Playfair hopeful of further improvement
Debut reserves coach Henry Playfair says there is still work to do after the weekend’s 116-point victory...
Reflecting on his first outing as Sydney Swans reserves coach, Henry Playfair has told sydneyswans.com.au that while he was happy with the way the team played, there were still areas of the performance that need improvement.
Playfair highlighted the individual efforts of several players in helping to secure the victory over the East Coast Eagles, with the forward line combining for 35 scoring shots and the defense conceding just three goals.
“Individually, Jesse White was pretty good up forward, and Trent Dennis-Lane the same,” Playfair said.
“Down back, Alex Johnson was pretty impressive in his first game, and Lewis Johnston played down there as well.
“Dylan McNeil and Luke Parker who played in the midfield played pretty well, and Pykey (Mike Pyke) as well in the ruck… we played well pretty much as a team in our first hit-out of the year.”
Playfair alluded to sections of the game that still needed fine tuning over the coming weeks before the reserves play their season opener against Eastlake on Sunday April 10.
“Our contested ball and how we move the footy … and also our defensive structures were the main focuses going into the game,” he said.
“There were various elements of that that we will work on and review during the week.”
The Swans reserves will be in action again this Saturday afternoon in a practice game against fellow NEAFL side Belconnen, an opportunity Playfair sees as vital before the two teams meet in the home and away season.
“That’ll be a good chance for another hit-out, and playing a Canberra (NEAFL) side, it will be good to see them before we play them during the year.”