As an 18-year-old newcomer to the Sydney Swans Mark Bayes watched the club open the 1985 season with a 110-point win over St Kilda at Moorabbin.

It was the start of the Swans’ fourth year based in Sydney, and a timely boost after they had finished 7^th-11^th-10^th in their first three years in the Harbour City.

Bayes could have been excused for being a little starry-eyed as new teammate Bernie Evans kicked nine goals to be best afield in the 26.20 (176) to 8.18 (66) win in which John Ironmonger, Jamie Duursma, Darren McAsey and Mark Russell made their AFL debut under new coach John Northey.

Amazingly, Ironmonger, a big-name recruit from East Perth, and McAsey, the Swans 1983 Under-19s captain from Finlay in the Riverina, both figured in the Brownlow Medal votes on debut in a win that still rates as the club’s third-biggest interstate for the Sydney-based Swans.

Bayes also could have been excused for wondering how he could possibly work his way into a side captained by Mark Browning for the first time in his own right after Browning had deputised for the injured Barry Round late in the 1984 season.

But seven days later, on 6 April 1985, 35 years ago today, Bayes did just that. He made his debut in the Round 2 clash with Richmond at the MCG.

Coach Northey was forced to make three changes due to injuries to Warwick Capper, Craig Holden and Arthur Chilcott, and included Bayes, Colin Hounsell and Malcolm Scott.

Scott, a 26-year-old full forward from Ballarat who had played 10 games with St Kilda in 1979-80, wore Swans colours for the first and only time.

But, in a contrast of extraordinary proportions, Bayes went on to play 246 games for the club in a brilliant career highlighted by selection in the Swans Team of the Century.

He inherited the #30 guernsey worn previously by David Rhys-Jones, who quit the club shortly before Christmas 1984 after being asked to take a pay cut.

Bayes wore #30 throughout his career and ranks fourth all-time for most games in #30 behind Richmond’s Francis Bourke (300), Geelong’s Matthew Scarlett (283) and West Coast’s Peter Matera (248). He is only fifth for goals in #30 with 174.

Bayes’ debut in Round 2 was nothing like the 1985 season-opener. The Swans trailed 2.3 to 4.8 at quarter-time and had to fight ferociously for a 13.14 (92) to 12.16 (88) win.

The stats sheet showed the young man with the thumping left foot kick had a less than flattering four kicks and kicked two behinds as David Ackerley led the possession count with 22 and Tony Morwood headed the goal count with three.

Ironmonger, the 1983 Sandover Medallist, picked up three Brownlow votes to lead the medal count at that stage of a season in which he would finish with 12 votes from 15 games and equal 13^th overall behind medal winner Brad Hardie (22 votes).

Bayes, initially tied residentially to the Western Bulldogs (then Footscray), had told the Dogs he would sit out the qualification time if they did not release him.

They eventually agreed to his release to join the Swans under new chief executive Don Roach from the SANFL and new chairman of selectors and director of football Rod Olsson, a former Geelong coach.  

Bayes played 18 games in the first of 14 AFL seasons, which saw him win the Bob Skilton Medal as Club Champion and selection in the then VFL Team of the Year in 1989, play seven finals including the 1996 grand final, and represent Victoria five times.

He was inducted into the Sydney Swans Hall of Fame in 2011.

Named on interchange bench in the Team of the Century in 2003, he was best suited and played mainly in defence but at times provided a capable option up forward and in 1995 kicked seven goals against Brisbane at the Gabba.

At the time of his retirement aged 31 in 1998, Bayes was equal third on the Swans all-time games list behind only John Rantall (260) and Mark Browning (251) and level with Stevie Wright (246). Twenty-two years on he is equal 10th.