McVeigh

[Hotpotato]

Awesome achievement.... can't wait to see him out there for the 300th time on the G, selling his candy, hitting targets , a goal definitely , conducting the orchestral score and banking another win .
Good on you cobber.

[barry]

Ah, 2007, the last time me and Ernie koala agreed on something.
Mcveigh's career has had three distinct periods:
Pre 2011. The mchack years. Ordinary skills, soft as butter.
2011-2013. The good years.
2013+ The Pointy years. Back to hackness except in certain unique circumstances.

Sure, he's strung a few good games together in the past month, but was characteristically quiet in the final last week.

- - - Updated - - -

But credit where credit is due. 250 games is a good achievement. The other 50 where he selected himself... Well, should they count?

[monopoly19]

I've loved watching him this year. His return showed what a composed and skilled player he is, and he's been so important to the team. He's come a long way from his early days and I hope he has a wonderful 300th. On a related note - I read an article recently that suggested his 3rd daughter is due right around finals time, which makes me a bit nervous!!

[bloodspirit]

Ah, 2007, the last time me and Ernie koala agreed on something.

How ironic given that it turned out you were both wrong.

[Bloods05]

How ironic given that it turned out you were both wrong.

:-)

[barry]

How ironic given that it turned out you were both wrong.

I'm sorry, in 2007 we were spot on. He was useless. What happened 5 years later is 5 years later.

[Ludwig]

Good investigative reporting, Bloodspirit, given that these posts only resided on NSA computers. Talking about a great McHack! You have to be RWOs #1 McHacker given what you've accomplished. Make sure you include this in you resume if you ever apply for a job with Ludwig & Associates.

[ernie koala]

I'm sorry, in 2007 we were spot on. He was useless. What happened 5 years later is 5 years later.

Well, here we are agreeing again Barry...In 2007 and the preceding seasons he played for the Swans...He was no good.

And this isn't to single out McVeigh, he's not Robinson Crusoe.

A large percentage of players go from featherduster to rooster, with and without their clubs faith...Some backed by their original clubs, like McVeigh. Some cast aside, like Kennedy and Rampe.

Happy to put my hand up that I was wrong about McVeigh...Congratulations to him. Not many play 300.

[Go Swannies]

The new McVeigh baby Florence was born yesterday.
McVeigh's early milestone present - sydneyswans.com.au

The former co-captain said he was never going to miss the crunch semi-final against the Cats at the MCG."We tried to put a few things in place because she was actually due next Monday, so we sped things up a bit," he said.
"The week has started off pretty well, everyone is healthy and happy so I'll quickly train today then head back to the hospital.
"Two father-daughters (for the future) is all right."

[S.S. Bleeder]

The new McVeigh baby Florence was born yesterday.
McVeigh's early milestone present - sydneyswans.com.au

The former co-captain said he was never going to miss the crunch semi-final against the Cats at the MCG."We tried to put a few things in place because she was actually due next Monday, so we sped things up a bit," he said.
"The week has started off pretty well, everyone is healthy and happy so I'll quickly train today then head back to the hospital.
"Two father-daughters (for the future) is all right."

Thanks. I've been looking for an article on this everywhere after hearing about it on the wireless but couldn't find anything.

[liz]

In 2007 and the preceding seasons he played for the Swans...He was no good.

Except that that's not true. In 2006 he secured his spot in a team that was one point away from securing a premiership, and finished in the top 10 of the B&F. In 2005, he carved up the AFL Canberra in a way that I've seen no other Swans player other than Malceski carve up the reserves competition (and that includes all the current graduates of the reserves side playing very good senior AFL now, and everyone in our existing reserves side).

His form in 2007 wasn't great. That's acknowledged. But it's not true to say he was no good in seasons prior to 2007 and it's come as no surprise to me that he's carved out a long career in the R&W, based on what he'd shown to that point. I wouldn't have predicted 300 games, two B&Fs, an AA here and there, and a few seasons as captain. But a solid career was certainly flagged by what he showed in his earliest seasons.

A similar discourse is unfolding around Aliir. Unrealistic expectations on how quickly he might develop after 2016, combined with some injuries and other factors in 2017, have people downplaying his senior AFL potential unfairly, IMO. He very clearly has athletic and skill capabilities to play AFL football (unlike many players who are great at a lower level but don't have the attributes to succeed at the next level) and I'm very confident we'll see him develop over the next two or three seasons into a very capable player (whether that's at the Swans or anywhere else).

[barry]

McVeigh was a top 5 draft pick wasn't he?.
I remember port picked up a player just after him, and he had a better first few years and they would tease us about McVeigh.
I can't remember what the player's name was, but he was gone within about 5 years, while McVeigh may have been a late bloomer, but he did kick on.

[liz]

McVeigh was a top 5 draft pick wasn't he?.
I remember port picked up a player just after him, and he had a better first few years and they would tease us about McVeigh.
I can't remember what the player's name was, but he was gone within about 5 years, while McVeigh may have been a late bloomer, but he did kick on.

Stephen Salopek. There was certainly discussion around whether the Swans had picked McVeigh because he was a local, rather than best available. To be fair to Salopek, I think his career was curtailed by injury.

[barry]

That's the one.
If only my RWO chums could see how I hard I defended McVeigh on bigfooty back in the day.

[chalbilto]

Except that that's not true. In 2006 he secured his spot in a team that was one point away from securing a premiership, and finished in the top 10 of the B&F. In 2005, he carved up the AFL Canberra in a way that I've seen no other Swans player other than Malceski carve up the reserves competition (and that includes all the current graduates of the reserves side playing very good senior AFL now, and everyone in our existing reserves side).

His form in 2007 wasn't great. That's acknowledged. But it's not true to say he was no good in seasons prior to 2007 and it's come as no surprise to me that he's carved out a long career in the R&W, based on what he'd shown to that point. I wouldn't have predicted 300 games, two B&Fs, an AA here and there, and a few seasons as captain. But a solid career was certainly flagged by what he showed in his earliest seasons.

A similar discourse is unfolding around Aliir. Unrealistic expectations on how quickly he might develop after 2016, combined with some injuries and other factors in 2017, have people downplaying his senior AFL potential unfairly, IMO. He very clearly has athletic and skill capabilities to play AFL football (unlike many players who are great at a lower level but don't have the attributes to succeed at the next level) and I'm very confident we'll see him develop over the next two or three seasons into a very capable player (whether that's at the Swans or anywhere else).

I certainly hope not. Don't want to see him leave the club and I hope that he gets his act together and blitzes next year and prove the potential he showed last year. Maybe he got ahead of himself this year and stepped outside the parameters of the "bloods" culture which is ingrained in the club, to which I am extremely proud supporter of it.