Post-match on Friday night, coach John Longmire spoke about the positives he could take out of the Swans 14-point loss at the hands of Collingwood.

With 14 possessions and seven tackles, one of those positives was certainly the form of lightning fast Gary Rohan, who showed glimpses of why he was chosen with a highly coveted top-10 pick at the 2009 National Draft.

Of those seven tackles, none was better than Rohan’s final quarter, goal saving effort on young Magpie Alex Fasolo, after running three-quarters of the length of the field.

“When Reg [Heath Grundy] got smothered, there were Collingwood players forward and I just sprinted back and saw they were going to create an overlap by handballing over and over, and I kept running and luckily enough I closed them down,” Rohan said.

“Tackling and being aggressive at it is a big focus for me and always has been.  That’s what the coaches like to see from me,” he said. 

For Rohan, it is that tackling and endeavour that he hopes can help secure him a spot in the Swans senior line-up for the 2011 season.

Rohan is determined to build on his nine senior games from last year.

“My goal for this year was to play NAB Cup and put myself in a position to be considered for round one.

“To do that, I’ve really got to work on my consistency and keep up my pressure, whether I’m playing forward or back, I’ve got to keep up the tackling and pressure,” Rohan said.

“Playing against a team like Collingwood, you don’t get a lot of time to think because their pressure is so good,”

“They really get around each other and hunt in packs.”

In a bid to improve his game, Rohan has been working with mentor Rhyce Shaw and closely watching tapes of Ben McGlynn and Tadhg Kennelly.

“With Shawry, I’ve been working on my composure when I’ve got the footy and learning not to rush. Everyone always says it to me, ‘we get nervous when you get the ball Rohan’,” he laughs.

“I’ve also been watching tapes of Benny McGlynn for his attack on the ball.”

As Rohan continues to find his feet and improve with every game, Swans fans can expect to see more of the 19-year old rocketing out of defence or laying big tackles throughout 2011.