After demonstrating his hardness and competitive spirit at training and in the NEAFL, Jones immediately made an impact in his first senior appearance, collecting nine disposals and six tackles in just a half of football after coming on as the sub against Richmond at the MCG in round 14.
The 19-year-old went on to play the next two senior matches, before an Achilles injury sidelined Jones and set back his early-season progress.
Jones, who played his final senior game in the Swans’ round 23 clash against Richmond, told SwansTV he was eyeing more senior opportunities in 2015.
You managed to make your debut and play four games in your first season at the club. How did you see you first season at the Swans?
I’m pretty happy with it, and I guess putting a few games together early in the season held me in good stead for those four games. I was pretty happy with how I played.
You’re a pretty competitive guy, so I imagined you backed yourself to be able to come in and play senior football. Were you surprised you were able to string together four games?
I was keen to play round one, but that was probably just me being eager to come on and play senior footy.
How did the intensity step up in those senior games?
I guess it’s just another level. You’ve got to be able to run and you’ve got to be fit, and you’ve still got to be able to recover from those big knocks when those bigger bodies clean you up.
You also battled a little bit of injury with your Achilles injury. How frustrating was that injury particularly after you played senior football?
Hurting my Achilles after I had that head knock (against West Coast) made it hard to string my fitness back together, but eventually I got back in form and was playing alright towards the end of the season and got one last game in, so it was alright.
The Swans Reserves suffered a pretty disappointing Grand Final loss. How tough was it to lose such a close game?
It was pretty devastating to have them kick a goal after the siren. It was well done to the Hornets but our boys played our hardest, so it was bad luck to us.
Looking ahead to the pre-season, what will you be trying to improve to ensure you get more senior games next season?
I’ve got to improve on my fitness and kind of just build the tank again and bring that competitiveness as normal. Hopefully that will hold me in good stead for next year.
What are your plans for the off-season?
I’ll just be heading back home and heading down the coast and hanging with my family and my brothers.
