Swans Still Standing
I have to admit that I shed a few tears following the Sydney Swans win over North Melbourne in the ultimate home and way round of the AFL season. Watching Captain Callum Mills’ emotional response was powerful after the week from hell. Yes, all these other longtime Swans players have been tarred with the same filthy brush as the miscreants facing a police investigation into alleged sex crime charges. Most pundits and myself expected the Swans to lose to the Kangaroos on the back of those missing stars and the upheaval to the team. It was not to be, as the club showed it was made of sterner stuff. The Swans still standing prevail to the ovation of the SCG crowd.
Speculation Surrounding Sydney Swans Culture
Speculation is rife about whether this brain fade by the now infamous 5 players was a one off or more likely to be the result of serial offending? The jury is out on this, as things unfold further and more stuff comes to light. These suspended Sydney Swan players from the final’s series in 2026 have seriously damaged the club’s reputation and premiership chances . Some are saying that there is no way back from this low point for these individuals. Would this have happened under former coach John Longmire? Have these high profile players taken advantage of the trust placed in them by the club to do the dirty on management and the membership? Can they ever be truly forgiven? Meanwhile, at the SCG on Sunday 30, 000 fans got around the AFLW and men’s team to give them some love at a difficult time in the club’s history.
Tears were shed by players and staff.
Sydney Swans Say Bye To Backline Coach
Mark McVeigh has been appointed the new coach of the Essendon football team. Formerly the backline coach of the Swans McVeigh will head off to his new gig pretty much straight away. Who will fill the empty seat at Sydney for the finals? To be honest, I have not been a big fan of the defensive efforts in the backline of the Swans for some time now. My opinion is merely that of a longtime supporter from afar, of course. I see the incredible offensive power of the Swans in 2026 but, also, observe how easily we are scored against back there in too many games. This is not just down to Mark McVeigh, obviously, as the whole game of AFL, via rule changes, favours the offensive dimension of the game. The stand rule and the fact that players no longer play on each other are all about attack. Defence is a tough gig in these conditions. However, there are better defensive units at sides like Adelaide and Collingwood in the AFL.
Defensive Holes At The Swans
It is a balance between offence and defence in AFL. Sydney have chosen to value attacking players in the backline, like Nick Blakey and Riley Bice, who are both pretty poor defensively, over the alternative. Tom McCartin is an excellent defender, as the lynchpin back there, but with the loss of the emerging Will Edwards (now seriously injured) it is not a well endowered backline for a potential premiership team. Callum Mills tries hard each week but I see him chasing tail too often without the pace to succeed. Mills is a link player and performs that role well, I imagine, to the coaches’ satisfaction. Dane Rampe is getting long in the tooth and plays against younger, bigger and stronger opponents each week. The removal of Blakey, in particular, Bice less so, changes the complexion of the Swans backline. Nick Blakey is tall, fast and aerially a weapon.
Defensive Pressure Problems For Sydney
The absence of Chad Warner and Isaac Heeney further removes attacking prowess and options from the Sydney Swans. Plus, they were both strong physical presences around the ball. The downhill skiers will have to step up to cover this weakened dimension. The emphasis on providing an offensive option will have to be tempered with defensive efforts to win contests. What I saw in the heavy GF defeats of 2022 and 2024 were this reluctance to contest disputed balls and inability to win contests. It was like players shied away from getting to the contest first and taking steps to prevent the opposing team’s high possession game. We will be playing Brisbane once again, this time in the qualifying final at the SCG. No one expects the Swans to win or even be competitive against the 2025 premiers.
It will take more tears and gut running efforts from Errol Gulden, Brodie Grundy, Tom Papley, Callum Mills, James Rowbottom and team mates to roll the Lions. The Swans still standing for us true believers.
Attack Vs Defence
What do I mean about the whole offensive vs defensive balance issue in AFL? If a player is standing off 5 to 10 metres from an opponent to provide an offensive option for his team it means that suddenly getting back to fill holes when your team has not got the ball is challenging. Teams like Hawthorn and Brisbane play high possession football, which makes getting the ball back off them tough. If your team is losing the contest out of the middle, then it makes getting hold of the ball and scoring difficult. How many players you have playing zone defence is another element at play here. A good team like Brisbane can quickly cut you to pieces on the back of their scoring prowess. Remember the 2024 GF? All of a sudden the game is pretty much over. Most AFL games are won or lost out of the guts. Combine a dominant midfield with a high functioning forward line and it can be game over rapidly for the other mob. Especially if your backline is pretty ordinary. The AFL rules have been modified to favour the attack over defensive efforts. Umpires rarely award free kicks for holding the ball in the tackle. The stand rule greatly advantages the guy with the ball. 6-6-6 means you cannot flood the defensive zone after goals have been kicked. Getting the balance right between offensive plays and defensive pressure is paramount to winning games of football. The Swans still standing after all this merde!
Defensive Pressure Can Win Games Of AFL
Thus, effective tackling and defensive pressure are vital to putting the other team under enough stress to win the ball back and disrupt their possession chains. It is tough to keep this up over a game lasting some 2 hours. Few teams can do it. It is usually a first half thing, which fades, and the game opens up in the second semester. Sydney applied this pressure to Fremantle for a half and then got blown away in the second half, when they went away from applying pressure. Against Hawthorn they got outplayed in the last part of the final quarter. AFL is a tough game. Do the Swans have what it takes to outlast their best opponents? Was the Pullman Hotel debacle a sign of psychological capitulation? Isaac Heeney is the No 1 rated player in the AFL. Heeney is tough through and through. Chad Warner was in rare form before this club suspension. Chad was becoming defensively harder and, although, he still faded out of games his best was awesome. James Jordon was a solid senior player who played valuable roles in games. Riley Bice was flaky, in my opinion. Nick Blakey was a highly talented player capable of breaking games open via his runs out of defence and powerful kicking skills.
Bad Blue By Coach Cox
“Is this an example of star power gone to the head of the holder? Did these footy celebrities think that they were bigger than the game? Bigger than their club? Bigger than the AFL? This is why I think that booze must have been involved. The decision making in this whole saga was completely awry. The modern world has eyes everywhere and in Melbourne, the home of AFL too! This is the dumbest move I have encountered in decades by footy players out and about. It reflects really badly on Dean Cox. It is incredibly damaging to these players themselves. The police investigation will have to run its course and we do not know the full ramifications of that. Sex, power and celebrity are tipping points in a dangerous game of snakes and ladders, especially in a moral world. Falling foul of the opprobrium from the society in which you live and work in is no small thing. Perhaps, this is just another example of the falling standards within a world where Donald Trump rules as king.”
Do It For Underdogs Everywhere!
The upshot of this must be that having lost bucket loads of class and attacking firepower the Swans can still apply defensive pressure to compete. Effort does not require heaps of skill factor. These remaining players must apply maximum pressure to Brisbane for 4 quarters. Can they do it? Caiden Cleary needs to start believing in himself and he will stop fumbling the ball. There is no point in doubting yourself. Angus Shedrick needs to focus on how he puts the ball to his boot. Look at the ball. He has the bash and crash quality in spades. Clean up your kicking Gus, you can do it. Tom Hannily is a great pressure player. Jake Lloyd, it is never too late to learn how to tackle effectively – pin an arm. Ask James Rowbottom for a few tips. Pressure your opponents and don’t stand too far off them. Back yourselves in the contest. Fight and never give in. Watch Brodie Grundy and take inspiration. Do it for Dane Rampe. Do it for Harry Cunningham. Do it for underdogs everywhere.
Robert Sudha Hamilton is the author of The Stoic Golfer; The AI Heresy; What Price Life?; America Matters: Pre-apocalyptic Posts & Essays in the Shadow of Trump; and other titles. NOW AVAILABLE AT APPLE BOOKS & GOOGLE PLAY BOOKS. Google Play Books AUDIOBOOK
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