Pre-season 2020

[SeanM]

Off the top of my head these are the guys that played.

Defence
Aliir, Dawson, Mills, Cunningham, Brand, Lloyd, Gould, CoR and Fox.

Rucks
Naismith, Sinclair and Knoll. (Though Sinclair was sometimes full forward)

Inside Mids
Kennedy, Hewett, Rowbottom, Warner and Florent.

Wing
Mcinerney, Taylor and Stephens

Forwards
Papley, Haywood, Blakey, Gray, Ronke, Bell and Wicks. (Though Gray was in midfield occasionally.)

[MattW]

173229"]I went to the game, Blakey is a freak. Just so good at reading the ball and getting into position.
Papley was sharp in the first half, Rowbottom got involved, Hayward did a few very high intensity acts.

I was a bit disappointed in gray, Ronke, and Lewis. Gray and lewis looked heavy and slow. They got a full game, I guess so the coaches can get a good look. The biggest thing they lack is forward pressure. I don’t recall them laying any tackles and noted how easy gws were exciting our forward half.

Ronke still hasn’t captured form yet. He seemed ineffective given he played the whole game.

Warner is impressive, and looks a good find, as is Stephens. Both cracked in physically and looked at home.

McInerney did a few good things.

Gws started the game with their best side. They got a good jump, but they are in the premiership window. The swans on the other hand had new faces and were trying new things. In the first half whilst Mumford was beaten in the taps, the gws midfield of Kelly, Taranto etc killed us. They were just too quick and slick having played together so much. Our midfield had new faces and seemed a bit slow off the mark.

In the second half gws rested guys like Taranto, green, Kelly and so the game became more even. The swans also started to pile on more forward pressure largely sparked by Wicks who only played a bit more than a quarter.

Overall gws looked much more classy, which is understanderable, however the swans have ticker. Better kicking for goal would have made a closer game.

The biggest take away for me was Blakey. Once he really grabs hold of the game it is unclear how opposition sides will contain him.

Thanks mate, much appreciated.

[dejavoodoo44]

173229"]I went to the game, Blakey is a freak. Just so good at reading the ball and getting into position.
Papley was sharp in the first half, Rowbottom got involved, Hayward did a few very high intensity acts.

I was a bit disappointed in gray, Ronke, and Lewis. Gray and lewis looked heavy and slow. They got a full game, I guess so the coaches can get a good look. The biggest thing they lack is forward pressure. I don’t recall them laying any tackles and noted how easy gws were exciting our forward half.

Ronke still hasn’t captured form yet. He seemed ineffective given he played the whole game.

Warner is impressive, and looks a good find, as is Stephens. Both cracked in physically and looked at home.

McInerney did a few good things.

Gws started the game with their best side. They got a good jump, but they are in the premiership window. The swans on the other hand had new faces and were trying new things. In the first half whilst Mumford was beaten in the taps, the gws midfield of Kelly, Taranto etc killed us. They were just too quick and slick having played together so much. Our midfield had new faces and seemed a bit slow off the mark.

In the second half gws rested guys like Taranto, green, Kelly and so the game became more even. The swans also started to pile on more forward pressure largely sparked by Wicks who only played a bit more than a quarter.

Overall gws looked much more classy, which is understanderable, however the swans have ticker. Better kicking for goal would have made a closer game.

The biggest take away for me was Blakey. Once he really grabs hold of the game it is unclear how opposition sides will contain him.

Ta. I'm also keen on seeing what Blakey can do this year. Preferably as someone who spends around fifty percent of his time in the forward line and the other fifty roaming through the midfield as a winger. If he managed a 25 or 30 possession game in that role, the damage he'd cause to the opposition would be immense.

Interesting what you said about our small forwards, as well. I see Papley as the obvious first choice, with Gray, Ronke and L. Taylor battling it out for a second spot. Though maybe another member of that group could be added, if it was part of a rotational plan, to get a bit more zip round the midfield. But if Grey and Taylor aren't really zipping, then that plan probably won't be enacted. It will also be interesting to see if Wicks can stake a claim for that spot. Watching the NEAFL, I always liked his tackling pressure and his effort, but thought that he needed to show a little bit more, on the attacking side of his game.

[MattW]

I'm not overly excited by either Grey or Taylor. Suspect there's a reason they both fell out of favour at their previous clubs. If either becomes a regular contributor to a successful team, I'll be pleasantly surprised. Worth a punt though.

From these reports, and from reading other things over the summer, it looks like Stephens, Warner and Gould could all play this year. Stephens sounds near definite for round 1, Warner possible. They might give Gould a few NEAFL games first - start with Rampe, Aliir and Brand as the tall defenders.

[stevoswan]

Gould should tear it up in the NEAFL. I reckon he'll debut in the one's before the bye rounds.....unless the existing back's are going too well.

Stephen's likely be the first draftee to debut and early......looks to be not only ready but frankly, we need his skills in the middle.

[bloodspirit]

I missed the first quarter but saw the balance of the game. On Saturday I prepared a post with my observations. Unfortunately I was doing it on my phone and got interrupted part way through. Then, after I pressed submit, it told me I had 'timed out' and all that I had typed was lost. This is my first chance to post since. I will do my best to repeat my observations, some of which have now been covered and some of which are at odds with the reports of others:

* the good news was all three of our main rucks played: Naismith, Sinclair and Knoll. Sinclair spent part of his time forward. Naismith played first half, Knoll second half. I thought Knoll looked a bit better than Naismith around the ground although (and this applies to pretty much all these observations) my attention was split between different things and I wasn't paying close attention and don't have benefit of replays etc. At one point, Naismith made a really dumb mistake, punching the ball through for a behind from upfield of the goal square resulting in a free kick from the goal square and inevitable goal. If this was a regular season game I'd be pretty disgruntled with him. It was probably still allowed last time he played an AFL game and it is great that he has (hopefully) learned his lesson in a meaningless match.

* the bad news - we had a real dearth of KPPs. Tall players not playing included: Buddy, Rampe, McCartin, Reid, Melican, Maibaum, Thurlow, McLean and Amartey. (Also Reynolds if we're counting him as a tall.) Aliir and Brand were among the only talls that did play (not counting rucks). Aliir had an excellent game. Intercepting wonderfully, clunking some contested marks and directing some of the younger players in defence at times.

* conversely we had a plethora of small forwards including Papley, Lewis Taylor, Gray, Ronke and Wicks (2nd half only). I thought Papley, Gray and Taylor were all busy and active, Ronke not so much. Best I've seen from Taylor so far and he seems to be covering the ground better. Gray kicked a canny goal off the ground from a crumb in traffic close to goal. I didn't see Foot.

* Of our draftees Stephens, Warner and Gould played - Elijah Taylor, Rowles and O'Connor did not. Stephens looked a bit undersized but covered the ground and managed to show some composure and effect some good disposals under pressure when he got the ball. Warner was energetic and applied a fair bit of pressure to the opposition when they had the ball, tackling and hassling. He was also noticeably vocal. He and Stephens played the whole match. Gould only came in on the second half. He is a real unit and plays quite physically - lots of pushing and shoving with his opponent. Has benefitted from playing in the SANFL seniors I reckon. He played on opponents both bigger and smaller than himself and worked hard to keep close to them. He also had a brief stint in the midfield that I noticed.

* Disappointing not to see Ling or Stoddart. I wonder at so many players who might have been expected to get a go not getting a go. Is it undisclosed injuries or just that they are still some way off playing AFL and better to give opportunities to those that are closer?

* Generally we seemed undersized compared to GWS - a combination of our taller/bigger players being absent and having a younger and less physically seasoned team I suppose.

* I thought JPK was possibly our best player with Aliir also impressive and Dawson having an impact (playing predominantly at half back and rebounding the ball by foot). JPK was supported by his wife and kids in the (small) crowd. Emilio was wearing a Swans guernsey that said 'SMFC - DADDY - 12' and was busy mucking around with a ball on the field with another couple of little boys in the breaks. I think one of the other two kids he was playing with might have been one of Stevie J's kids. Does Stevie J have kids? It looked like he had one, maybe two, young daughters there too.

* The weather was mild with a bit of drizzle. Pleasant enough but maybe a bit slippery for handling the ball - plenty of dropped marks etc.

If I remember anything else of significance, I'll add later.

[Ralph Dawg]

I missed the first quarter but saw the balance of the game. On Saturday I prepared a post with my observations. Unfortunately I was doing it on my phone and got interrupted part way through. Then, after I pressed submit, it told me I had 'timed out' and all that I had typed was lost. This is my first chance to post since. I will do my best to repeat my observations, some of which have now been covered and some of which are at odds with the reports of others:

* the good news was all three of our main rucks played: Naismith, Sinclair and Knoll. Sinclair spent part of his time forward. Naismith played first half, Knoll second half. I thought Knoll looked a bit better than Naismith around the ground although (and this applies to pretty much all these observations) my attention was split between different things and I wasn't paying close attention and don't have benefit of replays etc. At one point, Naismith made a really dumb mistake, punching the ball through for a behind from upfield of the goal square resulting in a free kick from the goal square and inevitable goal. If this was a regular season game I'd be pretty disgruntled with him. It was probably still allowed last time he played an AFL game and it is great that he has (hopefully) learned his lesson in a meaningless match.

* the bad news - we had a real dearth of KPPs. Tall players not playing included: Buddy, Rampe, McCartin, Reid, Melican, Maibaum, Thurlow, McLean and Amartey. (Also Reynolds if we're counting him as a tall.) Aliir and Brand were among the only talls that did play (not counting rucks). Aliir had an excellent game. Intercepting wonderfully, clunking some contested marks and directing some of the younger players in defence at times.

* conversely we had a plethora of small forwards including Papley, Lewis Taylor, Gray, Ronke and Wicks (2nd half only). I thought Papley, Gray and Taylor were all busy and active, Ronke not so much. Best I've seen from Taylor so far and he seems to be covering the ground better. Gray kicked a canny goal off the ground from a crumb in traffic close to goal. I didn't see Foot.

* Of our draftees Stephens, Warner and Gould played - Elijah Taylor, Rowles and O'Connor did not. Stephens looked a bit undersized but covered the ground and managed to show some composure and effect some good disposals under pressure when he got the ball. Warner was energetic and applied a fair bit of pressure to the opposition when they had the ball, tackling and hassling. He was also noticeably vocal. He and Stephens played the whole match. Gould only came in on the second half. He is a real unit and plays quite physically - lots of pushing and shoving with his opponent. Has benefitted from playing in the SANFL seniors I reckon. He played on opponents both bigger and smaller than himself and worked hard to keep close to them. He also had a brief stint in the midfield that I noticed.

* Disappointing not to see Ling or Stoddart. I wonder at so many players who might have been expected to get a go not getting a go. Is it undisclosed injuries or just that they are still some way off playing AFL and better to give opportunities to those that are closer?

* Generally we seemed undersized compared to GWS - a combination of our taller/bigger players being absent and having a younger and less physically seasoned team I suppose.

* I thought JPK was possibly our best player with Aliir also impressive and Dawson having an impact (playing predominantly at half back and rebounding the ball by foot). JPK was supported by his wife and kids in the (small) crowd. Emilio was wearing a Swans guernsey that said 'SMFC - DADDY - 12' and was busy mucking around with a ball on the field with another couple of little boys in the breaks. I think one of the other two kids he was playing with might have been one of Stevie J's kids. Does Stevie J have kids? It looked like he had one, maybe two, young daughters there too.

* The weather was mild with a bit of drizzle. Pleasant enough but maybe a bit slippery for handling the ball - plenty of dropped marks etc.

If I remember anything else of significance, I'll add later.

Great summary. Sounds like Warner has some ticker. If he has the skill to go with his heart, he could become a real diamond in the rough for us. Perhaps Kirky the second.

I wouldn't be too bummed about our talls. Hopefully a good number will be ready to go for round 1 and we will clearly be a better team with the inclusions of Buddy and the like.

Your description of Naismith fills me with no confidence that he is the silver bullet for our ruck. He has always been very average around the park and I just can't see how he could be any better post all his leg injuries. Might have to accept Sinclair's average ruck work for his around the ground work. Our mids will need to work on how to thrive without a non dominant ruck, like Richmond or GWS (whether they are good enough is the question).

[Molly dooker]

Thanks Bloodspirit and others providing observations and opinions. Greatly appreciated.

Not long now folks.

[Ruck'n'Roll]

Naismith . . . It was probably still allowed last time he played an AFL game

Dinosaurs are renowned for being slow to adapt

[bloodspirit]

I meant to add I think McInerney may need some more time in the NEAFL and/or the gym and/or with Kirky or Heeney teaching him a better technique. I saw him tackle one of the Giants; he got a hold of him alright but it didn't seem to achieve much. His opponent just disposed of the ball without seeming too troubled. Even Warner, for all his physicality, looked slighter than I reckon he will look in a couple more seasons.

[liz]

The comments already posted ram home why I've been reluctant to post anything re the game. It's incredibly hard to get much of a gauge at a ground with no viewing angle (especially height), and where the players are coming on and off the ground so often you wonder if they're not expending more energy being interchanged than they are actually hunting the ball. I suspect anyone watching could have found evidence to support their own biases and hunches. I know I did. But for what it's worth, some random comments:

- I thought both our backlines and forward lines spent the early part of the match resembling groups of players who'd never met before, let alone spent the summer training. This was illustrated by the ease with which the Giants scored three goals before the Swans seemed to have realised the game had started. And once, when the ball did get into our forward line, it was extracted with ease by the Giants as Sinclair remained rooted to the ground in the goal square, Blakely desperately (and in vain) tried to cover three Giants opponents on his own, and the array of smalls were nowhere to be seen.

- Aliir looked very hesitant and shaky in that first quarter, and somewhat into the second. His hands were fumbly and he was slow to move to contests. To his credit, he got much better as the game wore on, and towards the end of the ground was doing a decent job of marshalling the defence in the absence of Rampe and Mills (who played early but I think came off at half-time).

- The players who showed most purpose (to me) right from the start were Papley, Mills and Florent. Papley wasn't perfect with his disposals but couldn't fault his work rate or intent. Mills was the calmest head in a dishevelled backline.

- With both JPK and Hewett starting on the bench (and Parker completely absent), it was evident early that the coaches were putting a lot of trust in a young midfield (or just wanting to see how they could cope). I couldn't fault the work rate of Florent and Rowbottom, but they found it tough going against pretty much the Giants' A team. Florent was the more effective of the two - as one would expect - but I don't think he got many easy possessions. Stephens, too, was thrown into the thick of things right from the start. He didn't look timid, but I reckon he got a lesson in how much less time you get at AFL level - even in a scratch match - to dispose of the ball. He was set upon time after time as soon as he took possession.

- It's hard to fashion a forward line where the main tall target would fall over in a stiff breeze. That said, early signs are that Blakey won't be suffering any second year blues. If I have a criticism of his game, it's that he tried to body defenders too often, and almost always came off second best (though he did score the first Swans goal from a free-kick where he was forced forward in a pack - I'd have needed to see a replay to determine if he was legitimately taken out well before the ball arrived, or if it was a "Ben Brown" free, without the over-exaggeration of Brown).

- Blakey's best moments came when he found a bit of space and used his speed. He scored one goal beating all his opponents running into an almost vacant forward line after Papley took a good mark in the pocket from a great kick upfield - it might have been Stephens who delivered it.) And later in the game, he soccered the ball to away from opponents and used his pace to gather it and set up a scoring opportunity for Hayward - who missed.

- Hayward made a bit of a habit of missing, and from shots that weren't gimmes but not especially difficult either. I reckon he kicked at least three behinds but it could have been more. The good sign is that, conversion aside, he was lively and dangerous.

- Someone above commented that they liked Taylor's game. I can't say I was enthusiastic, though he had some good moments in the final quarter. He looks even plumper than he did in the photos from early pre-season.

- I thought Naismith looked decent enough for a player who's missed two seasons. But then I've been a fan of his since his early NEAFL days and I remain cautiously optimistic of what he can deliver. True, he did given away a goal after knocking the ball straight through the posts for a rushed behind. In his defence, the stoppage was a long way away from the goal, and he could have argued he was just knocking it away from the contest (forcefully) rather than deliberately trying to rush it. Regardless, it was a good match to learn the lesson.

- The Giants are a team of physical beasts - Taranto, Coniglio, Greene etc. Even their small players, like Langford and Daniels, are balls of muscle compared to our similar players. Papley, for example, is a good size now for his height, and looks to be at a very comfortable playing weight - ie you wouldn't want him to get any bigger - but looked positively lightweight compared to the Giants' similarly heighted players.

- Given that, the young Swans did a good job in making the game a good scrap after the opening ten minutes. Given the Giants scored the first three goals (and, I think, the last three) the Swans did well to match them for the middle part of the game. I'm not sure how long the stars of the Giants team stayed on - I suspect few of them were there after half-time, and I didn't see Greene do much other than wave his arms around, so maybe they weren't taking it too seriously, but the effort from the young guys can't be faulted. Rowbottom and Florent may have been swamped every time they took possession, but they gave back as good as they received. And Bell, Warner and Wicks joined in the tackle fest with intent. Whether these three have much more to offer (at this stage) than tackling-rams, I am not sure, but the intent was there.

- Conditions certainly assisted in bringing the Giants down to the Swans' scrapping level. Intermittent drizzly rain made it hard to handle the ball cleanly.

- As something of an antidote to the skinniness of the NEAFL/injured players who sat on the sidelines watching (Ling, Stoddart, Foot, ET) and many of those who played (Blakey, McInerney, Ronke, and somewhat Hayward, Rowbottom and Florent - at least compared to their opponents), BOC looks to be a big lad. Also a constantly smiling lad.

- I was amused (kinda) when I noticed that the two runners for the sides were both ex-Collingwood players. Both ex-Collingwood FS selections, no less. Their respective associations with the Swans and Giants aren't recent, so I guess it wasn't "news", just some mild amusement. If you'd told a stranger that one of the two retired a decade or so ago, and the other was still an active player on his club's list, I don't think many would have guessed correctly which was which. Davis looks in far better physical shape than he did for much of his playing career (and yes, I know he's still been playing some elite sport), while Shaw looks even more awkward as a runner dressed in lilac than he does in his Giants gear.

- I did a double take at one stage, looking at number two running back into position. His height, build, hair colour and facial hair made him look very similar to he 2018 version of the last player to wear number 2 for the club. Somewhat bittersweet. But I reckon he could be a good addition to the side, especially with Melican continuing to struggle with injury.

- The midfleid/defence debate around Mills will, no doubt, continue until either he moves into the midfield or he retires, but I think an equally valid debate exists around Dawson. I get that his marking skills and long kicking are assets in defence, but I am not convinced that's where we get most value from him. He spent most of Saturday in defence, and I thought he looked a bit sluggish and only moderately effective. In the final quarter, he was either moved up the ground, or just wandered up there of his own accord, and immediately had an impact keeping the ball in our forward line and creating a couple of scoring opportunities. The beauty of him is that he can play pretty much anywhere on the ground, but I hope he doesn't get pigeon-holed as a half-back flanker. He could be so much more.

[bloodspirit]

Lilac?! I would definitely have said pink!

I see what you mean about everyone seeing what they want to see.

Delighted you have added your observations. They go into the synthesis, as we absorb the many and varied observations and opinions, and are valuable as such.

[liz]

I consider myself somewhat of an expert on shades of pink and purple - and where the distinction sits (as someone who wouldn't be seen dead in one, and cites the other as her favourite colour). Definitely "lilac".

[TheBloods]

Thanks for your input Liz, much appreciated by those who could not be there.

It sounds to me as though we will have a very similar year to 2019, possibly bottom four finish again, with potentially less wins. I thought what hurt us last year was our patchy form in matches, not able to sustain full flight for longer than five to ten minute bursts. This is completely understandable when you look at the young Swans we fielded, but it sounds like despite what should still be a very handy pre-season for most of them, the issue of their consistency and fitness and ability to impose themselves on matches haven't come in one pre-season.

[TheBloods]

The conspiracy theorist in me believes there is something fishy going on with two of our talls in Buddy and McLean. I noticed throughout the Swans media team's coverage of the community camps that every listed Swan was involved - except those two. I know these community camps are held in the highest regard by the club, which is why the entire squad is usually involved. So there is obviously a very significant reason those two were not part of it, and I'm stumped as to what it could be.