Sydney Swans greats Adam Goodes and Jude Bolton took a baby-faced Luke Parker under their wings in the early days of his journey in red and white.
And the hard-nosed 26-year-old midfielder, whose star has risen to lofty heights since he signed with Sydney at the 2010 AFL Draft, is one of a host of experienced Swans now showing the way for the youngsters of today.
Towering forward Nick Blakey, speedsters Justin McInerney and Zac Foot, bullocking inside midfielder James Rowbottom and crafty backman Harry Reynolds, are just some of the recently recruited draftees thriving during the pre-season grind.
Big-framed defender Durak Tucker, who’s on the road back from an ACL rupture, and lively small forward Sam Wicks, are making rapid progress themselves, while Oliver Florent, Tom McCartin, Ryley Stoddart and a long list of other young Swans are so too showing an insatiable appetite for growth.
When Parker first walked through Swans doors as an 18-year-old Dandenong Stingrays product, Goodes had stacked up 276 games and Bolton 260.
The two-time premiership heroes would go on to play 372 and 325 games respectively, becoming the two most-capped Swans in history – and Parker says the baton now rests in his hand.
“I grew up with ‘Goodesy’ and Jude showing me the standards and how to play football at the Swans,” Parker told SwansTV.
“At my age it’s now my responsibility to pass that on to the next generation. I’m now carrying the torch and trying to hold on to what we are as a club and trying to drive those standards.
“We’ve been doing a few sessions on Thursdays where we’ve gone through the basics in terms of stoppages and body work, as well as other things they probably hadn’t thought about before getting to AFL level.
“I think as a young player you can be bigger than most players or get away with a few little things, so it’s about making sure they’re doing the basics well.”
Parker was one of three Swans appointed as a 2019 co-captain in December, joining former sole skipper Josh Kennedy and ever-reliable defender Dane Rampe on a new-look panel.
While 290-game champion Lance Franklin and 173-match star Parker inject a wealth of experience into Sydney’s forward line and midfield respectively, it’s the Swans’ defence that draws on the bulk of games played.
Seasoned campaigners Jarrad McVeigh (319 games), Heath Grundy (255), Nick Smith (211), Rampe (138) and Jake Lloyd (115) have piled up 1038 matches between them, with the former three also holding aloft the 2012 premiership cup.
Young Swan Foot, who signed with the red and white via its fourth-round selection at November’s AFL Draft, says Sydney’s veterans are having an enormous impact on the emerging generation at the club.
“Having those leaders around definitely boosts your confidence,” Foot told SwansTV.
“They have so much experience, they back your decisions 100 per cent and they are able to help you as a player.
“The main thing we’ve been working on is our defensive shape. With guys like Rampe being a defender and (Harry) Cunningham being a winger, who have both helped me and the other new guys a lot, they talk to us on the field, they want us to be really good in defence and they’ve just been the biggest help you could ask for.”
But the likes of Foot, McInerney, Rowbottom and Wicks – in the same way a fresh-faced, skin-and-bone and bright-eyed Parker had followed in the footsteps of Goodes and Bolton – make the leadership role of Parker and company an easy task.
“Their attitude to training has been great,” Parker said.
“They attack each session and they really give that excitement. They’re now out there with AFL players and you can see how much they thrive off being out there.”
