Saturday 6 April 2013 was a special day for all Sydney Swans fans, but none more so than Susie Colless.

Wife of former Chairman Richard Colless, she had “the great privilege” of unfurling the 2012 premiership flag.

Memories? “It was wet  … very wet,” she recalled today. “We were all wearing plastic rain coats and had to take them off just before the TV coverage started. But that didn’t matter … it was such a special moment.”

It wasn’t the first time Susie had performed this duty on behalf of the Swans family.

As per a long-standing AFL tradition, as the wife of the premiership club chairman it was also her responsibility in 2006, when the 2005 flag that ended the club’s 72-year premiership drought was unfurled on Sunday 9 April.

She was joined on the SCG by a special group of Swans faithful, including players’ parents and partners, long-time staff members and supporters.

The players, too, broke from normal tradition to emerge from the dressing rooms in time to watch the ceremony.

Natalie Fagg, Sydney Swans Head of Customer and Community, said at the time seven Swans members had been chosen to participate in the ceremony as part of the ‘It’s in the Blood’ membership recognition program.

The lucky Swans members were Scott McLellan, Karen Lingard, Isabella Skulley, Kerry Howard, Nicole Klarnett, Charles O’Brien and Stephen Wild.

Fagg explained that they had been selected at random to represent the full range of the club membership. There was a first-year member, a 10-year member, a 14-year member, a 20-year member, a 25-year member, a foundation member and a Victorian-based member.

Twenty-one of the 22 players from the side that had beaten Hawthorn in the 2012 grand final were playing in what was the first game at the SCG between the Swans and the Gold Coast Suns.

Mitch Morton was the only 2012 premiership team member not to play in the first home game of the 2013 season. He was replaced by Andrejs Everitt.

Happily, unlike in 2006 when the ceremony was followed by a loss to Port Adelaide, the celebrations didn’t end with the flag unfurling.

The Swans, led by 27 disposals, four goals and three Brownlow Medal votes from Jarrad McVeigh, marked the occasion with a 41-point win over the Suns.