Match thread: Swans v Magpies.

[Thunder Shaker]

I suspect the person who loves Roaming Brian the most is Brian Taylor.

I don't mind Roaming Brian. Seeing Roaming Brian in the Swans room after a game means we won (usually) and it also means the game was not on pay TV.

[707]

I don't mind Roaming Brian. Seeing Roaming Brian in the Swans room after a game means we won (usually) and it also means the game was not on pay TV.

Every game is live on pay TV and no ads!

Just caught up with the replay, must say it's one of our best wins in recent times, barring some very pro Pies frees, inability to nail goals early and the late lapse, we looked an 8-10 goal better side.

So much growth over the summer, an exciting game plan, cunning plans for each game, a new level of fitness, superb foot skills, a joy to watch.

Heeney looks like the player we all thought he could be, a Rolls Royce this year.

Erroll is just Errol

Chad looks to have taken a step forward

Grundy the perfect addition and sounds very happy to be here

McCartin is a gem and Melican back to his best.

Roberts getting better each game

McInerney back to his hard running best

McDonald, Amartey and McLean getting the KPF stuff done

Hayward had a game to forget.

Serious concern about the missing midfielders upsetting what's been on show this year when they are available. Barring injuries, no need for them to rush back. Parker mainly forward and Mills off HB should be considerations

An exciting time to be a Swans supporter, was thrilled beating the Pies comprehensively.

[Auntie.Gerald]

What a game !

Just loving the resolve and the smarts at the moment.

Great start lads !

[BRS328]

What you are really hi-lighting is the player depth at the club right now which is the best I can recall.
We have Adams, Parker, Mills and Reid who if all fit would be walk up starts to the senior team.
Add to this Shelderick, Ladhams and Corey Warner who all showed good form in the pre season.
Lloyd is still a good player but will need lift or he will be vulnerable.

[KTigers]

I would think Sam Reid is going to find it very hard to find a regular spot if fit.

[Captain]

Fox was awesome in the first quarter and set the tone with his pressure and speed. His finishing isn't always great but he should always be in our 23. Highly valuable.

Yep agreed. No matter who comes back, there must certainly be a place in the 23 for him.

- - - Updated - - -

I can't remember everything but she was stirring him up a bit....he said she used to barrack for Collingwood, she said he was responsible for that but she now proudly barracks for the Swans while shaking her Swannies scarf at him. There was some other ribbing and then the camera panned around to James who was laughing at them both, slightly embarrassed. It was good fun.

I unashamedly love Roaming Brian. It's cringe and hard to watch at times but bloody entertaining.

[Dow]

Interesting I just watched the round so far and Cornes suggested Adam’s doesn’t make it in the 23 when he’s fit, which got me thinking you know he’s probably right barring injuries you can make a case for Parker and Mills

[Dow]

Cameron was good and he's done well at Collingwood, now being a premiership player....but he didn't belt Grundy. Brodie was up against two proficient ruckman....one who is 7 foot tall. He got two more tap outs than Cameron and some of Camerons were probably against McLean. We all miss Darcy but he's gone now.

It was the amount of free kicks he gave away to Cameron in the ruck contest he struggled to handle Cameron body positioning and thought it was a real credit to Cameron.
Not taking away from Grundy just paying respect to some good play, what I did love about Grundy was even though his out-put was lower than last week he did exactly what we have desperately needed and that is when he is beaten he is still able to pretty much half the contest.

[Merdo5555]

Another good performance, more goal kicking practice needed.

[Ruck'n'Roll]

Interesting I just watched the round so far and Cornes suggested Adam’s doesn’t make it in the 23 when he’s fit, which got me thinking you know he’s probably right barring injuries you can make a case for Parker and Mills

When we picked up Adams, I'd hoped that his presence wouldn't block Sheldrick. But now both have gone down.
And while we won both games handsomely, we did lose the centre clearance count in both games.
So it looks to me like there is definitely still a place for at least one of the two. Time will tell though.

[Hotpotato]

There was massive improvement in dodging and weaving through traffic and then hitting targets which sold me on this young outfit.
Can the current (aging) outs do that ?

[Auntie.Gerald]

We went for depth to get through a season as well as key roles

Robbo and JJ are not auto starters either

Loving the depth and leadership from such young guys out there last two rounds

[O'Reilly Boy]

Interesting I just watched the round so far and Cornes suggested Adam’s doesn’t make it in the 23 when he’s fit, which got me thinking you know he’s probably right barring injuries you can make a case for Parker and Mills

100% agree. The only like-for-like player for Adams (and possibly Parker) is Rowbottom, and if he carries on the way he's going he is first selected every week. Jordon is impressive and plays a bit more outside, so bringing either in for him slows us down. More upside to Jordon than to Adams. if Chad is emerging as Dusty v2.0, Jordon is looking like Hanners v2.0.

I think that the mix of eight or nine mids rotating through—Rowbottom, Chad, Heaney, Paps, Errol, McInernery (who was at a couple of centre bounces towards the end of the game), Jordon and possibly Campbell—is brilliant: fast, skilled, great kicks, strong and running out games superbly. Grundy's presence is important: his big body, stamina and skills makes space and adds the element of bull/grunt we've been missing. I can't see how Parker or Adams add to the mix. No room up front either. Wicks has been great, and we already have Papley and Heany 'resting' up front, while the underrated but sometimes exasperating Hayward (not, as the commentators seem to think, Haywood) provides great shape/structure.

I think that Mills is more of a chance of getting a game of HB, but Florent is doing a fantastic job, almost mirroring Hayward's structural role up front: floating between lines, providing a connection, and always making the right spaces. Fox is absolutely showing his value, so it's not him who makes way.

Which brings us to Lloyd and Roberts. Lloyd started on a wing against Melbourne, and was playing quite tight as first release man. He is smart and excelled in the role before moving into the playmaking back 6 role he's played for the past five or six seasons. But I like the look of Roberts. He is big, seemed really composed, and a useful kick.


But Mills in for Lloyd feels like a seismic shift.


Finally—it is great to see Melican finding form. The synergy between him, Rampe and McCartin is great to watch. Roberts seems to fit in really well, and the net result is significant pressure coming off Blakey. It wasn't a night for Blakey against the Pies—he was relatively quiet—and I wonder whether the set up with Ramps, McCartin, Melican and Edwards, plus Campbell and Florent, saw us use precise kicking to work up the ground, rather than looking for line-breaking runs? I would be interested in analysis of who tends to handball off to Blakey to generate his runs? Lloyd?


Reid is only one injury to a tall away from a game.

[The Great One]

When Parker comes back.i wonder if he comes back as the sub.
More versatile than Wicks in the sense he could play in the mids or in the forwards.
Mills to half back seems the best idea for the moment.
Adams could only replace JJ.
Hope they all have a game in Reggie’s to get match fitness.

[707]

Before Adams went off injured in the trial game, I seem to recall he'd had the most clearances?

Certainly a nice problem to have. May our relatively light injury list continue, gives the ability to rest players in the lead up to finals ala Geelong 2022