In the lead-up to the Swans round 8 home match against Melbourne, which will celebrate the Club’s 30 years in Sydney, sydneyswans.com.au is collating the 30 Defining Moments of the Swans in Sydney in chronological order.

The 30 Defining Moments have been selected by Sydney Swans Chairman, Richard Colless, Deputy Chairman, Andrew McMaster, and Swans Hall of Fame inductee and former Club captain, coach, and director, Rick Quade.

#29 - Brett Kirk and Paul Roos’ last SCG game, 2010

Nearly a year after the emotional scenes following club stalwarts Leo Barry, Michael O’Loughlin and Jared Crouch’s final game, the Swans again bid a fond farewell to two its favourite sons at the SCG in round 21, 2010.

The game, played against the Western Bulldogs, was co-captain Brett Kirk and coach Paul Roos’ last home game at the Swans’ historic home ground, and the fans flocked to say goodbye to two of the club’s greatest leaders.

Over 36,000 supporters turned out on a Saturday night, as the Swans put on a show for the departing champions, eventually defeating the fourth-placed Bulldogs by 44 points.

“Tonight's about thanking the fans, it's our last time here and I just love the place,” Kirk said after the match where he played a cameo role as a forward contributing two goals from 13 touches.

Kirk’s transition from a supplementary listed player to celebrated co-captain of the Swans is a storied example of persistence and extracting the most from your talents.

The inspirational leader was initially cut from the Swans supplementary list at the end of the 1998 season before being given another chance to forge an AFL career with the club. By the conclusion of the 2002 season, it appeared that Kirk would be delisted, before Roos, then about to embark on his first season as head coach, offered the Swans’ number 31 one last opportunity.

Kirk certainly made the most of that opportunity, eventually finishing with 241 games, appearing in seven finals series, being a key part of the 2005 premiership team, and playing a crucial role in the second half comeback that fell just short in the 2006 decider. Kirk was named All-Australian in 2004, won the Club Champion award in 2005 and 2007, co-captained the club from 2006 until 2010, and was last year inducted into the Swans Hall of Fame in his first year out of the game.

“I just always had a burning desire to play AFL football and nothing was going to get in my way,” Kirk said.

“If I sit back and think about my career and the ups and downs and the way I've gone about it and the way I've played with my heart … I think not only people in footy but other people can get inspired by not giving up.

"There are plenty of [successful] people … who have been kicked in the backside like I was, but with me, deep down inside, I was always going to make it.”

Kirk was also a driving force in the club’s culture on and off the field, and speaking ahead of his final game at the SCG he said he took great pride in the impact he was able to make on the club and the ethos set for those coming through the ranks, both now and in the future.

“There's a lot of youth coming through and the guys who have come from different clubs have really given something to the Sydney Swans Football Club and they've really embraced what we're all about," he said.

"It's more about the legacy I've left for the footy club and the way I've gone about it, the way I've presented myself and the way I've played footy.

"Hopefully I've been able to give to the other players, and especially the leaders, that I can walk away thinking that I've been able to give something to them that they can carry on."

For Roos - who was featured in Moment #17 - the farewell SCG game came in the middle of a form revival for the team. After starting the season with wins in five of the first six games, the Swans then struggled during a mid-season slump, before securing a place in the finals on the back of a brand of football made famous during his and Kirk’s time at the club.

“Our form’s improved significantly but I think it has been the fact that we’ve got so many more guys committed to playing their roles within the team and not worrying too much about ... how many kicks they get or whatever,” he said after the round 21 win over the Bulldogs.

“Over the course of the eight years Kirky and I have been involved together and with this team, that’s always been the case.”

The Swans ended up hosting Carlton in a home final at Stadium Australia in round one of the finals and produced an outstanding performance to defeat the Chris Judd-led Blues by five points in a thrilling contest.

A week later, the Bulldogs got their revenge for the round 21 loss when they came back from 30 points behind in the second quarter to eliminate the Swans from the finals, eventually winning by five points. Roos and Kirk bowed out of the AFL, but not after having a significant impact on the Sydney Swans Football Club.