Swans look for youngsters to lead the way With over a third of their squad being players under the age of 18, youngsters will be
given the responsibility of guiding the Swans to premiership success.
To date these players have stood up admirably, with finishing second in the regular
season behind the high-flying Sawtell Saints.
On Saturday, the side will look to reverse their loss to the Saints in their last
encounter at Fitzroy Oval.
The finals pressure will put their ability to cope with pressure and the extra
physicality to the test, but to date the side has held up well under the guidance of
inspirational captain-coach, Peter Chadwick.
With Michael Brown also calling the shots from the sidelines and Tristan Snow a
respected leader, the Swans are well served in terms of leadership.
The Swans also have experience players filling key positions. Rob Eddy has improved
with time in the North Coast competition after his move from Sydney as a tight defender
who gets the best opposition forward on most occasions. Tony Waterfall is still
reliable down back and gets good support from smaller defenders in Jaryd Burrow and
David Young. Wade Hickey’s return has unsurprisingly coincided with the Swans rise in
form. With Zac Bullivant also to return in the finals, it looks a handy back six
capable of rebounding and keeping scores to a minimum.
Hamish Pearce has grown in confidence this season and is building a reputation as a
tough midfielder. He is like Snow in his ability to win the contested ball. Jason
Thomas is an experienced premiership player in the Ovens & Murray and Canberra leagues
and along with the rejuvenated, Dave Colman, is underrated in terms of potential. Daley
Bear and Asher Landini, as well as Sam Turner, are the youngsters who are capable of
good performances and are strong in terms of marking ability.
The Swans’ forward structure looked at its best against the ‘Roos. Evan Duryea in form
definitely helps, and along with Shane McGrath, is quick off the mark. Fraser Duryea
was the Swans best forward during their mid-season slump. Shane Adams is also
unpredictable in terms of his contribution and given his size and experience on BCU
Stadium is a handy target.
All looks good for the Swans on paper but are an unknown quantity under the Senior
finals blowtorch. The club has invested all their hopes on the side winning their first
Senior Premiership since 1999. Times have been lean since then and it is their best
chance since 2005 when they lost to Sawtell in a highly entertaining Grand Final.
Members of the club hope history doesn’t repeat itself and the new breed can go one
step further this year.
Last Modified on 14/08/2008 21:06