McVeigh gets wish for one more year
Peter Lalor
The Australian, September 6
Jarrad McVeigh has signed on for one last year at the Sydney Swans, defying speculation he was set to play out his career elsewhere and ensuring he will be a one-club player.
The 298-game veteran came to terms this week after months of negotiations.
McVeigh told The Australian he wanted to play one final year and then transition into coaching and the club has agreed to accommodate him.
The 32-year-old had made it clear he wanted to play on, but when the Swans were slow to make an offer, he spoke to other clubs.
“You have to look around. I had to see what were the best options for me after footy with a young family,” McVeigh said.
“If my future wasn’t going to be at the Swans I wanted to know what it would be like.
“I want to go down the coaching path at some stage. You have to explore all options but in the end what we got is great.
“I get to stay home and be a one-club player and that is exactly what I wanted to do. I grew up a Swans fan and went to a lot of games as a boy. I wanted to be a one-club player and I spoke to teammates who had been able to play there their whole career.
“I spoke to Horse (John Longmire) and we were fully across everything we wanted to do and there was a lot of respect and professionalism.”
Straight-shooting Franklin credits Lockett legacy
Peter Lalor
The Australian, September 6
It was, in many respects, Tony Lockett who brought the crowds to the Swans’ SCG home back in the dark old days. It is, in some ways, Lance Franklin who provides the entertainment to keep them there now. And it is a partnership the two have developed that helped Buddy clinch this year’s Coleman Medal.
Trailing West Coast’s Josh Kennedy by five goals going into the final round, Franklin played out of his skin, kicking 10.2 in a display of accuracy he says owes a lot to the former St Kilda/Sydney star.
Franklin, who finished the year with 69.56 after a wobbly start to the season, also won the Coleman in 2008, 2011 and 2014. He has 856 goals from 269 games but has a way to go to catch Lockett, a fourtime Coleman winner who kicked 1360 from 281 games.
While Swans assistant coaches Nick Davis and Brett Kirk also work with the forwards, it is the presence of Lockett, who spends time with the squad in the preseason and attends a training session every fortnight, that captures most attention.
“This year I’ve really worked hard on it (goalkicking),” Franklin said. “Earlier on in the season my accuracy was pretty well down, it is probably been the worst it’s been in a long time. I’ve just been working hard in terms of probably straightening up (his run up) a little bit.
“Against Carlton last week I was able to kick straight, which was nice. I felt probably I’ve been kicking pretty well this year but just missing a few goals to the left or the right, by only a small margin. But they’re still points, you know what I’m saying.
“It was nice to kick straight but it’s going to be a completely different game this week. You need to take your opportunities. The last time we played Essendon we kicked pretty poorly.”
Bombs away as Lance kicks into top gear
Neil Cordy
Daily Telegraph, September 6
LANCE Franklin found his goalkicking form late this season, just in time to face the team he loves to terrorise, Essendon.
This year’s Coleman Medal winner kicked 10 goals and two behinds in Sydney’s 81-point demolition of Carlton in the last round of the regular season. It was by far Franklin’s best performance in front of goal this year having managed 59.54 up to that game.
Buddy getting his kicking boots on was the last thing the Bombers wanted to see.
Ahead of Saturday’s elimination final at the SCG, Franklin has booted 64 goals in 14 games against Essendon over his 13 seasons in the AFL. That scoring rate of 4.6 goals per game is his most prolific against any opposition, ahead of Carlton (4.2 per game), Collingwood (3.8) and North Melbourne (3.2).
Precision in front of goal has never been one of Franklin’s strengths, it wasn’t great at Hawthorn (580.422) and it hasn’t improved much at the Swans (276.190).
Not even the addition of Tony Lockett, the game’s greatest goalkicker, to the Swans’ coaching panel has had an effect - until now.
“Plugger’s been good,” Franklin said.
“Not just for me but all the young forwards and everyone on the list has enjoyed working with him, to have him around the club is a great thing and I have really enjoyed it.
“Since I’ve probably got up here over the last couple of years I’ve been working really hard with Brett Kirk, Nick Davis and Plugger on my goalkicking.
“This year I’ve really worked hard on it. Earlier on in the season my accuracy was pretty well down, it’s probably been the worst it’s been in a long time.
“I’ve just been working hard in terms of probably straightening up a little bit with my goalkicking.”
Stopping Buddy a mission improbable for Bombers
James Buckley
SMH, September 6
Essendon are facing mission improbable on Saturday at the SCG after securing a swift return to AFL finals – stopping star Sydney Swan Lance Franklin in an elimination showdown.
Buddy has taunted the Bombers since his fresh-faced entrance to the AFL with Hawthorn in 2005, and feasts upon Essendon backlines like no other club in the league.
He has 64 goals in 14 appearances against the red-sashed fallen powerhouse, averaging close to five majors per game, and that's factoring in his goalless showing when the two sides clashed earlier in the year and he kicked six behinds.
Twice he's booted nine in a match against Essendon, and he enters Saturday's sixth-versus-seventh placed showdown fresh from kicking 10 in a final-round win over Carlton which earned him a fourth Coleman Medal in the process.
"It's fun when you are kicking goals, you do get a lot of enjoyment out of it, but you get more out of winning a game of football with your mates, going out there and delivering what you've worked on at training and have spoken about in meetings, that's the biggest fun you get out of it," Franklin said.
"I've been working really hard with Brett Kirk, Nick Davis and Plugger [Tony Lockett] on my goalkicking.
"Earlier on in the season my accuracy was pretty well down, it's probably been the worst it's been in a long time. I've just been working hard in terms of probably straightening up a little bit.
"Against Carlton last week I was able to kick straight, which was nice. I felt probably I've been kicking pretty well this year but just missing a few goals to the left or the right, by only a small margin, but they're still points.
"It's going to be a completely different game this week. You need to take your opportunities, the last time we played Essendon we kicked pretty poorly."
McVeigh signs new deal
Tom Morris
Daily Telegraph, Fox Sports, September 6
SYDNEY’s Jarrad McVeigh will play on in 2018 after signing a new one-year deal.
McVeigh will then transition into an assistant coaching role, ending speculation he would join another club at the end of this season.
Reports had circulated that the veteran would not be offered a new contract by the Swans but would instead seek to prolong his career elsewhere before turning to coaching.
However a strong run of form which saw the 32-year-old play the last nine games of the season for Sydney will see him enter a 16th AFL season.
The announcement, which was made on AFL 360 on Tuesday night, is a major boost for McVeigh and the club with his future threatening to become a distraction in September.
“I’m proud to say that I’ve signed on and I’ll be able to run out with the boys for another year,” McVeigh said.
“It’s exciting to have another year as a Sydney Swans player ahead of me, but also to be able to continue working with the younger players coming through.
“We’ve got some really exciting young talent and they’re only going to get better – I’m rapt to have the opportunity to continue helping them along the way.”
Worsfold yet to choose a buddy for Buddy
Greg Denham
The Australian, September 6
Essendon coach John Worsfold has yet to decide on an opponent for Lance Franklin, who looms as the Bombers’ main obstacle if they are to score an unlikely underdog elimination final win at the SCG.
Worsfold said he was weighing up whether to use All-Australian defender Michael Hurley on Franklin provided he passes a fitness test today, or throw fellow defenders Michael Hartley or Patrick Ambrose in at the deep end.
The last time the two clubs met — at the SCG in round 14 — Sydney won a thriller by a point. The Swans came from 19 points down with less than four minutes left. Franklin booted six points without kicking a goal for just the second time this year. But two of those behinds came late in time-on in the final quarter to help clinch the match.
Franklin’s overall record against Essendon — for Hawthorn and Sydney — is ominous: 64 goals in 14 games.
In his previous three games against the Bombers, he has kicked 14 goals.
Training today will determine whether Hurley, who missed the last two rounds with a calf strain, Cale Hooker and Orazio Fantasia play in Saturday’s knockout final.
Swans share heartwarming story of blind boy and his mate
Channel 7 Sunrise, September 6
The Sydney Swans have shared an incredible story from their last home game against Carlton on August 18.
After days of trying to track them down, the Swans found blind young fan Mark Smith and his friend Jarryd Haines who both rose to prominence on social media during Sydney's three point win over Carlton.
The boys were originally identified by fellow fan Jonathan Brennan who tweeted his experience of hearing one young boy (Jarryd) commentate the Swans v Carlton game for his blind friend (Mark).
What followed was an online hunt for the young boys, which culminated with the Swans giving them a tour through their facilities.
The heartwarming story drew the admiration of AFL fans online.
Swans find blind fan and friend who melted hearts
David Campbell
Daily Telegraph, September 6
THE most touching AFL story of the year just got better after the Sydney Swans managed to track down two boys who melted hearts across the nation last week.
When their radio went dead during the Swans clash against the Blues in round 23 12-year-old Jarryd Haines took it upon himself to provide a running commentary of the match for his blind friend Mark Smith, 13.
The gesture, as well as the professional nature of Jarryd’s commentary which reportedly rivalled the major networks, warmed the hearts of spectators sitting around the boys.
“We were giving Mark something so he could listen to the commentary and that didn’t work in the second quarter so I just decided to call the game for him,” Jarryd said.
Giants, Swans want better promotion in Sydney
Caroline Wilson
The Age, September 6
Sydney and Greater Western Sydney will make formal submissions to push the AFL to better promote the game in their tough NRL market after pointing out that the competition has fallen short in capitalising upon their current success.
Having taken the league to task for the AFL's underwhelming efforts in selling the game in Sydney, along with the shortage of facilities for the game at grass-roots level, both clubs have been instructed to make their own cases for extra marketing and development funding in 2018.
With AFL chief Gillon McLachlan launching the finals in Sydney on Wednesday, both clubs remain privately disappointed at the lack of support. The Swans have already presented to head office a detailed promotional campaign to build audiences in 2018 following a strong plea to the commission earlier this year.
The Giants last month reinforced their push to raise awareness across the west of Sydney along with better fixtures and specific advertising to an AFL group led by executive Travis Auld. That club will put forward a formal document pushing for extra funding after the finals.
According to CEO Dave Matthews: "Our time slots both in Sydney and Canberra are more important in marketing terms than for any other club.
"We understand significant marketing budgets were parked this year while the players' deal was being done but the importance of this – particularly with the Swans and the Giants competing again in September – needs to be addressed." Both clubs believe the AFL failed to capitalise on the success of its two Sydney-based teams this year, cutting the marketing budget by one-third and not specifically targeting Sydney audiences in advertising.
Swans chief Andrew Ireland told Fairfax Media in April: "If you're going to put teams in NSW and Queensland you've got to promote them."
Swans game season pivot: Heppell
Ronny Lerner
The Age, September 6
Essendon captain Dyson Heppell has described the last time his side played Sydney as the turning point of the Bombers’ season.
When the two teams met at the SCG in round 14, Essendon led by 19 points with just under five minutes to go before the Swans booted the last three goals to snatch a memorable one-point win.
The next week Essendon gave up a five-goal lead to the Brisbane Lions, who scored an upset eightpoint victory at Etihad Stadium.
As the Bombeers prepare for their rematch with the Swans at the SCG in an elimination final, Heppell said his team learnt a lot from those back-to-back defeats as they went on to win six of their next eight matches to finish the year seventh. ‘‘Sydney was a great challenge for us up there in Sydney, probably backs against the wall and we took it right up to them in stages of that game and showed when it clicked for us we could be really damaging,’’ Heppell said.
‘‘The Brisbane one was a disappointing day but we took some great learnings from that and made sure we did. We didn’t just fluff over it and say it was one out of the blue, we made sure we looked closely at it, learn from it and moving forward from there I think we’ve handled ourselves quite well in the closer games throughout the rest of the season.’’
Heppell praised Sydney’s ability to come back from an 0-6 start to make the finals but stressed that Essendon took a lot of confidence from their last meeting into Saturday’s twilight encounter.
‘‘It’s been an enormous effort on their behalf, they’ve always been a super-strong side and their early form certainly didn’t show that,’’ Heppell said.
‘‘I think hopefully they’re due for a loss, the week off might have stifled their momentum.
‘‘Either way we’ll be ready for the challenge and can’t wait. It’s a really exciting opportunity for us. It’s what you play footy for. You want to prove yourself on the big stage ... there’s a great buzz and vibe around the club, so I’m loving it.’’
Results from players survey reveal stars want AFL to leave their game alone
Eliza Sewell
Herald Sun, September 6
PLAYERS have implored the AFL to leave the game alone, rejecting the need for the league to consider radical rule changes.
Almost nine out of 10 players polled in the AFL Players’ Association/Herald Sun annual survey dismissed the need for major reform to tackle congestion.
Given options to free up the game, only 7 per cent supported a reduction in rotations from the current 90 per game, 4 per cent supported zones such as set numbers in the forward 50m at stoppages while just 3 per cent backed a reduction from 18 to 16 players on the field.
A whopping 86 per cent of 700 players who completed the survey said no change was required.
AFLPA chief executive Paul Marsh last night said the message was clear.
“The players believe the game is in good shape and don’t see the need for any fundamental changes to how it’s played or adjudicated,” he told the Herald Sun.
“There’s ongoing frustration with the constant changing of laws of the game, which we think is creating confusion for players, spectators and umpires.”
Sydney star Dan Hannebery said players wanted greater consultation on any future rule changes.
