Now, in the final countdown towards our first home and away game in just over three weeks, it is on our minds at every training session and at every team meeting. Our focus is on improvement.
The AFL is a ruthless competition. It’s a dog eat dog world, so the question we really need to ask is - how can we set ourselves apart from the rest of the clubs who, like us, are aiming for the top prize?
For me, the answer is not hard to find. It comes from within the four walls of our club.
It is something I realised not long after I walked into the Swans as a rookie-listed player nine years ago.
I looked around the locker room and saw the people I wanted to follow. I saw people like
Brett Kirk, Jude Bolton, Craig Bolton, Leo Barry, Jared Crouch and Adam Goodes, so it wasn’t difficult to know what I had to do and how I needed to behave.
As a player, I looked to them for guidance and for a path to follow. I wanted to jump on board with them and to work as tirelessly as them, as enthusiastically as them and to eventually be respected in the same light as them.
Every one of those players taught me that continual hard work, a disciplined attitude and an absolute team-first ethos will create the right environment, and the right environment is one where we are hell-bent on being the absolute best we can be.
Over the past decade, this club has developed a system that inspires players to get the best out of themselves and to get the best out of their careers.
It’s as simple as that. That system has become our process, our way.
As a new player, if you want to know what it is, what it looks like, and what you should do, all you have to do is look around the locker room.
The roadmap for success is right in front of your eyes.
While I learnt from the likes of Kirk and his team-mates, there is no shortage of players at the club today who exemplify the same traits of relentless work, discipline and courage.
Look at the way Ben McGlynn and Dan Hannebery attack the ball with 100 per cent effort every single time. They never worry about their own safety. They only worry about how they can help the team and their team mates.
Look at the way Nick Smith and Ted Richards continue to play selfless roles for the team week in, week out. They never worry about their own stats. They only worry about how they can help the team and their mates.
Look at the passion in Jarrad McVeigh’s eyes when he calls on you to lift in the final quarter. All Macca cares about is helping the team and his mates.
I urge you all to think about how you can help the team and your team mates here at the Sydney Swans, whether it is on the field, or off it.
You can live our trademark on the field, and you can see it at work in the locker room because our processes and behaviors are not part-time things. They are our way of life as Sydney Swans players.
When lived and breathed every day, those same processes will ensure we not only become better players, but also better people.
In one sense, it’s easy to learn, because the role models are all around you, showing you the way, but on the other hand, being the absolute best you can be is not easy because you can’t slack off and you can’t take shortcuts.
We will not accept mediocrity at the Sydney Swans Football Club.
We have molded a club with high expectations and there will be no room for passengers or people who try to cheat the system.
The more we work together and show each other the way, the stronger we become as a unit that is never dependent on any one person for success.
Everyone has a part to play to make the club strong and successful.
So, as Sydney Swans players, I ask you to trust in our processes.
We have put a lot of energy into developing a unique culture. Our game plan is born out of that culture, and so is the way we behave on and off the playing field.
When we’ve had the weight of numbers following this mantra, that’s when we’ve tasted success.
It’s addictive and we want it again.
As the season begins, on behalf of the playing group, I’d like to acknowledge some important influences on us.
To our sponsors, headed by QBE, Volkswagen and Citi, your generous and loyal commitment to our club this year is greatly appreciated by everyone but none more so than the players.
We are given the opportunity to compete on a level playing field, and we hope to represent your brand in a manner which will make you proud to be associated with us.
To our fans, your passion, enthusiasm and dedication to this club is something words can’t describe.
We have the best supporters in the competition and the roar of your voices or a Sydney chant, in any venue, is something we listen out for when we’re deep in a game and the going is tough.
You inspire us, and we hope that every time you watch the red and white compete on the field, regardless of the result, you cannot question the effort we’ve given or our united approach.
Finally, to the playing group, we are on the verge of embarking on another grueling campaign.
Last year we fell short.
We made no excuses, and admitted the need to get better.
The sensation of drinking from the Holy Grail is a feeling that can never be replicated unless it is achieved again.
It should be every player’s ambition to get to that final day in September and achieve success, but it requires a well-balanced and strong mind that is committed to competing every week, no matter how tough it gets.
When you wear the Sydney Swans guernsey, be inspired to play courageously and leave everything out on the field to help your team, and your team-mates.
We will always acknowledge our fans and sing our song with absolute passion.
Cheer, cheer!
