There is just three weeks to go before the Sydney Swans face off against the Gold Coast Suns in Round 1. Head coach John Longmire joined RSN Radio on Tuesday (February 28) morning to discuss pre-season, Lance Franklin and the evolution of the team's game style.
On 13 years with the Sydney Swans:
“Sometimes it seems like yesterday that I started at the club and sometimes it feels like a long time. I’ve been very privileged to coach at the Sydney Swans and I’m very fortunate to be in this position.”
On the anticipation of Round One:
“It’s interesting. Through this period you’ve got the combination of hoping you don’t get any injuries and trying to hone in on your game style. I spend my time in those two spaces to make sure we get that balance right. We’ve got one more hit out against Carlton this week and it’s an important game for us with some players hopefully back from injury.”
On the length of preseason:
“I like a couple of games – you need to. But you’ve got make sure that you don’t have not enough of preseason because you’ve got to be ready for that onslaught in round one and two when you’re playing 120 minutes. If you don’t get that game time you put players at the risk of injury at the start of the season. It is a necessary evil, but it gives you time to hone in on your game style.”
On Sydney Swans’ game style:
“We have some game plays and we have to continue evolving that. We’re also aware of where the game is going. There is talk it’s getting quicker and we’re mindful of that. There’s a natural evolution with the maturity of your team and adding players in different positions. We like the combination between offence and defence and hopefully we will get that balance right.”
On Lance Franklin:
“We don’t expect to him play every game, every week. At 36 it can be a real challenge to do that. He’s had a bit of a restricted preseason – he only played half a game last week. The plan is to build him up this week and it will take a few weeks to hit his stride. It wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to say he won’t play every game.”
On Aaron Francis:
“He’s mainly played in our defence this year, but we’ve had to put him forward a couple of times due to injuries... He’s a good intercept marker and a good kick. He’s still learning the way we want to play football and trying to improve on some things so we’re confident he will continue to challenge himself to be a better player.”
On Sydney Swans HQ:
“I walked in the first day and it took a bit of time to take it all in. Facilities aren’t everything, they don’t give you extra games at the start of the season, your opponents certainly don’t care but a lot of our people come from interstate so to attract and retain the best people, and their families, it’s really important. It’s a wonderful facility and we’re really privileged to be working in it every day.”
On breakout players:
“I’d like to see the continued development of Braeden Campbell. We’re really looking forward to him coming on. Lachlan McAndrew learnt a lot coming out of last week’s game - he’s only 22. We expect with Tom Hickey having a calf injury that he will get some game time early in the season.”
Listen to the full interview below.
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