volumes.
"I tried to talk to him on the way off but the kid was pretty devastated, his season is finished," Roos said.
Sundqvist wasn't in the team for tomorrow's Fremantle clash but Roos was confident that all the signs were there that his AFL career was on the verge of taking off after a great pre-season campaign on the back of a solid 2003 season.
After his solitary game in 2002 Sundqvist made eight senior appearances, recording a goal, two behinds, 25 kicks and 13 marks, and was named as an emergency on another nine occasions, showing how close he was to becoming a regular.
Sundqvist played in rounds 21 and 22 last year, but hamstring problems prevented him from being considered for either of Sydney's two finals appearances.
"We had pretty high hopes for him and expected Sunny to play senior football this year," Roos said.
The only good news coming out of yesterday's training session was that both Kennelly and Adam Schneider got through the workout and were named in the 22-man list.
After last Saturday night's heartbreaking two-point loss to the Brisbane Lions at the Gabba, Kennelly has been the feelgood story of the week.
The Swans' 22-year-old Irish-born star underwent arthroscopic knee surgery just nine days after tearing his medial meniscus cartilage.
Kennelly's remarkable recovery has been uplifting for the team and helped to shift some of the focus off Jason Ball's costly miss inside the final minute against Brisbane.
Schneider will also be a welcome sight in his new "lucky" No. 13 Swans guernsey tomorrow with the exciting teenage forward's deadly left boot providing another key scoring target.
The 19-year-old pocket dynamo kicked 30 goals in his debut season but missed the opening game of the season after tearing his hamstring in the Swans' Wizard Cup game against Carlton.
Schneider will replace flamboyant forward Nick Davis, who is out for a month after tearing his hip flexor muscle against Brisbane, while promising youngster Mark Powell will play in the seconds to make room for Kennelly.
"Obviously it's great to get two quality players back in the team and I don't expect Tadhg to miss a beat," Roos said.
