Despite losing one of his most important defenders to a senior berth, NEAFL Swans coach Rhyce Shaw remains confident his stout defence can stand tall in Sunday’s Round 5 encounter against Brisbane.
After performing strongly at NEAFL level, Aliir Aliir was called up to replace Ted Richards in the senior squad much to the delight of Shaw who has overseen his development both as a teammate and coach since the former Queenslander arrived in Sydney at the end of 2013.
Averaging 16 disposals over the past four weeks and having led the NEAFL Swans for marks last season, Aliir has become a valuable member of the defensive half and has since earned his chance at AFL level.
Looking ahead to the match at Coorparoo, Shaw believes the likes of Harry Marsh and Lewis Melican can fill Aliir’s shoes.
“It’s great for Aliir to go to senior footy, he deserves it and has worked hard for it,” Shaw said.
“We will be a little bit shorter down back but we’ve got guys who can play tall.
“It’s a good mix for us so I’m not really worried about that at all.”
It will be the clubs’ second meeting of 2016 after the Swans’ opening round win against the Lions at Burpengary.
The margin was comprehensive but as Shaw points out, a lot can change in the space of a month while the Lions are coming off a spirited performance against last year’s grand finalists Aspley.
“They’re a quality team, we got it over them in the first game but, as we all know, footy changes pretty quickly,” Shaw added.
“We’ve got to make sure we stick to our standards and play the same style of footy we hit them with last time.
“The whole club is playing some good footy at the moment … we’ve played a solid month of footy but now we need to check this next block off if we can.”
Despite losing Aliir, Shaw gains the experience and speed of Gary Rohan who returns to competitive football for the first time since coming off the Club’s long-term injury list.
NEAFL Round 5
Sydney Swans v Brisbane Lions
Sunday, May 1
Coorparoo, Brisbane, 9.30am
B: Colin O’Riodan, Xavier Richards, Harry Marsh
HB: Nic Newman, Dean Towers, Lewis Melican
C: Matt Wilson**, Brandon Jack, Abe Davis
HF: James Rose, Callum McFadden**, Sam Murray
F: Gary Rohan, Ned Reinhard**, Tyrone Leonardis
Foll: Sam Naismith, Jordon Foote, Jake Veale**
Inter: Jack Hiscox*, Zak Jones*, Toby Nankervis*
Emer: Lachlan Behagg**, Ryan Hebron**
In: Gary Rohan, James Rose, Zak Jones
Out: Kyle Galloway, Luke Skrivanic, Ryan Hebron
* Denotes senior emergency
** Denotes QBE Sydney Swans Academy top-up
