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There's been nothing at all about it on the club website (no comment) but I believe the 2019 Guernsey Presentation dinner is this evening. The lack of anything on the website leads me to the conclusion that they won't be streaming it this evening. That's a shame.
In addition to presenting new players with their guernseys, the evening also doubles up as a Hall of Fame induction opportunity. To be eligible for the HOF, a player must have been retired for at least three seasons. The selection criterion is that inductees must have had a "profound positive influence on our Club".
In recent years we have seen many players - captains, premiership players, long-serving players - inducted as soon as they became eligible. For tonight's induction, that means players who retired at the end of 2015. It doesn't seem that long ago, but this means that one Adam Goodes becomes eligible this evening and it must be a foregone conclusion that he is inducted.
BUT could the club go one step further to recognise him? Will they? Does the HOF constitution allow them to?
In addition to your run-of-the-mill HOF members, there are currently seven Legends. Skilton, Kelly and Pratt were named as Legends at the initial HOF induction, while four others have subsequently been elevated (Bedford, Matthews, Clegg and Burns). They don't elevate someone every year. The last was Burns in 2017. If it operates like the AFL HOF and Legends, the number of Legends is limited as a proportion of the total HOF members. I don't know it the same applies to the Swans' HOF and thus whether there is scope to elevate someone this year.
If there is, would there be a more worthy candidate than Goodes? Captain, two-time premiership player, two-time Brownlow Medallist, three time Bobby Skilton medallist, all time club games record holder...and that's before we move onto his off-field activities and the positive impact those have had on the club.
It seems obvious to me that he belongs in the company of the other Legends of the club. Is it necessary to wait a few years before elevating him to that status? To me that seems pointless. He's going to land up there so why not just elevate him straight away (if there is room). It will recognise him in a way that sets him apart from all the other recent day players - fine players in their own right - who were inducted as soon as eligible. And that also seems apt to me.
I guess I'll just have to wait a few hours to find out if anyone at the club thought the same way...
In addition to presenting new players with their guernseys, the evening also doubles up as a Hall of Fame induction opportunity. To be eligible for the HOF, a player must have been retired for at least three seasons. The selection criterion is that inductees must have had a "profound positive influence on our Club".
In recent years we have seen many players - captains, premiership players, long-serving players - inducted as soon as they became eligible. For tonight's induction, that means players who retired at the end of 2015. It doesn't seem that long ago, but this means that one Adam Goodes becomes eligible this evening and it must be a foregone conclusion that he is inducted.
BUT could the club go one step further to recognise him? Will they? Does the HOF constitution allow them to?
In addition to your run-of-the-mill HOF members, there are currently seven Legends. Skilton, Kelly and Pratt were named as Legends at the initial HOF induction, while four others have subsequently been elevated (Bedford, Matthews, Clegg and Burns). They don't elevate someone every year. The last was Burns in 2017. If it operates like the AFL HOF and Legends, the number of Legends is limited as a proportion of the total HOF members. I don't know it the same applies to the Swans' HOF and thus whether there is scope to elevate someone this year.
If there is, would there be a more worthy candidate than Goodes? Captain, two-time premiership player, two-time Brownlow Medallist, three time Bobby Skilton medallist, all time club games record holder...and that's before we move onto his off-field activities and the positive impact those have had on the club.
It seems obvious to me that he belongs in the company of the other Legends of the club. Is it necessary to wait a few years before elevating him to that status? To me that seems pointless. He's going to land up there so why not just elevate him straight away (if there is room). It will recognise him in a way that sets him apart from all the other recent day players - fine players in their own right - who were inducted as soon as eligible. And that also seems apt to me.
I guess I'll just have to wait a few hours to find out if anyone at the club thought the same way...
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