From Coach Crouch

As a team we travelled up to Aspley in Brisbane to take on a very talented side. We started the game well getting a small lead before Aspley fought back. This would be the story of the match. Whenever a side gained what looked like a winning lead, the opposition would fight back and regain the lead. It came down to a tense last quarter, which unfortunately had us behind as the final siren blew. It was a fairytale finish for Aspley kicking a goal on the siren and they could not have scripted it better. We were certainly disappointed, but proud of the players’ performance on the day. We certainly could not argue that Aspley was a worthy and deserved winner of the NEAFL competition. On their journey to premiership success they defeated all AFL teams, which is a feat they should truly be proud of. I look forward to the next chance we get to lock horns with them. We want to play against the best sides as they bring out the best in us.

While the season has come to an end for the reserves team, our season is far from over. The main purpose of the reserves team is to provide support and assistance to the senior team. We have an important role to play in helping those lucky enough to be selected to represent our club in the senior team this week prepare as best they can for the upcoming challenge. We challenge each other on the training track to help find every bit of improvement and we do it with youthful enthusiasm that is infectious to everyone out there. The experience gained from being part of this time of year is a great learning experience for our younger players. It is a very exciting period for anyone involved and something we hope every one of our young development players goes on to experience for themselves, as there is nothing more enjoyable than playing finals football.

Now the NEAFL season has come to an end, we look back with pride on what we have been able to achieve as a team. We have provided an environment allowing so many players an opportunity to play seniors, and this ranges from players with vast senior experience who are returning from injury or trying to find form, the players who have a little bit of senior experience who at different times during the year got a call up to further their senior game tally, to the five debutants who experienced the pure exhilaration of finally achieving a childhood dream. All of these players earned their spot through hard work and good form and everyone, regardless of the number of games they were able to play, proved that they could play at the highest level. Even in those players yet to make their debut we saw some great development and exciting prospects for the future. While there will be a level of frustration for them, as they are from the generation that wants everything now, they should be able to see from the examples of hard work of team mates around them that they too can experience this.

I rarely mention players by name but how can I not pay tribute to two legends of this club whom our development players benefited greatly from sharing the football field with? Firstly I’d like to mention Lewis Roberts-Thomson, who was a player who had an amazing career at this club. He was a player who truly got the most out of himself right to the end. He was someone I knew the boys would have learnt so much off. The other player is Ryan O’Keefe. Even in his departure, our club will continue to benefit from the impact that Ryan has had on our younger players. While I know it wasn’t the exact way he wanted to leave, his time spent with our younger players will have rapidly improved their development and professionalism and we will, for future years, benefit from the impact he has had on this club.

To all the support staff that so tirelessly worked to do everything in their power to help every one of the reserves players and support the development team, thank you for everything that you do and we look forward to doing it all again next year.

Finally to all the supporters who are always in great voice cheering us on and encouraging us to improve, we thank you for your loyal support of the club.

Player Focus

Now the NEAFL season has come to an end, the Sydney Swans development coaches, Josh Francou, Jared Crouch and Nick Davis will rate the performances of the Swans’ NEAFL players in 2014.

Sam Naismith

It has been a good year for Sam from a development point of view. Having had an interrupted season last year due to injury, he was able to play in all but a handful of games in 2014 and was able to develop his game further. He got a taste at the senior level in the last home and away game against Richmond and has set himself up to have a big pre-season in preparation for next year.  

Dan Robinson

Dan started the year very well and was arguably our most consistent player for the first half of the year. He was given a different role in the latter part of the season as a run-with/tagger and showed he can shut down the opposition’s best ball winners. 2014 has been a good learning curve for Dan and he has been able to develop his game to play numerous roles, which will hold him in good stead for next year.

Harrison Marsh

Harrison has had a season that saw him start in the midfield and finish down back with some good defensive games. He did have to endure a few weeks on the sidelines with hamstring issues, but once he overcame that he did play some good footy down back. 2014 has been a good developmental year for Harrison learning to play different roles, and now he must work hard over the pre-season to enable him to tackle 2015 head on and stamp his mark on the playing group.   

George Hewett

We have seen a transformation in George this year. He came to Sydney last November as a skinny kid but has developed into a strong, mature footballer. He has shown his class on many occasions throughout the year with a consistent season. He always looks to have time and space when in traffic and generally makes good decisions with the ball. Expect bigger and better things from George in season 2015.

Tom Mitchell

After an interrupted pre-season recovering from an ankle injury sustained in the semi final against Carlton last year, Tom has had a frustrating year playing the majority of games in the reserves and just a handful of games in the seniors. He continues to show his ball-winning ability at stoppages with his courage and quick hands setting up team mates to advantage. Winning the Andrew Ireland Medal for best afield in the Grand Final was a fitting reward for a strong game.   

Jake Lloyd

We didn’t see much of Jake this year playing just the three games in the reserves and was rewarded for his good form with a call up to the seniors in the round five game against Fremantle. We haven’t seen him since, but it has been a credit to him to be playing such consistent football in the seniors this year.    

Tim Membrey

Tim had a very consistent year, which was rewarded with senior selection. He worked extremely hard on his fitness throughout the season, which enabled him to spend time in the midfield in the second part of the year. His work rate in the forward line gave him plenty of opportunities to kick goals and his finishing was first-class.

Dean Towers

Dean had a good start to the year, playing well in the forward line, which led to a frustrating series of matches as the senior emergency before eventually gaining senior selection. His speed and athleticism showed and he was able to gain great confidence during his stint in the senior team. He is one of the hardest workers on his craft and we know that means we will see the benefits of this in the future.

Brandon Jack

Brandon started the season well on the back of an excellent pre-season. His pace and pressuring abilities soon had him in line for senior selection. In the second half of the season he spent more time on the wing and in the midfield in the reserves to great effect, which provided pace and a penetrating kicking to our midfield mix.

Toby Nankervis

Toby shared the ruck duties with Sam Naismith for the season and became a difficult match up for oppositions with their differing ruck styles. Toby spent more time deep forward as the season progressed and provided a strong marking and goal-kicking target inside 50.

Aliir Aliir

Aliir showed some promising signs as a key defender before his season was cut short due to a shoulder reconstruction. His one-on-one defensive contests were strong, and he was rarely beaten, and his ball use and decision making from defense was also a highlight of his game. A big pre-season will help him be more consistent in his efforts.

Patrick Mitchell

Pat had a challenging start to his AFL career. With Sam and Toby holding down the major ruck roles, Pat spent the majority of the season at full-back and full-forward. He was able to learn some good lessons throughout the season, which he can use going forward.

Matthew Dick

Matt started the season well and was solid in defence, applying great pressure and giving the team some run and dash. He was injured during the midway part of the season, and while he showed glimpses of the early season form later in the year, he struggled with consistency.

Xavier Richards

X was one of the mainstays of the defensive group for the year, and showed signs of developing into a key defender. When he kept it basic and defended like we wanted him to, he was near impossible to get a kick on. He had a very good finals series keeping two of the competitions leading goal scorers in check.

Zak Jones

Zak is a fierce competitor, who was rewarded with a couple of senior games this year. He played mainly as a small defender shutting down opposition forwards and giving us drive and run out of the backline. We also looked to develop his game in the midfield using him in bursts through there.

Jordan Lockyer

Jordan started life in defense before enjoying more time on the wing. An improved work rate saw him get to more contests and find plenty of the ball. We saw the best of Jordan when he kept it simple and backed his first instinct especially with the ball in hand.

Shane Biggs

Shane was one of our highest possession getters off the half-back line and on more than the odd occasion found himself being tagged as a defender. Shane had a consistent season that saw him rewarded with a couple more senior games to his name.

Lloyd Perris

Lloyd was an important member of our midfield before a cruel knee injury ended his season. Lloyd, while working hard in rehab, continued to be an important member of the team around finals time where he and Aliir researched and presented on our opposition.  

Tommy Walsh

Tommy returned mid-season after almost a year in rehab after tearing his hamstring off the bone in a senior game last year. He was a little rusty to start with before finding a home in the back line where his combination of aggressive spoiling and a good ability to read the ball in the air helped the defence become the number one ranked in the competition.

- Updated on September 16, 2014