Veszpremi, 21, was the Swans’ first draft pick in 2007 (No.11 overall) but he struggled to find a consistent spot in the senior line-up during Paul Roos’ tenure.
He battled injury at times but this year managed just one game for a career total of 11 across three years in Sydney.
Speaking from the NAB AFL Draft Combine in Canberra, Swans football development manager Stuart Maxfield said the goalkicking left-footer had enjoyed a solid year at reserves level but acknowledged others vying for a similar small forward’s role had gone past him.
“It’s been a challenging year for Patty, there’s no doubt,” Maxfield told afl.com.au.
“A couple of guys, particularly Gary Rohan, Trent Dennis-Lane, sort of jumped the gun.
“Patty’s still a contracted player next year. There hasn’t been any discussions so far [on his future] ... sometimes guys just need to do their apprenticeship, I guess.”
New coach John Longmire indicated earlier this month that some fringe players were likely to explore their options during trade week, meaning the likes of Ed Barlow and Matt O’Dwyer may go in search of greener pastures.
Maxfield backed his coach’s view, but he was unsure which type of player the Swans would target in their 2010 trade dealings.
“I would suggest that we’re going to be active in trade week again,” he said.
“Again, we’re pretty good at targeting the players that we like, so hopefully we can have the same success that we enjoyed last year.
“The success we had with Ben McGlynn, Joey Kennedy and Shane Mumford was fantastic, and we were lucky enough to acquire [Daniel] Bradshaw through the pre-season draft, so no doubt we’ll meet with all the clubs.
“Kinnear Beatson, our head of recruiting, has already met with most clubs anyway.”
The Swans will enter the draft at pick 21 this year and while considering this year’s crop high on talent, they won’t be afraid to dish off that pick should it mean acquiring a top player from another club.
“In the past I don’t think we’ve been frightened of trading away our first pick ... that doesn’t mean that we will [this year].” Maxfield said.
“I think we’ve got a pretty good handle and good assessment on the players that are available in this draft. Obviously it’s going to be a challenging few years with the players that are available with two new franchises coming in in the next couple of years.
“We’ll weigh it up (trading our pick) against the type of player we can get at selection 21 in the draft or whatever that pick will be after next week, against a more-established senior player.”
