Sydney Swans Report Card At Round 6
If I were to issue a Sydney Swans report card at round 6 it would be probably say – must do better. I would mention that after 5 rounds of AFL season 2025 the red and white team are barely in the conversation. Musing on why this is I would question whether if John Longmire had not hung up his head coaching hat would the team be in the same position? 10th on the ladder and out of the top 8. Remembering that for much of 2024 the Swans were the best team in the competition and minor premiers. But belted in the grand final for the second time in 3 years in a black swan event.
Swans AFL Side Not Drowning, Waving?
Dean Cox did assume the mantle of head coach and the Swans are under his guidance on the football field this season. There have been a number of injuries to key personnel. Errol Gulden has been a huge loss since breaking his ankle in the preseason. Injuries are a fact of AFL life and can cruel seasons if they occur in numbers and to the most vital players. Tom Papley is, also, out for multiple weeks and was not 100% in the couple of games that he did play in. The Swan’s forward line has been hit by the late start made by Hayden McLean to the season and the fact that Logan McDonald still has not played a game so far. Now, Joel Amartey has gone down with injury after a solid start at full forward kicking multiple goals in matches. The forward line against Collingwood was ineffective in the second half.
Club Messaging From The Sydney Swans in 2025
The messaging from the Swans has been about not worrying despite the slow start to the year in terms of wins and four quarter playing performances by the team. A narrative has emerged, which goes something like this – ‘we do not want to go hard too early (like last year) to avoid having a late season dip in form and we are wanting to peak at the right time.’ Not drowning, waving perhaps? 2 wins and 3 losses to quality opponents so far. The trouble is that there looks to be plenty of those quality opponents going around this year. The Cox move of Tom McCartin forward has not been a success but can be understood by the lack of big forwards available. Robbing Peter to pay Paul, however, has had the last line of defence looking shaky.
Feathered Swans Are Aerially Magnificent
In the avian realm, swans are majestic in flight. The aerial performances of the Sydney Swans have been less so. Marking by big men is not a Sydney AFL strength, more is the pity. Brody Grundy does not take enough marks around the ground. Hayden McLean needs to out stretch his arms in the marking contest because even if he doesn’t mark the ball he might get a free for the chopping of the arms. Dropping chest marks is not the way to go in this regard Hayden. Joel Hamling is coming back after a long time out of the AFL ranks but I would like to see him contest marks like he means it. The Swans defence was risible last week against the Magpies. Dane Rampe is not getting any younger. Three Swan’s defenders were frequently outmarked by a single Magpie forward who just wanted it more. Positioning by the red and white defenders was appalling. Peter Ladhams plays small and does not take enough marks or does not spoil enough aerial contests.
playing youngsters
The Youth Excuse
AFL teams in 2025 are playing a lot of youngsters and Sydney is no outlier in this regard. Injuries to senior players like Callum Mills, Harry Cunningham, Robbie Fox, Errol Gulden, Lewis Melican, Taylor Adams, Logan McDonald, Tom Papley and the like have made room for the next generation of up and coming Swans. The Sydney Swans report card at round 6 could make mention of the blooding of many new lads into the team. Corey Warner has been a fixture in the 23 and whilst not setting the world on fire has done a few good things. Riley Bice has been a revelation in the few full games he has played off the half back flank. Tom Hanily has been another who has showed glimpses of brilliance and plenty of fight. Caiden Cleary looks to have a lot of class and get up and go too. Angus Sheldrick has missed a season with injury and is attempting to make his presence felt in the midfield in 2025. The problem is that when you have half a dozen youngsters in the 23 it is tough to get four quarter pressure around the ball. Combine this with senior players dipping in and out of form and it can produce poor results in patches.
Team Lows & High Points
Ollie Florent has long been a player I have admired but this season he has looked lost and out of form. Will Hayward had a blinder against North Melbourne but where has this form been outside of that performance. Are these young men missing John Longmire, who must have been like a father for them in football terms? Fluctuating form is usually caused by something or another. Nick Blakey is rated the best Swan going around in the AFL in 2025 by Champion Data. Is the Cox regime making best use of this talented resource? Isaac Heeney has been tagged a lot this year and his performances have been hampered accordingly. His game against Collingwood was his best by far and it was great to see Isaac getting and using the ball so wonderfully effectively. James Rowbottom is the heart and soul of the Blood’s contest as a defensive midfielder. Great to see him Captaining the side in Adelaide over Gather Round and against the Kangaroos. The ongoing absence of Mills is a negative for the team in this regard.
Chad Warner is the most exciting player in the Swan’s team. It looks like he has become a permanent high half forward. This position was identified by the footy experts as the most important for ball use and scoring in season 2025. This move seems to be a work in progress, with Chad’s performances patchy at best of late.
The Swans Midfield Report
The Sydney Swans report card at round 6. Brody Grundy is a great competitor in the ruck. Midfielders, however, have trouble reading his taps and handballs out from the contest. They are most often too strong when under pressure and go astray to the opposition. The Swan’s midfield is like an engine working on two cylinders rather than four or six. It fires up intermittently and lacks a second defensive effort when bested by opposing midfields. Too often the other midfield comes out of the front of the stoppage too easily. Watching Port Adelaide’s effort against Hawthorn last Sunday was eye opening, as Zak Butters tore through there and Jason Horne-Francis burst out to distribute into the forward line. How about some Swan’s efforts at this breakneck speed and intensity? Heeney is cat like and Rowbottom a wrecking ball. Jordan is tagging and the Swans lack another burst attacking midfielder. I mean, sometimes it is Peter Ladhams sprinting clear but he needs to work on his next distribution to make that effective. Warner the Chad is not in there as much and Sheldrick is finding his feet. What about Braeden Campbell on the outside? Justin McInerney will be back after his 3 week holiday from the tribunal. The midfield needs to lift and to become much more cohesive for four quarters of football.
The Forward Line
Hayden McLean does some nice things during a game, like reliably kicking the odd goal or two. He is too nice, however, how about discovering some white line fever Hayden? Contest that ball like you know that you can’t be beaten! Look at a player like Patrick Dangerfield or a Toby Greene and their intensity when going for the footy. McLean has the size to make a physical statement in every contest but I don’t see the heart. Hayden is bigger than both Danger and Toby. How about playing like that! Shy guys come last in a contact sport. Sydney needs a power forward and Hayden is the man. Will Hayward is a classy forward and adds so much to the forward set up when he is on. Joel Amartey has been great at full forward but looks like he is injured. Logan McDonald needs to take that next step and we have not seen him this season, as yet, due to recovery from injury received last year. Papley is out injured and a big loss. Hanily has been doing some good things and kicking a goal or two. McCartin is Cox’s swingman and yet to really pay dividends in the forward line. Braeden Campbell has kicked a few goals and is exciting running into goals. Corey Warner has kicked a couple this year too. Chad Warner in that high half forward role will be, hopefully, the Swan’s ace in the hole this year up forward. Things looked bleak in this regard against the Magpies in the second half but fingers crossed this was an anomaly.
Last year Sydney midfielders kicked plenty of goals and we will need to see a repeat of that via Heeney, Warner, and Gulden in the second half of the season.
“SYDNEY leading goalkicker Joel Amartey has been ruled out of Sunday’s clash against an in-form Port Adelaide, as the Swans mull rolling the dice on an underdone Logan McDonald.
Amartey will miss at least one match as the club waits for scans to determine the extent of his hamstring injury.”
tough Swans wanted
The Sydney Swans report card at round 6. The Swans are too vanilla and that bloodless outfit at Gather Round took the cake. The team lacks fighters, especially among the big men. All too nice and not willing to throw their weight around. It is left to the little guys in the team. Rowbottom and Chad and Isaac are tough. The tall players take too few marks and get pushed around by opponents too often. Brody Grundy wrestles well and provides a powerful contest in the ruck. Peter Ladhams could be doing so much more, all within the rules of the game, I mean. No cheap shots!
AFL Cheap Shots
AFL players coming up behind their opponents and pushing them over when play has been stopped is piss weak. These cheap shots are not the acts of strength but weak acts. This detracts from the spectacle and makes the player involved look like a cowardly thug. It is not tough. Knocking someone over when they are not expecting it and play has been halted is a low act.
In Defence
Dane Rampe has been the Sydney general down back for many years and has been inspirational. It is a gradual changing of the guard with Nick Blakey, the Lizard, taking on more of this role. Blakey is the best player, currently, playing for Sydney. Jake Lloyd has been another leader down back for years and is still a sure pair of hands when control of the play needs to be re-established. Matt Roberts is another filling the half back distributor role, which the experts claim is the ‘move the ball’ key to modern AFL footy. Riley Bice is joining that position on the other half back flank. Oliver Florent gets back there but has made some clangers in games this year. Hopefully he can rediscover some top form real soon. Last Friday night was the worst defensive effort I have seen from the Swans in the air and on the ground. Collingwood goaled with ease. The positioning of the Sydney tall defenders was awful. Magpie small forwards crumbed and goaled repeatedly. Not sure if the players thought they were on holiday and couldn’t be bothered but it was terrible down back. I remember Joel Hamling from Bulldog and Docker games as a high marking tall defender – where has this player gone? Lewis Melican has been out injured but may be ready to return. He is a solid centre half back who probably lacks a little belief in himself. Like Hayden McLean, if he backed himself more he may well become a champion. Harry Cunningham is a veteran who has not played this season so far due to injury. His senior head could be a settling influence for the side going forward. Sam Wicks has been great in defence in 2025 and one of the shining lights for Sydney. He might have a role to play in the midfield as his development continues. Wicks is tough and explosive and these are player characteristics the Swans need.
https://www.sydneyswans.com.au/afl
The Sydney Swans report card at round 6 – must do better!
Robert Sudha Hamilton is the author of America Matters: Pre-apocalyptic Posts & Essays in the Shadow of Trump.
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