Today has been an interesting one for me. It started with a modelling shoot - yes, they only chose the good-looking guys (ha!) - and ended with yoga and an evening at a charity function.

Some days there isn’t much footy involved in being a football player!

I arrived at the Club about 8.30am and spent the next couple of hours involved in a photo shoot for a merchandise catalogue. We had to wear all our new ISC products - they provide all our playing and training gear - and stand around smiling for a couple of hours.

I wouldn’t say I’m a natural when it comes to that sort of stuff but it’s all part of the job.

As soon as that was finished, I raced upstairs for our weekly leadership meeting. We have seven players in our leadership group - Brett Kirk, Craig Bolton, Adam Goodes, Jude Bolton, Rhyce Shaw, Ryan O’Keefe and me.

We have an agenda, and talk about a range of things, such as how training is going, or whether any players need help in any areas.

We each have certain areas of responsibility. Mine is dealing with “Level 1’’ which means anything to do with training, physio, medical and fitness. So if there are any issues in that area, it’s my job, along with Jude Bolton, to make sure we address them with our fitness and medical staff. It’s a really good system, and our leadership group is one of the foundations of our team and its culture.

After that it was off to yoga. We are doing it outside at the moment because our change rooms are still being fixed up after they were flooded during big rains in Sydney a couple of weeks ago.

Some of the guys absolutely love our weekly yoga session and even do an extra session on a Friday. I have to say though that yoga is not my favourite thing to do. I know it’s good for me and helps with flexibility, but it just isn’t my thing.
Anyway, as I said, it’s all part of the job and all part of always trying to get better at what we do.

I need to remember that lesson after last weekend against St Kilda, when I was personally beaten by Clinton Jones in our match-up during the pre-season Cup game, and we were beaten by one lousy point.

Clinton is one of the best run-with players in the game. I played ok against him up here at the SCG last year, but he got one back on me last Saturday.

Just as well we play the Saints again in round one, on March 27, at ANZ Stadium. I will be doing my best to make sure it’s my turn to get one back on him when we meet then!



Jarrad McVeigh


Macca gives us his best 'Blue Steel', along with Marty Mattner, Jesse White and Ryan O'Keefe at the Swans' merchandise catalogue shoot!