In the opening seven rounds this season, the Swans have rotated a host of names through the middle including Ben McGlynn, Craig Bird and Luke Parker, as well as up-and-comers Harry Cunningham, Jake Lloyd and Tom Mitchell.
Speaking to media outside the SCG on Monday afternoon, Longmire said the Swans had been working on creating a larger midfield group to allow the team more on-field flexibility.
“We’ve been exposing more midfielders into our team, including Benny McGlynn, more into that midfield role,” Longmire said on Monday.
“Jake Lloyd came in and did that and Craig Bird has had more of a midfield role.
“We’ve tried to, over the summer months, add some more numbers to our midfield group and Harry Cunningham is another.
“Those players have been exposed to more time in the midfield, which has meant that we’ve been able to share the workload all over the ground.”
The coach said the Swans’ tough finish last season, which saw the club battle a host of injuries, played a role in the decision to bolster the midfield stocks in 2014.
“We thought towards the end of last year that a few of the guys might have gotten a bit tired, so we’re making sure we have plenty of numbers and plenty of flexibility put through (the midfield),” Longmire said.
“Part of that learning curve is to expose them against opposition at senior level and fortunately a few of those blokes who I mentioned have been going on pretty well.”
Longmire highlighted the recent efforts of 20-year-old Lloyd, who has played three consecutive games since making his AFL debut against Fremantle in round five.
Lloyd, who collected 29 touches and a goal in Saturday night’s 79-point win over the Brisbane Lions, has demonstrated his potential at senior level over the last few matches.
“(Lloyd’s) been playing well in our reserves for a long time now and he’s got his opportunity,” Longmire said.
“He came in and had 29 possessions and ran really hard, and generally uses the ball pretty well and is a good decision maker.
“He’s another one of those midfielders who we’ve blooded in the younger group, along with Cunningham and the like, who have been able to come into that role and do a pretty good job.”
Longmire said he was confident there were other young Swans like Lloyd who could step up and play a role in the seniors if required.
“Last year when we talked about what our best team looked like and when we got injuries, (we were) not quite sure who would bob up,” he said.
“What you are certain of is that someone will (bob up), and someone generally does, and we’ve been pleased that we still have a number of blokes in the reserves at the moment who are playing pretty good footy.
“To be able to expose and blood one of them … and get three games under his belt is terrific, and he did alright on the weekend, which is a real credit to him.”
