Swans vs Giants Solitary Pre-season Match

[Nico]

Pretty impressed with that hit out.

Our young players give me a lot of excitement. Warner, Campbell, Gulden, Rowbottom, Florent, Wicks, McDonald all showing a bit.

Not sure on some posters hate of Cunningham. Totally not deserved and complete BS. Next they will be hating Rampe who played a shocker.

As for the more experienced players. Parker needs to play more forward this year. Heeney needs to lift and become the superstar we are desperate for. Same with Mills. Hickey is a journeyman and was destroyed by some kids. JPK is looking old.

Heeney missed a lot of footy with a very serious injury, so expect he will take a few games get his touch back.

[Ralph Dawg]

Pretty impressed with that hit out.

Our young players give me a lot of excitement. Warner, Campbell, Gulden, Rowbottom, Florent, Wicks, McDonald all showing a bit.

Not sure on some posters hate of Cunningham. Totally not deserved and complete BS. Next they will be hating Rampe who played a shocker.

As for the more experienced players. Parker needs to play more forward this year. Heeney needs to lift and become the superstar we are desperate for. Same with Mills. Hickey is a journeyman and was destroyed by some kids. JPK is looking old.

I wouldn't say Hickey was destroyed. He struggled initially against Briggs, just like he did against Flynn the previous week. But I think he got better as the game went on. Hickey will be serviceable, no world beater but at least an improvement on the last couple of ways.

Slightly related, just saw the stats on the Port game and the numbers would suggest Aliir had a good game. 21 disposals, 18 kicks, 3 hand passed, 14 marks. If Melican plays more games like today and Gould doesn't come up to standard, he could be a big loss.

[Ludwig]

JPK is looking old.

I know Parker was a sub in the 2012 GF, but JPK is the last of that tough midfield that took us to 3 GF in 5 years. When he goes, it will truly be the end of an era, a sort of closing of the book on a very successful Swans' team.

I feel he will come around and play some good footy this year, even though our new game style doesn't really suit him. I hope he finds a role, perhaps even playing deep forward, that will let him extend his career and make a solid contribution in his final years.

[Nico]

I know Parker was a sub in the 2012 GF, but JPK is the last of that tough midfield that took us to 3 GF in 5 years. When he goes, it will truly be the end of an era, a sort of closing of the book on a very successful Swans' team.

I feel he will come around and play some good footy this year, even though our new game style doesn't really suit him. I hope he finds a role, perhaps even playing deep forward, that will let him extend his career and make a solid contribution in his final years.

And release Hayward to the midfield....ROFLMAO

[Melbourne_Blood]

Haven’t heard Gould mentioned , did he play ?


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[Ludwig]

And release Hayward to the midfield....ROFLMAO

I knew that suggestion would make your day.

[Markwebbos]

Haven’t heard Gould mentioned , did he play ?


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Not even named as an emergency

[Melbourne_Blood]

Not even named as an emergency

Cheers. Is he injured ? Not great if he isn’t ...


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[mcs]

Looking back on the highlights again - I like the way Mcdonald sets up and kicks for goal. Technique looks pretty solid. Can't wait to watch him develop - got a good feeling he will be a very decent player for us.

[giant]

One thing today showed is how much we miss Mills' smarts down back. We got leaky at key stages.

Spot on, GWS got their goals way too easy. Like much of what Dawson brings but he's not a "natural" defender in the same way as Mills appears to be. McCartinb's firt half however was exhilarating.

Bouquets to Gulden, Campbell, Wicks and (I reckon) McDonald who I think have done enough to be in round 1.
Brickbats to whoever's idea it was to only have 3 food outlets open at Giants stadium.

[rickmat]

Horse mentioned the Reserves in his post match and said that Stephens played after 2 weeks injured. Wish the Swans would let us know how the Reserves went, who played and who did well. Like to know how Gould and others are doing

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Love to know if Paddy McCartin played in Reserves

[MattW]

Any word on where Gray and Taylor are? (Not that anyone really cares about either)

I still think Taylor could come good for us. Gray - not so much

If things go well neither will be in the 22 all year (and thus not play for the Swans again).

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Hard to see exactly off TV, but is Hewett playing some sort of role off half back or at least behind the ball?

Looked that way to me.

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I'm not watching the game but why doesn't this surprise me? Anyone else watching care to comment on the above assertion?

It's absurd. Either trolling or incorrigibly entrenched in an inferior position. Rowbottom was class again. Warner was good, though!

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Gotta say, I’ve always liked Wicks defensively and he was again terrific on that count. I was pleasantly surprised with his ability to find and use the ball today. He’s a total lock for round 1.

Total lock. Looked more comfortable than at any time last year, while retaining traits that showed promise.

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I feel really bad for Ling in particular. Leaving him off until last 20 minutes - what can he show then? No point being on the bench - if you never get a run.

I think it shows he's depth right now. First small defender off the 22.

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No Bud, Lloyd, Stephens, McInerney, FOX

No Whitfield, Davis, Mummy, Daniels, Hogan, Hill, Kennedy

does anyone else find it hard to watch us clear by bombing it straight up but when Hopper cleared he faked twice and then perfectly found a man not under pressure.

Warner better in the centre than Mills today? Warner very attacking even in the centre

I like seeing improvement in our young guys........ but the young guys at GWS are better...........we have a long way to go

Stephens was an emergency. Unclear to me whether he's returning from something or just outside best 26.

[MattW]

Of the 26 named today, barring injury: Sinclair, Bell, Ling and Clarke won't play round 1. Reid has Sinclair's spot.

Hard to see Stephens come in after not playing today. So of the 22 others who played today, the question is who comes out for Lloyd. For me: either Melican or Hewett. Campbell should play. Not a great sign for Hewett that he's being played off half back. Got a fair bit of it today, but not really damaging.

Really excited to see McDonald today - contested well in air, can clunk 'em, good at ground level, and obviously a monster boot.

Really, really should beat Adelaide.

[NeonBible]

Very enjoyable match. The results in these AAMI Community games don't matter as much as the processes. You want to see everyone putting their best foot forward and making it a challenge for the match selection committee to whittle this talented squad down to just 22 players. They did that today, and to think there was no Lance, no Jmac, no Dylan, no Lloyd, no Gould, no McClean. That is some real talent on the sidelines.

I gave 5 votes for Luke Parker. Just a bull in the centre, and going forward to impact the scoreboard. It's a rare thing you only see in the very best - Dusty, Fyfe, Danger, the Bont. He has played a selfless role the past few seasons but with some kids stepping up he might be able to get on the receiving end of that hard work!!

4 votes for JPK. Started slow but had worked his way into the game sublimely after half time. Got us back into it, brought the kids into the game. The consummate captains performance.

3 votes for Jimmy Rowbottom. All class. Rarely makes a mistake, tireless worker, gets into the right places. It seems he hits the scoreboard every week I watch him over the past year or so. Moves so well. He is a pure talent.

2 votes for Tom McCarthin. BEAST until he went off about midway thru the third. Marked and spoilt everything that came his way. Looked scratchy when he came back on but I'd already seen enough to know we are looking at our next great full back.

1 vote for Sam Wicks. What a ferocious tackler! I pity the fool who dares to possess the ball in his path. Did anyone see that moment he sent a Giants player into the turf with his bump? Great stuff!! Taking the game by the horns!!

Honourable mentions must go to Warner, who was dynamic with his burst out of stoppages, delighted with his progress this year; Braeden and Errol who both used the ball so incredibly well, neither looked out of place; Logan!! That mark! That goal! I quite liked Florent's game but still would like to see a bit more consistency in how he approaches each quarter.

Thrilled with what I saw today! We might have lost but i am brimming with optimism about our chances this year, though some may say that is a naive attitude to have to a preseason game! But if having faith is wrong, then i dont wanna be right!!

[Ludwig]

I watched the first 3 quarters of the replay, taking a closer look at some of the weak points raised by the comments on the game.

• Hickey had a terrible 1st quarter, which got us off to a bad start. Gave away 5 frees in the game. The ruck will remain an open problem until we manage to draft or trade for a quality ruckman.
• Melican played okay. He was beaten 3 times by Himmelberg on the lead by 3 qtr. time, but all perfect passes that even the best defenders would have problems with. In the first case, Rampe had a clear run at the ball, but chose to block his man instead, letting Himmelberg just edge out Melican.
• I thought poor play from Rampe was the biggest problem with our defence. He kicked poorly, made bad decision, and didn't provide the leadership that was needed, especially with Lloyd out and Mills moved to the midfield. I'm sure he'll return to his usual self in the next game or so. Even Fox was missed.
• GWS had a lot of open men in the forward line due to the lack of defensive organization. We need Rampe and Lloyd to handle this while we're building a new back 6 combo. I think we'll work it out.
• Hayward doesn't have the goal sense needed to be a forward, especially one playing close to goal He's not a good decision maker at the moment when a good decision is required. He does have talent and can make a contribution, but not as forward; at least not yet. He has to be moved up the ground where he can find more space and time. We have plenty of small forward options now, so he's not needed there. He can be reprogrammed to play another position in the reserves.
• Wicks, on the other hand, has good vision, and is a quick decision maker. He also has very short quick movements in close. His reaction time to opposition player movements might be the best at the Swans, which accounts for his effectiveness as a tackler. He has good pace and and excellent kick. He's an unexpected find who deserves to be in the side.
• There were some who made negative comments about Reid, but I thought he played pretty well, without being outstanding. It was more a selection mistake to has Reid as the only key forward in the first half. But it is a practice match, so it's the right time to experiment with these sorts of things.

The rest looked pretty good. There was a lot more to be positive about than negative.

I also want to add that I concur with NeonBible's comments. He probably got the votes in the right order as well, although I didn't think Kennedy had enough influence throughout the game and gets caught out for pace when the opposition ruckman dominates the stoppage.