JOHN Longmire has been at the Sydney Swans for 13 years now but he admits the past couple of days he’s found it a touch unusual talking with long-time friend Adam Goodes.
On Saturday night Goodes was named as the Australian of the Year, a title the coach has found a little intimidating.
"It's quite amazing sitting there talking to him about different aspects of football and talking about where to stand at a stoppage and he's actually Australian of the Year," Longmire said.
"It seems a bit strange this week but it's a magnificent acknowledgement for Adam.
"He does a lot of work and I'm sure he'll continue to do a lot of work for the community and for our football club.
"It's fantastic to have him associated with our club and we're very fortunate that he's been able to be a part of our club for such a long time."
This morning Goodes didn’t take part in the Swans’ intra-club practice match at the C.ex Coffs International Stadium as he’s still recovering from a knee injury.
That didn’t stop the dual Brownlow medallist from working hard as he put all of his effort into cross training exercises such as boxing drills to ensure he’s as close to match fitness as possible when the Swans start their season on March 15.
It’s a work ethic that doesn’t surprise Longmire at all.
"He had a busy weekend as you could imagine, in between meeting the Prime Minister and a few other dignitaries but it was amazing, he got back on Sunday night and turned up to training on Monday morning working hard, ready to go," he said.
"He's just an incredible person that way. He's able to switch on to what's important at the time for him.
"He fully understands the importance of football for him so he's able to devote the time and effort into the things he needs to at the right time. That's one of his great skills I think."
Photo credit- Rob Wright / Coffs Coast Advocate
Last Modified on 29/01/2014 17:06