Sydney Swans
Encyclopedia
The Sydney Swans Football Club is an Australian rules football
club which plays in the Australian Football League
(AFL). The club is based in Sydney
, New South Wales
. The club, founded in 1874, was known as the South Melbourne Football Club until it relocated to Sydney in 1982 to become the Sydney Swans. Sydney was the first club in the competition to be based outside of Victoria
. The Swans play most home games at the Sydney Cricket Ground
, while larger games are played at ANZ Stadium.
Since 1995, the Sydney Swans are the only club not to have missed the finals in consecutive seasons, and have made the finals more years than any other club in the same time, only missing the finals in 2000, 2002 and 2009.
, one of the city's oldest. In 1880 it absorbed the Albert Park
club (one of the VFA's foundation senior clubs), and by 1890 it had replaced the original blue and white with the now familiar red and white of the South Melbourne coat of arms.
Nicknamed the “Southerners”, the team were more colourfully known as the “Bloods", in reference to the bright red sash on their white jumpers (the sash was replaced with the current red “V” in 1932). The colorful epithet the “Bloodstained Angels” was also in use. The “Bloodstained Angels” epithet proved prophetic when South Melbourne played in the 1945 "Bloodbath" Grand Final against Carlton, a game legendary for its brutal violence which saw many of the Swans' players jumpers stained with their own or the opposition’s blood (from the book "The Blood Stained Angels", a history of the South Melbourne Football Club). The 1945 Grand Final saw 10 players reported and suspended for a total of 69 games. The club was based at Lake Oval
, also home of the South Melbourne Cricket Club.
At the end of the 1896 season, Collingwood
and South Melbourne finished exactly equal in all respects at the top of the VFA's premiership ladder. This was the first time this had occurred in VFA history. The VFA determined that an elimination match should take place to decide the season's premiership on 3 October 1896 at the East Melbourne Cricket Ground
.
Collingwood won the match, six goals to five, in front of an estimated crowd of 29,000. Even though this victory brought Collingwood a premiership, it is uncertain whether the match itself was promoted as a "Premiership Match" or as a "Grand Final" at the time.
This Grand Final would be the last match South Melbourne would play in the VFA, as the following season they would be one of eight founding clubs forming the breakaway Victorian Football League
. The other clubs were St Kilda Football Club, Essendon Football Club
, Fitzroy Football Club
, Melbourne Football Club
, Geelong Football Club
, Carlton Football Club
and Collingwood Football Club
.
that was formed in 1897.
It was during this period that the team became known as the Swans, the nickname having been given courtesy of the number of West Australians in the team (Swans being the state emblem of WA). The name stuck, partially due to the association with nearby Albert Park and Lake
, also known for its white swan
s (ironically there are no longer any non-native white swans and only black, indigenous swans in the lake).
After several years with only limited success, South Melbourne next reached the grand final in 1945. The match, played against Carlton, was to become known as "the Bloodbath", courtesy of the brawl that overshadowed the match, with a total of 9 players being reported by the umpires. Carlton won the match by 28 points, and from then on, South Melbourne struggled.
Under the legendary Norm Smith
, South Melbourne finally improved substantially in 1970 with a fourth place. However, having probably the worst country zone in the league and a poor metropolitan zone meant their 1970 joy was short-lived. Between Round 7, 1972 and Round 13, 1973, they lost 29 consecutive games. There was a brief glimmer of hope when South Melbourne made the finals in 1977 finishing 5th under coach Ian Stewart, but losing the Elimination final at VFL Park to Richmond Football Club
by 34 points. The same year Graeme Teasdale, who had moved from full-forward to the ruck won the Brownlow Medal
. By the end of the 1970s South Melbourne had massive debts after struggling for so long and, despite strong supporter opposition, in the early 1980s they were given the "choice" by the VFL of relocation to Sydney or oblivion.
The Swans moved to Sydney (and the SCG) in 1982 as part of the VFL's attempts to broaden its appeal, a move which ultimately culminated in its extension into a national competition, the AFL.
The move to Sydney is the subject of the Weddings Parties Anything
song 'The Swans Return'.
On 31 July 1985, for what was thought to be $6.3 million, Dr. Geoffrey Edelsten
"bought" the Swans. In reality it was $2.9 million in cash with funding and other payments spread over five years. Edelsten resigned as chairman in less than twelve months, but had already made his mark. He immediately snapped up former Geelong coach Tom Hafey
. Hafey, in turn, used his knowledge of Geelong’s contracts to snap up David Bolton
, Bernard Toohey
and Greg Williams, who would all form a key part of the Sydney side, at a league-determined total fee of $240,000 (less than the $500,000 Geelong demanded, and even the $300,000 Sydney offered). The likes of Gerard Healy
, Merv Neagle
and Paul Morwood
were also poached from other clubs, and failed approaches were made to Simon Madden
, Terry Daniher
, Andrew Bews
and Maurice Rioli
.
During the Edelsten years, the Swans were seen by the Sydney public as a flamboyant club, typified by the style of its spearhead, Warwick Capper
, his long bright blond mullet and bright pink boots made him unmissable on the field and his pink Lamborghini, penchant for fashion models and eccentricity made him notorious off the field – all somewhat fashionable in the 1980s
. During Capper's peak years, the Swans had made successive finals appearances for the first time since relocating. His consistently spectacular aerial exploits earned him consecutive Mark of the Year
awards while his goalkicking efforts (amassing 103 goals in 1987) made him runner up in the Coleman Medal two years running. The Swans' successive finals appearances saw crowds during this time peak at an average of around 25,000 per game. Edelsten also introduced the 'Swanettes', a cheerleading group that were unique for an AFL club. The Swanettes did not get much performance time, owing to the short intervals between quarters of play in the AFL and the lack of space in which they might perform while other activities take place on the field. The Swanettes were soon discontinued, and no AFL club has had cheerleaders since then.
In 1987, the Swans scored 201 points against the West Coast Eagles
, and the following week scored 236 points against the Essendon Football Club
. Both games were at the SCG. The Swans are the only team to have scored two double-tons (200-plus scores) in a row.
Losses were in the millions. A group of financial backers including Mike Willessee, Basil Sellers, Peter Weinert and Craig Kimberley purchased the licence and bankrolled the club until 1993, when the AFL stepped in.
Morale at the side plummeted as players were asked to take pay cuts. Legendary coach Tom Hafey
was sacked by the club in 1988 after a player-led rebellion at his tough training methods (unusual in the semi-professional days of that era).
Capper was sold to the Brisbane Bears for $400,000 in a desperate attempt to improve the club’s finances. Instead, it only led to disastrous on-field performances. Instead of a 100-goal-a-season forward, Sydney’s goalkicking was led by defender Bernard Toohey
with 29 in 1989, then Jim West with 34 in 1990. Players left the club in droves, including Brownlow Medalist Greg Williams, Bernard Toohey
and Barry Mitchell
. The careers of stars such as Dennis Carroll
, David Bolton
, Ian Roberts
, Tony Morwood
and David Murphy
came to an end, while promising young players like Jamie Lawson
, Robert Teal and Paul Bryce
had their careers cut short by injury.
Attendances consistently dropped below 10,000 when the team performed poorly between 1990 and 1994. The side won the wooden spoon in 1992, 1993 and 1994.
The AFL stepped in to save the Swans, offering substantial monetary and management support. The club survived, despite strong rumours in 1992 that it would merge with the Brisbane Bears
or fold altogether. With draft and salary cap concessions in the early 1990s and a series of notable recruits, the team fielded a competitive team after the early part of the decade. During this time, the side was largely held together by two inspirational skippers, both from the Wagga Wagga region of country New South Wales, Dennis Carroll
and later the courageous captain Paul Kelly
.
Desperate to hang on, the club was keen to enlist the biggest names and identities in the AFL, and recruited legendary coach Ron Barassi
who helped save the club from extinction while serving them as coach from Round 7, 1993 to 1995. At roughly the same time, Hawthorn legend Dermott Brereton
was also recruited, albeit with little on-field impact. On a much brighter side for the Swans, their captain Paul Kelly won the League's highest individual honour, the Brownlow Medal
, in 1995.
in 1995. Lockett became a cult figure in Sydney, with an instant impact and along with the Super League war
in the rival rugby league
football code in Australia, helped the Swans to pull in larger crowds.
1995 would be Barassi's last year in charge. The Swans won 8 games- as much as they did in the previous three years combined- and finished with a percentage of over 100 (in fact, they have managed such consistently ever since). They were also one of only two teams to defeat the all-conquering Carlton side of that year. Swans great Paul Kelly also won the Brownlow Medal
that year. Barassi left an improving team, a club in a much better state than he found them.
Former Hawthorn player Rodney Eade took over the reins in 1996 and after a slow start (they lost their first two games of the season), turned the club around into a competitive force. The Swans ended the minor round on top of the premiership table with 16 wins, 5 losses, and 1 draw. In the finals, the Swans won one of the most thrilling AFL preliminary finals in history after Plugger Lockett kicked a behind after the siren to win the game. The Swans lost the grand final to , which had been their first appearance in a grand final since 1945. The game was played in front of 93,102 at the MCG
.
The Swans then made the finals for four of the next five full years that Rodney Eade was in charge of. In 1998 they finished 3rd on the AFL ladder; despite beating in their first final the Swans were then beaten by eventual premiers in the semi-final at the SCG
.
Following the 1998 season, it was revealed the Sydney Swans
had breached the League's salary cap, as punishment, it was banned from the first round of the AFL Draft
for three years between 1999–2001. 1999 was a largely uneventful season for the club, the only real highlight being Tony Lockett
kicking his record-breaking 1300th goal against in Round 10. The 1999 season ended with a 69-point mauling at the hands of minor premiers .
After missing the finals in 2000, the Swans rebounded to finish 7th in 2001
, but were beaten by by 55 points in their elimination final at Colonial Stadium.
was not performing as coach. Eade was punted after Round 12, when Roos took over. He had an immediate impact, winning six of the remaining 10 games that year, and continuing a record as a successful coach with the Swans for the eight full seasons that would follow. 2002 saw the Swans return to the first round of the AFL Draft following its three-year ban for breaching the salary cap in 1998. This is believed to have played a factor in Sydney's poor season.
A new home ground in ANZ Stadium (then known as Telstra Stadium) provided increased capacity over the SCG. The Swans' first game played at the Stadium in Round 9, 2002 attracted 54,169 spectators. The Sydney Swans v Collingwood
match on 23 August 2003 set an attendance record for the largest crowd to watch an AFL game outside of Victoria with an official attendance of 72,393 and was the largest home and away AFL crowd at any stadium for 2003. A preliminary final against the Brisbane Lions
in 2003 attracted 71,019 people.
Sydney was able to recruit another St Kilda export in the Lockett mould, Barry Hall
. Though there were obvious parallels to the signing of Lockett (a powerful, tough forward from St Kilda with questions over his discipline and attitude) which left Hall with much to live up to. He flourished in the new surrounds and eventually became a cult figure and club leader in his own right.
As the new century turned, Sydney implemented a policy of giving up high order draft picks in exchange for players who struggled at other clubs. It was during this era that the Swans picked up the likes of Paul Williams
, Barry Hall
, Craig Bolton
, Darren Jolly
, Ted Richards
, Peter Everitt
, Martin Mattner
, Rhyce Shaw
, Shane Mumford
, Ben McGlynn
and Mitch Morton
, amongst others, and giving up higher order draft picks meant the Swans missed out on the likes of Daniel Motlop
, Nick Dal Santo
, James Kelly, Courtenay Dempsey
and Sam Lonergan
who went to , , and the latter two to respectively. This policy is said to have paid off in the Roos era, as they implemented a strict culture of discipline at the club.
on 24 September 2005 against the West Coast Eagles
, defeating them by four points, final score 8.10 (58) to West Coast's 7.12 (54). In the last few minutes, the Sydney defence held strong, with Leo Barry
marking the ball just before the siren to stop the Eagles' final desperate shot at goal. The premiership was the Swans' first in 72 years and their first since being based in Sydney. It was also the fifth premiership in succession to be won by a team from outside Victoria
.
In 2005, the Swans came under enormous public scrutiny, even from AFL commissioner Andrew Demetriou
for their unorthodox, "boring" defense-oriented tactics that included tightly controlling the tempo of the game and starving the opposition of possession (in fact, seven teams that season had their lowest possession total whilst playing against the Swans). The coach Paul Roos
maintained that playing contested football was the style used by all recent premiership winning teams, and felt that it was ironic that the much criticised strategy proved ultimately successful.
On Friday, 30 September 2005 a ticker tape parade down Sydney's George Street
was held in honour of the Swans' achievements, which ended with a rally at Town Hall, where Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore
presented the team with the key to the city. The flag of the Swans also flew on top of the Sydney Harbour Bridge
during the week; the same flag was later given to WA
premier Geoff Gallop
to fly on top of the state legislature in Perth as part of the friendly wager between Gallop and NSW
premier Morris Iemma
.
The rivalry between the Sydney Swans and West Coast Eagles has become one of the greatest rivalries in VFL/AFL history. The six games between the two sides (from the start of the 2005 finals to the 2006 Grand Final inclusive) were decided by a combined margin of 13 points. Four of those six games were finals.
at the MCG in an elimination final. Collingwood were always in control of the match by quarter time, Collingwood were out to a 31 point lead. Collingwood's lead was cut to five points, two minutes into the third quarter, but Collingwood went on to run out convincing winners by 38 points.
This was Sydney's earliest exit since 2002, when they failed to make the finals. The season was seen as somewhat a disappointment, as only victories against lesser teams saw them through to a 5th consecutive finals campaign. Within the 2007 trade week for the 2008 season premiership winning players such as Jude Bolton, Amon Buchanan and other key players were placed to be traded leading to changes for the Swans 2008 season.
The conclusion of the 2007 trade saw the loss of Adam Schneider
and Sean Dempster
to St Kilda, the delisting of Simon Phillips
, Jonathan Simpkin and Luke Vogels
, and the gain of Henry Playfair
from Geelong
and Martin Mattner
from Adelaide.
The Swans spent the middle part of the 2008 season inside the top four, however a late form slump which yielded only three wins in the last nine rounds saw the Swans drop to sixth at the conclusion of the 2008 regular season. This earned them a home elimination final against (its first finals meeting since the 1996 AFL Grand Final
) which the Swans won by 35 points. Unfortunately for the Swans their season ended with a disappointing loss to the Western Bulldogs
at the Melbourne Cricket Ground
the following Friday night.
2009 saw a L-W pattern follow for the first eight rounds before the Swans strung together consecutive wins for the first and only time in round nine when they thrashed Port Adelaide
at home. This had them at a 5–4 record at the conclusion of round nine, however only three more wins followed and the Swans missed the finals for the first time since 2002. Barry Hall
, Leo Barry
, Jared Crouch
and Michael O'Loughlin
all left the club at season's end, signalling a new rebuilding period at the Swans.
In the 2009 off-season the Swans did compensate for the losses of those four players by picking up West Coast premiership ruckman Mark Seaby
as well as ex-Brisbane Lions
triple-premiership player Daniel Bradshaw
and rising ruckman Shane Mumford
who did not play in Geelong's 2009 AFL Grand Final
triumph. Only the latter had played more games than Seaby and Bradshaw combined.
The 2010 season started with an eight-point loss to rivals St Kilda before a string of five consecutive wins took the Swans to the top of the ladder for the first time since round 1, 2005 at the conclusion of round six. Unfortunately the Swans would go into freefall, losing their next four games as well as ruckman Mumford for two weeks for an NRL
-style spear tackle on superstar Gary Ablett
. The rot ended with a nine-point win over followed by a big win over at AAMI Stadium, making the Swans two-from-two at the venue in 2010. Losses to and followed before the Swans had big wins over and . Round 17 saw the Swans suffer its worst ever loss under Paul Roos with a 73-point hiding from which was also its first loss against them since 2006 and first against them in Melbourne since the 2000 season. Yet another loss to Geelong followed before the Swans comfortably defeated Hawthorn in round 19 at the SCG, maintaining its dominance over Hawthorn at home. This was followed up with a rare win over at Subiaco Oval
, the first win for the Swans over the Dockers at the venue since 1998, and first at the venue since 2008. The following week saw a win over the by 44 points, in what was Brett Kirk
and Paul Roos
' final regular season home game at the SCG (this is subject to whether the Swans gain a home final or not) and it was the Swans' first win over any top four side since defeating St Kilda in round 12, 2008. It also guaranteed the Swans a finals spot for 2010. The Swans wrapped up a home final with victory against the Brisbane Lions
away at the Gabba where the Swans have enjoyed playing recently, with only two losses in the past eight years.
In the 2010 finals, they defeated by just five points in a sudden death elimination final at ANZ Stadium after the Swans fell behind during the third quarter. The Swans went down to the by 5 points – 11.11 77 to 10.12 72 in a semi final at the MCG
, seeing the culmination of club servants – coach Paul Roos and captain Brett Kirk
's memorable careers with the Swans.
followed in Round 16, to snap a three-game losing streak, before costly losses to and saw them tumble to eighth on the ladder and in danger of missing the finals for only the third time since 2000. In Round 23 of the 2011 season, Sydney defied all odds and defeated the Geelong Cats at Skilled Stadium, Geelong's home ground, which had not been achieved by any team in four years. Sydney had not won there in 12 years. This win broke the longest ever home ground winning streak in the history of the AFL. Geelong would then go on to win the premiership.
Sydney qualified for this year's finals finishing 7th. They defeated at Docklands Stadium by 25 points, but then lost its semi-final showdown against 2008 premiers at the MCG
.
In recent times the Swans have lacked from quality top draft picks, this is due to them not finishing any lower than 12th since 1994. Unlike teams such as , , and the Brisbane Lions
who have declined or bottomed out in recent years, the Swans do not bottom out, rather they continue to develop their players to prepare them for the mental and physical demands of Australian rules football. Also, a lack of quality top draft picks is believed to have contributed to their long losing runs against top teams such as (which bottomed out in 2004 and 2005 after making the Grand Final in 2002 and 2003) and (which bottomed out in 2006 before going on to win the premiership in 2007).
at the point of the yoke. The Opera House design was first used at the start of the 1987 season, replacing the traditional red "V" on white design. Until 1991, the back of the jumper was white with the yoke only extending to the back of the shoulders and each side of the jumper had a red vertical stripe. The current predominantly red design appeared at the start of the 1992 season. The club's major sponsor is QBE Insurance
. In 2004 the club added the initials 'SMFC' in white lettering at the back of the collar to honour the club's past as South Melbourne Football Club. The move was welcomed by Melbourne-based fans.
He is named after Swans legend Bob Skilton
. The actual mascot at Sydney's home games is, however, still known as Cyggy (as in cygnet
).
In 2006, following the first premiership in 72 years, the club achieved a record membership and the biggest since 1999. There is still a healthy Melbourne following for the Swans, particularly a revival in the late 1990s. Almost 10,000 Swans members are (South) Melbourne based and the club experiences good support when the team plays in Melbourne and many also make the long trip to Sydney for home games as well. The club recently celebrated in 2007 their 25th anniversary since relocating from South Melbourne
, with parties hosted both in Sydney and their former home.
Some famous fans include movie star Nicole Kidman
, singers Shannon Noll
, Delta Goodrem
, Australian band Human Nature
, Australian duo The Presets
, radio personality Adam Spencer
, television personality Ian "Dicko" Dickson, media personalities Sandra Sully
, Neil Cordy
, former cricket legend Glenn McGrath
, television presenter Tom Williams, Dallas Cowboys
punter Mat McBriar
, sports journalist Tony Squires
and television actress Cornelia Frances
, amongst others.
¹(at 30 June 2008)
²following finals matches
The Swans developed arguably their most famous modern rivalry
against the Perth-based West Coast Eagles
between 2005 and 2007. Six consecutive games between the two teams (from the 2005 Qualifying Final to the Round 1 of 2007) were each been decided by less than a goal, resulting in two wins to Sydney and 4 to West Coast (including a Grand Final win each). The difference in aggregate across the six games was three points and the sum of the margins was thirteen points.
In 2005, Sydney lost the Qualifying Final to the Eagles by four points, only to later win the Grand Final by four points against the Eagles. In 2006, the Eagles lost the Qualifying Final to Sydney by one point, only to later win the Grand Final by one point against the Swans. Strangely, the total scores in those two games were also the same, but reversed – 85 d 84.
Below are the results of recent clashes between these rivals:
2005 Qualifying Final, Subiaco
2005 Grand Final, MCG
2006 Round 15, Subiaco
2006 Qualifying Final, Subiaco
2006 Grand Final, MCG
2007, Round 1, Telstra Stadium
This trend was broken when the teams clashed again in Round 16, 2007. The Eagles won the game 112–100, a margin almost as high as the combined total margins of the previous 6 contests between the two teams.
Round 4 2008 saw Sydney 16.11 (107) beat West Coast 5.15 (45) at ANZ Stadium. Although this game wasn't the traditional low scoring heart stopper (Sydney won by 62 points, its biggest win over the Eagles since 2000), it did have its fair share of controversy. Swans player, Barry Hall
knocked out West Coast's Brent Staker
, which made headlines worldwide.
However in Round 11 another epic took place at Subiaco Oval
with a thrilling 5-point win to the Swans, with Jude Bolton
kicking the winning goal with just 90 seconds left.
2008, Round 11, Subiaco Oval
2009, Round 5, ANZ Stadium
Overall of the 40 games played between the two teams Sydney have won 21, lost 19 and drawn 0.
, which is based on the ongoing sporting and political rivalry between the two states New South Wales
and Queensland
. Since the mid-1990s the two sides have played for the Alan Schwab Shield, named after the late AFL administrator who worked to establish the two sides in traditional rugby league
territory. Between them the two clubs have won four of the past eight Premierships.
In recent years, the Swans have dominated the Brisbane Lions, even during the Lions' halycon years. Since 2003, the Swans have won 9 of 12 games against the Lions, plus a draw in 2007. Round 3, 2009 saw the Swans finally fall to the Brisbane Lions
after five years of dominance. The Lions won by 33 points.
on the other side of Melbourne's Albert Park
Lake, not far from St Kilda's old home ground Junction Oval
. Because the Swans and the Saints used to be towards the bottom of the ladder on a regular basis after the Second World War up until St Kilda's move away from the Junction Oval
, clashes between both sides used to be dubbed "The Lake Premiership".
Memorable but controversial matches between the two teams included a 8.8 (56) draw in 2002 where the Swans let slip a one-point lead to force a draw, a 36-point win to the Swans in 2004 which ended the Saints' undefeated start to that season
, a 51-point win for St Kilda in the finals that year, a 43-point thrashing for St Kilda where the Swans' game plan was heavily criticised, and a 31-point win in a controversial preliminary final later that year where Swans captain Barry Hall
appeared to punch Saints defender Matt Maguire
but was let off on a lesser charge.
The trading of Adam Schneider
and Sean Dempster, as well as the team now being coached by the former assistant coach at Sydney, Ross Lyon
, plus the fact that ex-Saints Barry Hall
, Tony Lockett
and Peter Everitt
had played for the Swans, have led to a much stronger rivalry between the clubs, with matches being dubbed "Ross versus Roos" (from 2007 until 2010) by many commentators. For the record, Ross Lyon leads Paul Roos 5–2 in terms of head-to-head as of 27 March 2010. Sydney took the points in their two clashes in season 2011: first a 15-point win in Sydney in Round 22 and then a more convincing 23-point win in the elimination final at Etihad Stadium that not only ended the Saints' season but also handed them their first Saturday night loss at the venue since early 2003 (St Kilda had dominated the Saturday night timeslot at Docklands Stadium for more than eight years leading into the match).
Claims by St Kilda CEO Archie Fraser
against Craig Bolton, suggesting Bolton had "tunnelled" Saints captain Nick Riewoldt
, has led to outrage amongst Swans fans, and has also increased the rivalry between the two clubs.
loss to North Melbourne, Sydney has established a minor rivalry with the over recent history. The loss denied the Swans the chance to end the then longest premiership drought. The Swans 23 point lead and apparent winning lead mid-way through the second quarter further fuels the rivalry between the two teams as the Roos ran out eventual 43 point winners. The rivalry was further extended in 2000 when North Melbourne attempted to play "home" games in Sydney to further promote the game of Australian rules football
, which was deemed that the Kangaroos were trying to invade Sydney's "territory". A cumulation of close games, including a goal after the siren win by Daryn Cresswell in 2002, and immense and 100+ point winning margins, ensured the Swans' rivalry was maintained with the Kangaroos in recent years.
A clash in 2008 ended in a controversial draw, Sydney 8.16 (64) – Nth Melbourne 9.10 (64). Brett Kirk
believed he had kicked the winning goal with over a minute remaining but the ball was touched on the line by North's Michael Firrito
, ensuring a draw. Had the ball not been touched the Swans would have won by 5 points. Although Sydney had an extra player, Darren Jolly
who was supposed to come off for Jesse White, on the field who was directly involved in the play.
These two teams met in the first week of the 2008 finals
, with Sydney running out convincing 35-point winners in front of the lowest ever finals crowd in Sydney, in a rain-affected match. It was their first finals showdown since the 1996 AFL Grand Final
and Sydney's win extracted some revenge for the Grand Final loss 12 years prior. Their only clash in 2009 (Round 14, which the Swans won by 15 points to end a four-game losing streak) was aired into both the Sydney
and Brisbane markets rather than the live vs. match which was a high-rating television match around the rest of the country
.
In 2010 the Swans beat the Kangaroos in Melbourne
for the first time in more than a decade. In the second match, Swans ruckman Mike Pyke had a Goal of the Year contender disallowed as replays showed it had hit the post.
In 2011 the Swans won a thriller at Etihad Stadium by one point. It was the Swans' fifth-straight win over the Kangaroos, dating back to Round 6, 2007.
1: Relocated to Sydney
²: Six rounds into the 2005 season, Stuart Maxfield ended his playing career due to chronic injury. Six players rotated as captain throughout the rest of the season: Brett Kirk
(Rounds 7, 8, 19 and 20), Leo Barry
(Rounds 9, 10, 21 and 22), Barry Hall
(Rounds 11, 12 and the entire finals series), Ben Mathews
(Rounds 13 and 14), Adam Goodes
(Rounds 15 and 16) and Jude Bolton
(Rounds 17 and 18).
winners (14) than any other club.
CEOs:
The Sydney Swans are sponsored by radio station Triple M
which broadcasts all of its games, including finals, live. Occasionally, 702 ABC Sydney
may cover Swans matches if they are played on a Saturday afternoon, regardless of where they are playing. If they play in Sydney during that time schedule, appropriately 702 ABC Sydney will cover the match.
In 2008 Network Ten
broadcasted all Swans games played in Melbourne and outside of New South Wales live, but on a half-hour delay when played in Sydney. Occasionally, the Seven Network
may broadcast Swans games, mainly on Sunday afternoons, live. Most of their games however are broadcast by Fox Sports.
Australian rules football
Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
club which plays in the Australian Football League
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
(AFL). The club is based in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
. The club, founded in 1874, was known as the South Melbourne Football Club until it relocated to Sydney in 1982 to become the Sydney Swans. Sydney was the first club in the competition to be based outside of Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
. The Swans play most home games at the Sydney Cricket Ground
Sydney Cricket Ground
The Sydney Cricket Ground is a sports stadium in Sydney in Australia. It is used for Australian football, Test cricket, One Day International cricket, some rugby league and rugby union matches and is the home ground for the New South Wales Blues cricket team and the Sydney Swans of the Australian...
, while larger games are played at ANZ Stadium.
Since 1995, the Sydney Swans are the only club not to have missed the finals in consecutive seasons, and have made the finals more years than any other club in the same time, only missing the finals in 2000, 2002 and 2009.
South Melbourne history
Origins: 1874–1876
The inauguration date of the club is officially 19 June 1874, but it only adopted the name "South Melbourne Football Club" four weeks later, on 15 July. The club represented the Melbourne suburb of South MelbourneSouth Melbourne, Victoria
South Melbourne is an inner city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 2 km south from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area are the Cities of Port Phillip and Melbourne...
, one of the city's oldest. In 1880 it absorbed the Albert Park
Albert Park Football Club
Albert Park Football Club is an Australian rules football club located 3 km south of Melbourne in the suburb of Albert Park.Originally affiliated with the VFA during the 19th century.The club colours are red and white....
club (one of the VFA's foundation senior clubs), and by 1890 it had replaced the original blue and white with the now familiar red and white of the South Melbourne coat of arms.
Nicknamed the “Southerners”, the team were more colourfully known as the “Bloods", in reference to the bright red sash on their white jumpers (the sash was replaced with the current red “V” in 1932). The colorful epithet the “Bloodstained Angels” was also in use. The “Bloodstained Angels” epithet proved prophetic when South Melbourne played in the 1945 "Bloodbath" Grand Final against Carlton, a game legendary for its brutal violence which saw many of the Swans' players jumpers stained with their own or the opposition’s blood (from the book "The Blood Stained Angels", a history of the South Melbourne Football Club). The 1945 Grand Final saw 10 players reported and suspended for a total of 69 games. The club was based at Lake Oval
Lake Oval
The Lake Oval was an Australian rules football and cricket stadium located in Albert Park, Victoria. It was the home of the South Melbourne Football Club from 1878 until their relocation to Sydney in 1982 , and also of the South Melbourne Cricket Club...
, also home of the South Melbourne Cricket Club.
VFA era: 1877–1896
A junior foundation club of the VFA, South Melbourne played in the Victorian Football Association from 1877 until 1896. During this period, South Melbourne were particularly successful winning five VFA premierships, including a 'three-in-a-row'. These came in 1881, 1885, and 1888-89-90. South Melbourne were also VFA runners-up in 1880, 1883, 1886 and 1896.At the end of the 1896 season, Collingwood
Collingwood Football Club
The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
and South Melbourne finished exactly equal in all respects at the top of the VFA's premiership ladder. This was the first time this had occurred in VFA history. The VFA determined that an elimination match should take place to decide the season's premiership on 3 October 1896 at the East Melbourne Cricket Ground
East Melbourne Cricket Ground
The East Melbourne Cricket Ground was a sports venue located at the corner of Wellington Parade and Jolimont Parade, in East Melbourne, Victoria, Australia...
.
Collingwood won the match, six goals to five, in front of an estimated crowd of 29,000. Even though this victory brought Collingwood a premiership, it is uncertain whether the match itself was promoted as a "Premiership Match" or as a "Grand Final" at the time.
This Grand Final would be the last match South Melbourne would play in the VFA, as the following season they would be one of eight founding clubs forming the breakaway Victorian Football League
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
. The other clubs were St Kilda Football Club, Essendon Football Club
Essendon Football Club
The Essendon Football Club, nicknamed The Bombers, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
, Fitzroy Football Club
Fitzroy Football Club
The Fitzroy Football Club, formerly nicknamed The Lions, is an Australian rules football club formed in 1883 to represent the inner Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy, Victoria and was a foundation member club of the Victorian Football League on its inception in 1897...
, Melbourne Football Club
Melbourne Football Club
The Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed The Demons, is an Australian rules football club playing in the Australian Football League , based in Melbourne, Victoria....
, Geelong Football Club
Geelong Football Club
The Geelong Football Club, nicknamed The Cats, is a professional Australian rules football club, named after and based in the city of Geelong, playing in the Australian Football League . The club has been the VFL/AFL premiers nine times, with a record equalling 3 in the AFL era. Geelong has also...
, Carlton Football Club
Carlton Football Club
The Carlton Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne, Victoria. The club competes in the Australian Football League, and was one of the eight founding members of that competition in 1897...
and Collingwood Football Club
Collingwood Football Club
The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
.
VFL entry: 1897–1909
South Melbourne was one of the original founding clubs of the Victorian Football LeagueAustralian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
that was formed in 1897.
Premiership success: 1909–1945
The club had early success and won three VFL premierships in 1909, 1918 and 1933. The club was at its most successful in the 1930s, when key recruits from both Victoria and interstate led to a string of appearances in the finals, including 4 successive grand final appearances from 1933 to 1936, albeit with only one premiership in 1933. On Grand Final eve, 1935, as the Swans prepared to take on Collingwood, star full-forward Bob Pratt was clipped by a truck moments after stepping off a tram and subsequently missed the match for South. Ironically, the truck driver was a South Melbourne supporter.It was during this period that the team became known as the Swans, the nickname having been given courtesy of the number of West Australians in the team (Swans being the state emblem of WA). The name stuck, partially due to the association with nearby Albert Park and Lake
Albert Park and Lake
Albert Park and Albert Park Lake are situated in the City of Port Phillip, Victoria, Australia, 3 km south of the Melbourne CBD....
, also known for its white swan
Swan
Swans, genus Cygnus, are birds of the family Anatidae, which also includes geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe Cygnini. Sometimes, they are considered a distinct subfamily, Cygninae...
s (ironically there are no longer any non-native white swans and only black, indigenous swans in the lake).
After several years with only limited success, South Melbourne next reached the grand final in 1945. The match, played against Carlton, was to become known as "the Bloodbath", courtesy of the brawl that overshadowed the match, with a total of 9 players being reported by the umpires. Carlton won the match by 28 points, and from then on, South Melbourne struggled.
Struggling times: 1946–1981
In the following years, South Melbourne consistently struggled as their inner-city recruiting area largely emptied. The club missed the finals in 1946 and continued to fall so that by 1950 they were second-last on the ladder. Though they temporarily bounced back and nearly made the finals in 1952, in the following seventeen years South Melbourne did not finish above eighth position (though in 1953 and 1965 they won as many games as they lost). By the 1960s it was clear that South Melbourne's financial resources would not be capable of allowing them to compete in the growing market for country and interstate players, and their own local zone was never strong enough to compensate for this.Under the legendary Norm Smith
Norm Smith
Norman Walter "Norm" Smith was an Australian rules football player and coach in the Victorian Football League. After 200 games as a player with Melbourne and Fitzroy, Smith began a twenty year coaching career, including a fifteen year stint at Melbourne...
, South Melbourne finally improved substantially in 1970 with a fourth place. However, having probably the worst country zone in the league and a poor metropolitan zone meant their 1970 joy was short-lived. Between Round 7, 1972 and Round 13, 1973, they lost 29 consecutive games. There was a brief glimmer of hope when South Melbourne made the finals in 1977 finishing 5th under coach Ian Stewart, but losing the Elimination final at VFL Park to Richmond Football Club
Richmond Football Club
The Richmond Football Club, nicknamed The Tigers, is an Australian rules football club which competes in the Australian Football League. Richmond shares healthy rivalries with Carlton, Collingwood and Essendon. After winning five premierships between 1967 and 1980, the club hit the depths in 1990,...
by 34 points. The same year Graeme Teasdale, who had moved from full-forward to the ruck won the Brownlow Medal
Brownlow Medal
The Chas Brownlow Trophy, better known as the Brownlow Medal , is awarded to the "fairest and best" player in the Australian Football League during the regular season as determined by votes cast by the officiating field umpires after each game...
. By the end of the 1970s South Melbourne had massive debts after struggling for so long and, despite strong supporter opposition, in the early 1980s they were given the "choice" by the VFL of relocation to Sydney or oblivion.
The Swans: 1982–1987
| 1982 Escort Championships Final | G | B | Total |
| 13 | 12 | 90 | |
| 8 | 10 | 58 | |
| Venue: Waverley Park Waverley Park Waverley Park was an Australian rules football stadium in Mulgrave, Victoria, Australia. For most of its history, its purpose was as a neutral venue and used by all Victorian based Victorian Football League/Australian Football League clubs. However, during the 1990s it became the home ground of... |
Crowd: 20,028 | ||
The Swans moved to Sydney (and the SCG) in 1982 as part of the VFL's attempts to broaden its appeal, a move which ultimately culminated in its extension into a national competition, the AFL.
The move to Sydney is the subject of the Weddings Parties Anything
Weddings Parties Anything
Weddings Parties Anything were an Australian folk rock band formed in 1984 in Melbourne and continuing until 1998. Their name came from The Clash song and musicologist Billy Pinnell described their first album as the best Australian rock debut since Skyhooks' Living in the '70s.-Formation and...
song 'The Swans Return'.
On 31 July 1985, for what was thought to be $6.3 million, Dr. Geoffrey Edelsten
Geoffrey Edelsten
Geoffrey Walter Edelsten is an Australian medical entrepreneur. He was the first private owner of a major Australian football team when he bought the Sydney Swans Football Club in 1985. Edelsten was formerly a general practitioner, but was deregistered in New South Wales in 1988 and also in...
"bought" the Swans. In reality it was $2.9 million in cash with funding and other payments spread over five years. Edelsten resigned as chairman in less than twelve months, but had already made his mark. He immediately snapped up former Geelong coach Tom Hafey
Tom Hafey
Thomas Stanley Raymond Hafey is a former Australian rules football Victorian Football League player and coach. Hafey played for Richmond between 1953 and 1958, and coached four clubs—Richmond, Collingwood, Geelong and Sydney—between 1966 and 1988, leading teams to a total of four premierships...
. Hafey, in turn, used his knowledge of Geelong’s contracts to snap up David Bolton
David Bolton (Australian footballer)
David Bolton is a former Australian rules footballer who played for Geelong and Sydney in the Victorian/Australian Football League ....
, Bernard Toohey
Bernard Toohey
Bernard Toohey is a former Australian rules footballer who played during the 1980s and early 1990s as a defender.Toohey started his career in 1981 with the Geelong Football Club, with whom he played for five years. He then moved north to Sydney and earned All-Australian selection in 1987...
and Greg Williams, who would all form a key part of the Sydney side, at a league-determined total fee of $240,000 (less than the $500,000 Geelong demanded, and even the $300,000 Sydney offered). The likes of Gerard Healy
Gerard Healy
Gerard Healy is a former Australian rules footballer and commentator.Healy attended St Bede's College in Mentone, where he was the Senior Football Captain.-Melbourne Demons:...
, Merv Neagle
Merv Neagle
Merv Neagle is a former Australian rules footballer who played with Essendon and Sydney in the VFL/AFL.A centreman, Neagle was a member of Essendon's 1984 premiership side. He finished second in the 1980 Brownlow Medal and equal fifth the following season.He is the father of Essendon player Jay...
and Paul Morwood
Paul Morwood
Paul Morwood is a former Australian rules footballer in the Victorian Football League.-South Melbourne/Sydney:He started his career with South Melbourne .-St Kilda:...
were also poached from other clubs, and failed approaches were made to Simon Madden
Simon Madden
Simon Madden was an Australian rules footballer for the Essendon Football Club from 1974 until 1992. He was also president of the AFL Players Association from 1985 until 1989....
, Terry Daniher
Terry Daniher
Terrence "Terry" John Daniher is a former Australian rules footballer who played with the South Melbourne and Essendon Football Clubs in the Australian Football League . Terry was also an Assistant Coach to the Essendon, Collingwood, St Kilda and Carlton Football Clubs. Terry's brothers, Neale,...
, Andrew Bews
Andrew Bews
Andrew Bews is a former Australian rules footballer who played 282 VFL/AFL games during the 1980s and 90s.Debuting in 1981 after being recruited from North Geelong, Bews played over 200 games for Geelong. A tagger, he earned All Australian selection in 1987.Bews moved to Brisbane in 1994 to play...
and Maurice Rioli
Maurice Rioli
Maurice Rioli was an Australian rules football player best known for his time spent with the Richmond Football Club in the Victorian Football League...
.
During the Edelsten years, the Swans were seen by the Sydney public as a flamboyant club, typified by the style of its spearhead, Warwick Capper
Warwick Capper
Warwick Capper is a retired high profile professional Australian rules football full-forward who played with the Sydney Swans with a short stint at the Brisbane Bears in the VFL ....
, his long bright blond mullet and bright pink boots made him unmissable on the field and his pink Lamborghini, penchant for fashion models and eccentricity made him notorious off the field – all somewhat fashionable in the 1980s
1980s in fashion
In the 1970s, the silhouette of fashion tended to be characterized by close fitting clothes on top with wider, looser clothes on the bottom. This trend completely reversed itself in the early 1980s as both men and women began to wear looser shirts and tight, close-fitting trousers.Men wore power...
. During Capper's peak years, the Swans had made successive finals appearances for the first time since relocating. His consistently spectacular aerial exploits earned him consecutive Mark of the Year
Mark of the Year
The annual Mark of the Year competition is a sporting award that celebrates each season's best mark...
awards while his goalkicking efforts (amassing 103 goals in 1987) made him runner up in the Coleman Medal two years running. The Swans' successive finals appearances saw crowds during this time peak at an average of around 25,000 per game. Edelsten also introduced the 'Swanettes', a cheerleading group that were unique for an AFL club. The Swanettes did not get much performance time, owing to the short intervals between quarters of play in the AFL and the lack of space in which they might perform while other activities take place on the field. The Swanettes were soon discontinued, and no AFL club has had cheerleaders since then.
In 1987, the Swans scored 201 points against the West Coast Eagles
West Coast Eagles
The West Coast Eagles are an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League. The club is based in Perth, Western Australia. The club was founded in 1986 and played its first games in the 1987 season. Its current home ground is Subiaco Oval...
, and the following week scored 236 points against the Essendon Football Club
Essendon Football Club
The Essendon Football Club, nicknamed The Bombers, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
. Both games were at the SCG. The Swans are the only team to have scored two double-tons (200-plus scores) in a row.
Dark times: 1988–1994
The club's form was to slump in the following year.Losses were in the millions. A group of financial backers including Mike Willessee, Basil Sellers, Peter Weinert and Craig Kimberley purchased the licence and bankrolled the club until 1993, when the AFL stepped in.
Morale at the side plummeted as players were asked to take pay cuts. Legendary coach Tom Hafey
Tom Hafey
Thomas Stanley Raymond Hafey is a former Australian rules football Victorian Football League player and coach. Hafey played for Richmond between 1953 and 1958, and coached four clubs—Richmond, Collingwood, Geelong and Sydney—between 1966 and 1988, leading teams to a total of four premierships...
was sacked by the club in 1988 after a player-led rebellion at his tough training methods (unusual in the semi-professional days of that era).
Capper was sold to the Brisbane Bears for $400,000 in a desperate attempt to improve the club’s finances. Instead, it only led to disastrous on-field performances. Instead of a 100-goal-a-season forward, Sydney’s goalkicking was led by defender Bernard Toohey
Bernard Toohey
Bernard Toohey is a former Australian rules footballer who played during the 1980s and early 1990s as a defender.Toohey started his career in 1981 with the Geelong Football Club, with whom he played for five years. He then moved north to Sydney and earned All-Australian selection in 1987...
with 29 in 1989, then Jim West with 34 in 1990. Players left the club in droves, including Brownlow Medalist Greg Williams, Bernard Toohey
Bernard Toohey
Bernard Toohey is a former Australian rules footballer who played during the 1980s and early 1990s as a defender.Toohey started his career in 1981 with the Geelong Football Club, with whom he played for five years. He then moved north to Sydney and earned All-Australian selection in 1987...
and Barry Mitchell
Barry Mitchell (footballer)
Barry Mitchell is a former Australian rules footballer who played with the Sydney Swans, Carlton and Collingwood in the Australian Football League ....
. The careers of stars such as Dennis Carroll
Dennis Carroll
Dennis Carroll is a former Australian rules footballer who played with the Sydney Football Club in the Victoria Football League ....
, David Bolton
David Bolton (Australian footballer)
David Bolton is a former Australian rules footballer who played for Geelong and Sydney in the Victorian/Australian Football League ....
, Ian Roberts
Ian Roberts (footballer)
Ian Roberts is a former Australian rules footballer in the Victorian Football League for the Sydney Swans.Roberts was a supporter of VFL club South Melbourne as a child, and was later recruited to Souths from Frankston...
, Tony Morwood
Tony Morwood
Tony Morwood is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Sydney Swans.He was usually seen in the half forward flank and it was in that position that he was named in the Swan's 'Team of the Century'....
and David Murphy
David Murphy (Australian rules footballer)
David Murphy is a former Australian rules footballer who played with the Sydney Football Club in the Australian Football League ....
came to an end, while promising young players like Jamie Lawson
Jamie Lawson
Jamie Lawson is a former Australian rules footballer who played with the Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League during the early 1990s....
, Robert Teal and Paul Bryce
Paul Bryce
Paul Bryce is a former Australian rules footballer who played with North Melbourne, Melbourne and the Sydney Swans in the Victorian/Australian Football League .Bryce was a defender but was also used in the ruck and up forward...
had their careers cut short by injury.
Attendances consistently dropped below 10,000 when the team performed poorly between 1990 and 1994. The side won the wooden spoon in 1992, 1993 and 1994.
The AFL stepped in to save the Swans, offering substantial monetary and management support. The club survived, despite strong rumours in 1992 that it would merge with the Brisbane Bears
Brisbane Bears
The Brisbane Football Club, formerly nicknamed The Bears was an Australian rules football club and the first Queensland-based club in the Victorian Football League . The club played its first match in 1987, but struggled on and off the field until it made the finals for the first time in 1995...
or fold altogether. With draft and salary cap concessions in the early 1990s and a series of notable recruits, the team fielded a competitive team after the early part of the decade. During this time, the side was largely held together by two inspirational skippers, both from the Wagga Wagga region of country New South Wales, Dennis Carroll
Dennis Carroll
Dennis Carroll is a former Australian rules footballer who played with the Sydney Football Club in the Victoria Football League ....
and later the courageous captain Paul Kelly
Paul Kelly (footballer)
Paul Kelly is a former Australian rules footballer, winner of the Brownlow Medal and captain of the Sydney Swans for ten seasons. He was and still is known to Swans fans everywhere as "Captain Courageous"....
.
Desperate to hang on, the club was keen to enlist the biggest names and identities in the AFL, and recruited legendary coach Ron Barassi
Ron Barassi
Ronald Dale Barassi, Jr AM is a former Australian rules football player and coach. During a long and decorated career, Barassi has been one of the most important figures in the history of Australian football. His father, Ron Barassi, Sr., was the first Australian footballer killed at Tobruk during...
who helped save the club from extinction while serving them as coach from Round 7, 1993 to 1995. At roughly the same time, Hawthorn legend Dermott Brereton
Dermott Brereton
Dermott Hugh Brereton is a former Australian rules football player in the Australian Football League, regarded as one of the greatest players of his generation. Of Irish descent , he is known for his aggressive style of play. Brereton kicked 464 goals and played in five Premierships for during...
was also recruited, albeit with little on-field impact. On a much brighter side for the Swans, their captain Paul Kelly won the League's highest individual honour, the Brownlow Medal
Brownlow Medal
The Chas Brownlow Trophy, better known as the Brownlow Medal , is awarded to the "fairest and best" player in the Australian Football League during the regular season as determined by votes cast by the officiating field umpires after each game...
, in 1995.
Tony Lockett and Grand Final return: 1995–2001
A big coup for the club was recruitment of St Kilda Football Club champion Tony "Plugger" LockettTony Lockett
Anthony Howard "Tony" Lockett is a former Australian rules football player. Lockett is the highest goal scorer in the history of the VFL/AFL with 1,360 goals in a career of 281 games, that commenced in 1983 with the St Kilda Football Club, and finished in 2002 with the Sydney Swans...
in 1995. Lockett became a cult figure in Sydney, with an instant impact and along with the Super League war
Super League war
The Super League war is the common name given to the corporate dispute that was fought in and out of court during the mid-1990s between the Rupert Murdoch and News Corporation-backed Super League and the Kerry Packer and Optus Vision-backed Australian Rugby League organisations over broadcasting...
in the rival rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
football code in Australia, helped the Swans to pull in larger crowds.
1995 would be Barassi's last year in charge. The Swans won 8 games- as much as they did in the previous three years combined- and finished with a percentage of over 100 (in fact, they have managed such consistently ever since). They were also one of only two teams to defeat the all-conquering Carlton side of that year. Swans great Paul Kelly also won the Brownlow Medal
Brownlow Medal
The Chas Brownlow Trophy, better known as the Brownlow Medal , is awarded to the "fairest and best" player in the Australian Football League during the regular season as determined by votes cast by the officiating field umpires after each game...
that year. Barassi left an improving team, a club in a much better state than he found them.
| 1996 AFL Home & Away Season 1996 AFL season Results and statistics for the Australian Football League season of 1996.See List of Australian Football League premiers for a complete list.-Lighting Premiership:... |
W | L | D | Total | % | ||||
| Sydney Swans | 16 | 5 | 1 | 66 | 123.9 | ||||
| Minor Premiers | |||||||||
Former Hawthorn player Rodney Eade took over the reins in 1996 and after a slow start (they lost their first two games of the season), turned the club around into a competitive force. The Swans ended the minor round on top of the premiership table with 16 wins, 5 losses, and 1 draw. In the finals, the Swans won one of the most thrilling AFL preliminary finals in history after Plugger Lockett kicked a behind after the siren to win the game. The Swans lost the grand final to , which had been their first appearance in a grand final since 1945. The game was played in front of 93,102 at the MCG
McG
Joseph McGinty Nichol , better known as McG, is an American director and producer of film and television, as well as a former record producer....
.
The Swans then made the finals for four of the next five full years that Rodney Eade was in charge of. In 1998 they finished 3rd on the AFL ladder; despite beating in their first final the Swans were then beaten by eventual premiers in the semi-final at the SCG
Sydney Cricket Ground
The Sydney Cricket Ground is a sports stadium in Sydney in Australia. It is used for Australian football, Test cricket, One Day International cricket, some rugby league and rugby union matches and is the home ground for the New South Wales Blues cricket team and the Sydney Swans of the Australian...
.
Following the 1998 season, it was revealed the Sydney Swans
Sydney Swans
The Sydney Swans Football Club is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based in Sydney, New South Wales. The club, founded in 1874, was known as the South Melbourne Football Club until it relocated to Sydney in 1982 to become the Sydney...
had breached the League's salary cap, as punishment, it was banned from the first round of the AFL Draft
AFL Draft
The AFL Draft is the annual draft of new unsigned players by Australian rules football teams that participate in the main competition of that sport, the Australian Football League.-History:...
for three years between 1999–2001. 1999 was a largely uneventful season for the club, the only real highlight being Tony Lockett
Tony Lockett
Anthony Howard "Tony" Lockett is a former Australian rules football player. Lockett is the highest goal scorer in the history of the VFL/AFL with 1,360 goals in a career of 281 games, that commenced in 1983 with the St Kilda Football Club, and finished in 2002 with the Sydney Swans...
kicking his record-breaking 1300th goal against in Round 10. The 1999 season ended with a 69-point mauling at the hands of minor premiers .
After missing the finals in 2000, the Swans rebounded to finish 7th in 2001
2001 AFL season
Results and statistics for the Australian Football League season of 2001.See List of Australian Football League premiers for a complete list.-National Cup:Port Adelaide defeated Brisbane Lions 17.9 to 3.8 in the Final....
, but were beaten by by 55 points in their elimination final at Colonial Stadium.
Rebuilding and finals return: 2002–2004
Former Swans favourite son Paul Roos was appointed coach part-way through the 2002 season after it became obvious that Rodney EadeRodney Eade
Rodney "Rocket" Eade is a former Australian rules footballer and the former coach of the Sydney Swans and Western Bulldogs in the Australian Football League...
was not performing as coach. Eade was punted after Round 12, when Roos took over. He had an immediate impact, winning six of the remaining 10 games that year, and continuing a record as a successful coach with the Swans for the eight full seasons that would follow. 2002 saw the Swans return to the first round of the AFL Draft following its three-year ban for breaching the salary cap in 1998. This is believed to have played a factor in Sydney's poor season.
A new home ground in ANZ Stadium (then known as Telstra Stadium) provided increased capacity over the SCG. The Swans' first game played at the Stadium in Round 9, 2002 attracted 54,169 spectators. The Sydney Swans v Collingwood
Collingwood Football Club
The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
match on 23 August 2003 set an attendance record for the largest crowd to watch an AFL game outside of Victoria with an official attendance of 72,393 and was the largest home and away AFL crowd at any stadium for 2003. A preliminary final against the Brisbane Lions
Brisbane Lions
The Brisbane Lions is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based in Brisbane, Queensland. The club was formed from the merger of the Brisbane Bears and the Fitzroy Lions in 1996...
in 2003 attracted 71,019 people.
Sydney was able to recruit another St Kilda export in the Lockett mould, Barry Hall
Barry Hall
Barry Hall is a former Australian rules footballer. Hall is considered to be one of the best forwards of the modern era, being named All-Australian, leading his club's goalkicking on nine occasions and captaining the Sydney Swans to their 2005 AFL Grand Final victory...
. Though there were obvious parallels to the signing of Lockett (a powerful, tough forward from St Kilda with questions over his discipline and attitude) which left Hall with much to live up to. He flourished in the new surrounds and eventually became a cult figure and club leader in his own right.
As the new century turned, Sydney implemented a policy of giving up high order draft picks in exchange for players who struggled at other clubs. It was during this era that the Swans picked up the likes of Paul Williams
Paul Williams (Australian rules footballer)
Paul Williams is a former Australian rules footballer with both Collingwood and Sydney. Since retiring from playing, he has been an assistant coach, including a bried period as caretaker coach of the Western Bulldogs towards the end of the 2011 season...
, Barry Hall
Barry Hall
Barry Hall is a former Australian rules footballer. Hall is considered to be one of the best forwards of the modern era, being named All-Australian, leading his club's goalkicking on nine occasions and captaining the Sydney Swans to their 2005 AFL Grand Final victory...
, Craig Bolton
Craig Bolton
Craig Bolton is an Australian rules footballer who has played with the Brisbane Lions and the Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League . He often plays at full back or on the half back flank...
, Darren Jolly
Darren Jolly
Darren Jolly is a professional Australian rules football player currently playing for the Collingwood Football Club in the Australian Football League . Jolly has previously played for Melbourne, the Sydney Swans...
, Ted Richards
Ted Richards
Ted Richards is an Australian rules footballer in the Australian Football League .He was recruited as the number 27 draft pick in the 2000 AFL Draft from Xavier College...
, Peter Everitt
Peter Everitt
Peter "Spida" Everitt is a former Australian rules footballer who played for St Kilda, Hawthorn Hawks and the Sydney Swans in the AFL. He made his debut for St Kilda in 1993 and in 2003 began playing for Hawthorn. Everitt was traded to the Sydney Swans at the end of 2006. Following the club's 2008...
, Martin Mattner
Martin Mattner
Martin Mattner is an Australian rules football who plays for the Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League. He was traded to Sydney from the Adelaide Crows in October 2007 in exchange for Draft pick number 28....
, Rhyce Shaw
Rhyce Shaw
Rhyce Shaw is an Australian rules footballer in the Australian Football League.-Career:Shaw, son of former Collingwood captain Ray was drafted to Collingwood in the 1999 AFL Draft under the father-son rule at pick no.18...
, Shane Mumford
Shane Mumford
Shane Mumford is an Australian rules footballer who played for the Geelong Football Club in the Australian Football League , until he was traded to the Sydney Swans at the end of 2009.-Early career:...
, Ben McGlynn
Ben McGlynn
Ben McGlynn is an Australian rules football player playing for the Sydney Swans.A small onballer, McGlynn was picked late by Hawthorn in the 2006 rookie draft after impressing at the Box Hill Hawks the VFL affiliated club with the Hawks...
and Mitch Morton
Mitch Morton
Mitch Morton is an Australian rules football player for the Sydney Swans in the AFL.-Career:Morton was initially drafted by the West Coast Eagles under the father-son rule as he is the son of Noel Morton, who played 171 WAFL games for Claremont.At the end of the 2007 season, West Coast traded...
, amongst others, and giving up higher order draft picks meant the Swans missed out on the likes of Daniel Motlop
Daniel Motlop
Daniel Motlop is an Indigenous Australian rules footballer who played for the North Melbourne Football Club and Port Adelaide Football Club in the Australian Football League.- Kangaroos career :...
, Nick Dal Santo
Nick Dal Santo
Nick Dal Santo is an Australian rules footballer for the St Kilda Football Club in the Australian Football League .-Early career:...
, James Kelly, Courtenay Dempsey
Courtenay Dempsey
Courtenay Dempsey is a professional Australian rules footballer for the Essendon Football Club of the Australian Football League.-Early life:...
and Sam Lonergan
Sam Lonergan
Sam Lonergan , is a player with the Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League. He was drafted from the Lauderdale Bombers, via the Tassie Mariners U18s and the Tasmanian Devils, with selection 50 in the 2005 Draft....
who went to , , and the latter two to respectively. This policy is said to have paid off in the Roos era, as they implemented a strict culture of discipline at the club.
Premiership glory: 2005
Sydney played the AFL Grand FinalAFL Grand Final
The AFL Grand Final is an annual Australian rules football match, traditionally held on the final Saturday in September at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Australia to determine the Australian Football League premiership champions for that year...
on 24 September 2005 against the West Coast Eagles
West Coast Eagles
The West Coast Eagles are an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League. The club is based in Perth, Western Australia. The club was founded in 1986 and played its first games in the 1987 season. Its current home ground is Subiaco Oval...
, defeating them by four points, final score 8.10 (58) to West Coast's 7.12 (54). In the last few minutes, the Sydney defence held strong, with Leo Barry
Leo Barry
Leo Barry is a retired Australian rules footballer in the AFL with the Sydney Swans.Originally from Deniliquin, New South Wales, he attended St Ignatius' College, Riverview before being drafted as a zone selection in the 1994 National Draft and making his debut in the final round of the 1995...
marking the ball just before the siren to stop the Eagles' final desperate shot at goal. The premiership was the Swans' first in 72 years and their first since being based in Sydney. It was also the fifth premiership in succession to be won by a team from outside Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
.
| 2005 AFL Grand Final 2005 AFL Grand Final The 2005 AFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Sydney Swans and West Coast Eagles, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 24 September 2005. It was the 109th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League/Australian Football League, staged to... |
G | B | Total |
| Sydney Swans | 8 | 10 | 58 |
| West Coast Eagles West Coast Eagles The West Coast Eagles are an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League. The club is based in Perth, Western Australia. The club was founded in 1986 and played its first games in the 1987 season. Its current home ground is Subiaco Oval... |
7 | 12 | 54 |
| Venue: Melbourne Cricket Ground Melbourne Cricket Ground The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light... |
Crowd: 91,898 | ||
In 2005, the Swans came under enormous public scrutiny, even from AFL commissioner Andrew Demetriou
Andrew Demetriou
Andrew Demetriou is the chief executive officer of the Australian Football League and a former Australian rules footballer. He is the youngest son of Greek-Cypriot immigrants and, before becoming a VFL player, he worked in the dental import industry...
for their unorthodox, "boring" defense-oriented tactics that included tightly controlling the tempo of the game and starving the opposition of possession (in fact, seven teams that season had their lowest possession total whilst playing against the Swans). The coach Paul Roos
Paul Roos (Australian rules footballer)
Paul Roos is a former Australian rules football player and coach in the VFL and Australian Football League.Playing the majority of his career with Fitzroy, Roos was one of the teams greats, captaining the side for a long time and was acknowledged as its best player for several seasons, being named...
maintained that playing contested football was the style used by all recent premiership winning teams, and felt that it was ironic that the much criticised strategy proved ultimately successful.
On Friday, 30 September 2005 a ticker tape parade down Sydney's George Street
George Street, Sydney
George Street is one of Sydney's most notable city streets. There are more high rise buildings and more ASX 100 companies located here than anywhere else in Australia, and is well known for being busy around-the-clock...
was held in honour of the Swans' achievements, which ended with a rally at Town Hall, where Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore
Clover Moore
Clover Moore , is an Australian politician, the Lord Mayor of the City of Sydney and an independent member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, representing the electorate of Sydney. Moore is the first publicly elected female Lord Mayor of Sydney. Prior to the 2007 NSW state election, she...
presented the team with the key to the city. The flag of the Swans also flew on top of the Sydney Harbour Bridge
Sydney Harbour Bridge
The Sydney Harbour Bridge is a steel through arch bridge across Sydney Harbour that carries rail, vehicular, bicycle and pedestrian traffic between the Sydney central business district and the North Shore. The dramatic view of the bridge, the harbour, and the nearby Sydney Opera House is an iconic...
during the week; the same flag was later given to WA
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
premier Geoff Gallop
Geoff Gallop
Geoffrey Ian Gallop, AC is an Australian academic and former politician. He was the Premier of Western Australia from 2001 to 2006. He currently resides in Sydney.-Early life and education:...
to fly on top of the state legislature in Perth as part of the friendly wager between Gallop and NSW
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
premier Morris Iemma
Morris Iemma
Morris Iemma , is a former Australian politician and 40th Premier of New South Wales, succeeding Bob Carr after he resigned on 3 August 2005. Iemma led the Australian Labor Party to victory in the 2007 election before resigning as Premier on 5 September 2008, and as a Member of Parliament on 19...
.
Grand Final loss: 2006
The 2006 AFL Grand Final was contested between the Sydney Swans and West Coast Eagles at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on 30 September 2006. The West Coast Eagles avenged their 2005 Grand Final defeat by beating the Sydney Swans by one point, only the fourth one-point Grand Final margin in the competition's history.The rivalry between the Sydney Swans and West Coast Eagles has become one of the greatest rivalries in VFL/AFL history. The six games between the two sides (from the start of the 2005 finals to the 2006 Grand Final inclusive) were decided by a combined margin of 13 points. Four of those six games were finals.
Finals goal: 2007–2010
Sydney finished the 2007 home and away season in 7th place, and therefore advanced to the finals, where they met CollingwoodCollingwood Football Club
The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
at the MCG in an elimination final. Collingwood were always in control of the match by quarter time, Collingwood were out to a 31 point lead. Collingwood's lead was cut to five points, two minutes into the third quarter, but Collingwood went on to run out convincing winners by 38 points.
This was Sydney's earliest exit since 2002, when they failed to make the finals. The season was seen as somewhat a disappointment, as only victories against lesser teams saw them through to a 5th consecutive finals campaign. Within the 2007 trade week for the 2008 season premiership winning players such as Jude Bolton, Amon Buchanan and other key players were placed to be traded leading to changes for the Swans 2008 season.
The conclusion of the 2007 trade saw the loss of Adam Schneider
Adam Schneider
Adam Schneider is an Australian rules footballer playing for the St Kilda Football Club in the Australian Football League...
and Sean Dempster
Sean Dempster
Sean Dempster is an Australian rules football player from the state of Victoria playing for St Kilda Football Club in the Australian Football League . He has also played senior AFL football with the Sydney Swans.-Before AFL:...
to St Kilda, the delisting of Simon Phillips
Simon Phillips (footballer)
Simon "Flipper" Phillips is an Australian Football League player, originally drafted from the Sandringham Dragons part of the TAC Cup...
, Jonathan Simpkin and Luke Vogels
Luke Vogels
Luke Vogels was an Australian rules footballer in the Australian Football League.In 2004 he played as a member of the Terang/Mortlake Football Club winning the Maskel Medal and also the Premiership that same year....
, and the gain of Henry Playfair
Henry Playfair
Henry Playfair is an Australian rules footballer in the Australian Football League. Playfair grew up and around the town of Holbrook in the Riverina region of New South Wales.-Career:...
from Geelong
Geelong Football Club
The Geelong Football Club, nicknamed The Cats, is a professional Australian rules football club, named after and based in the city of Geelong, playing in the Australian Football League . The club has been the VFL/AFL premiers nine times, with a record equalling 3 in the AFL era. Geelong has also...
and Martin Mattner
Martin Mattner
Martin Mattner is an Australian rules football who plays for the Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League. He was traded to Sydney from the Adelaide Crows in October 2007 in exchange for Draft pick number 28....
from Adelaide.
The Swans spent the middle part of the 2008 season inside the top four, however a late form slump which yielded only three wins in the last nine rounds saw the Swans drop to sixth at the conclusion of the 2008 regular season. This earned them a home elimination final against (its first finals meeting since the 1996 AFL Grand Final
1996 AFL Grand Final
The 1996 AFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the North Melbourne Football Club and Sydney Swans, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 28 September 1996. It was the 100th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League/Australian Football...
) which the Swans won by 35 points. Unfortunately for the Swans their season ended with a disappointing loss to the Western Bulldogs
Western Bulldogs
The Western Bulldogs are an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based at the Whitten Oval in West Footscray, an inner-western suburb of Melbourne...
at the Melbourne Cricket Ground
Melbourne Cricket Ground
The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light...
the following Friday night.
2009 saw a L-W pattern follow for the first eight rounds before the Swans strung together consecutive wins for the first and only time in round nine when they thrashed Port Adelaide
Port Adelaide Football Club
The Port Adelaide Football Club is an Australian rules football club based in Alberton, South Australia, which plays in the Australian Football League and the South Australian National Football League...
at home. This had them at a 5–4 record at the conclusion of round nine, however only three more wins followed and the Swans missed the finals for the first time since 2002. Barry Hall
Barry Hall
Barry Hall is a former Australian rules footballer. Hall is considered to be one of the best forwards of the modern era, being named All-Australian, leading his club's goalkicking on nine occasions and captaining the Sydney Swans to their 2005 AFL Grand Final victory...
, Leo Barry
Leo Barry
Leo Barry is a retired Australian rules footballer in the AFL with the Sydney Swans.Originally from Deniliquin, New South Wales, he attended St Ignatius' College, Riverview before being drafted as a zone selection in the 1994 National Draft and making his debut in the final round of the 1995...
, Jared Crouch
Jared Crouch
Jared Crouch is a South Australian former Australian football player with the Sydney Swans of the AFL, who is colloquially known as “Crouchie” to Swans fans and media....
and Michael O'Loughlin
Michael O'Loughlin
Michael Kevin O'Loughlin is a former professional Australian rules footballer, who played his entire Australian Football League career with the Sydney Swans....
all left the club at season's end, signalling a new rebuilding period at the Swans.
In the 2009 off-season the Swans did compensate for the losses of those four players by picking up West Coast premiership ruckman Mark Seaby
Mark Seaby
Mark Seaby is a professional Australian rules footballer currently playing for the Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League.He is best known as a former premiership player with the West Coast Eagles.-Biography:...
as well as ex-Brisbane Lions
Brisbane Lions
The Brisbane Lions is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based in Brisbane, Queensland. The club was formed from the merger of the Brisbane Bears and the Fitzroy Lions in 1996...
triple-premiership player Daniel Bradshaw
Daniel Bradshaw
Daniel Mark Bradshaw is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Sydney Swans and the Brisbane Lions in the Australian Football League....
and rising ruckman Shane Mumford
Shane Mumford
Shane Mumford is an Australian rules footballer who played for the Geelong Football Club in the Australian Football League , until he was traded to the Sydney Swans at the end of 2009.-Early career:...
who did not play in Geelong's 2009 AFL Grand Final
2009 AFL Grand Final
The 2009 AFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the St Kilda Football Club and the Geelong Football Club at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on 26 September 2009...
triumph. Only the latter had played more games than Seaby and Bradshaw combined.
The 2010 season started with an eight-point loss to rivals St Kilda before a string of five consecutive wins took the Swans to the top of the ladder for the first time since round 1, 2005 at the conclusion of round six. Unfortunately the Swans would go into freefall, losing their next four games as well as ruckman Mumford for two weeks for an NRL
National Rugby League
The National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...
-style spear tackle on superstar Gary Ablett
Gary Ablett, Jr.
Gary Ablett, Jr. is a professional Australian rules football player and current captain of the Gold Coast Football Club in the Australian Football League ....
. The rot ended with a nine-point win over followed by a big win over at AAMI Stadium, making the Swans two-from-two at the venue in 2010. Losses to and followed before the Swans had big wins over and . Round 17 saw the Swans suffer its worst ever loss under Paul Roos with a 73-point hiding from which was also its first loss against them since 2006 and first against them in Melbourne since the 2000 season. Yet another loss to Geelong followed before the Swans comfortably defeated Hawthorn in round 19 at the SCG, maintaining its dominance over Hawthorn at home. This was followed up with a rare win over at Subiaco Oval
Subiaco Oval
Subiaco Oval , known colloquially as Subi, is the highest capacity sports stadium in Perth, Western Australia...
, the first win for the Swans over the Dockers at the venue since 1998, and first at the venue since 2008. The following week saw a win over the by 44 points, in what was Brett Kirk
Brett Kirk
Brett Kirk is a former Australian rules football player of the Sydney Swans, and is known colloquially as "Kirky", "Captain Kirk", during the 2005 AFL Finals Series, "Captain Blood" and by teammates as "Hippy". Kirk is a hard working and onfield leader who has played in a premiership with the...
and Paul Roos
Paul Roos (Australian rules footballer)
Paul Roos is a former Australian rules football player and coach in the VFL and Australian Football League.Playing the majority of his career with Fitzroy, Roos was one of the teams greats, captaining the side for a long time and was acknowledged as its best player for several seasons, being named...
' final regular season home game at the SCG (this is subject to whether the Swans gain a home final or not) and it was the Swans' first win over any top four side since defeating St Kilda in round 12, 2008. It also guaranteed the Swans a finals spot for 2010. The Swans wrapped up a home final with victory against the Brisbane Lions
Brisbane Lions
The Brisbane Lions is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based in Brisbane, Queensland. The club was formed from the merger of the Brisbane Bears and the Fitzroy Lions in 1996...
away at the Gabba where the Swans have enjoyed playing recently, with only two losses in the past eight years.
In the 2010 finals, they defeated by just five points in a sudden death elimination final at ANZ Stadium after the Swans fell behind during the third quarter. The Swans went down to the by 5 points – 11.11 77 to 10.12 72 in a semi final at the MCG
Melbourne Cricket Ground
The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light...
, seeing the culmination of club servants – coach Paul Roos and captain Brett Kirk
Brett Kirk
Brett Kirk is a former Australian rules football player of the Sydney Swans, and is known colloquially as "Kirky", "Captain Kirk", during the 2005 AFL Finals Series, "Captain Blood" and by teammates as "Hippy". Kirk is a hard working and onfield leader who has played in a premiership with the...
's memorable careers with the Swans.
Post-Roos era: 2011–present
Sydney has had a reasonable season so far in 2011, registering a draw in the opening round against before going on to beat and by 5 and 13 points respectively. However, the Swans would then go on to lose their next two matches, against and with a bye sandwiched in between, before rebounding with consecutive wins over the and . A huge loss to by 46 points followed, but the Swans would again rebound with a narrow 1-point victory over bitter rivals in Melbourne, which was followed by a huge win over the in Brisbane where the Swans have only lost twice since 2002. Their good form continued in Round 12 beating before losses followed in the next three matches, against , and (whom the Swans have only beaten twice since 2001). An easy win over the at Metricon StadiumCarrara Stadium
Carrara Stadium is a sporting venue on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia, located in the suburb of Carrara....
followed in Round 16, to snap a three-game losing streak, before costly losses to and saw them tumble to eighth on the ladder and in danger of missing the finals for only the third time since 2000. In Round 23 of the 2011 season, Sydney defied all odds and defeated the Geelong Cats at Skilled Stadium, Geelong's home ground, which had not been achieved by any team in four years. Sydney had not won there in 12 years. This win broke the longest ever home ground winning streak in the history of the AFL. Geelong would then go on to win the premiership.
Sydney qualified for this year's finals finishing 7th. They defeated at Docklands Stadium by 25 points, but then lost its semi-final showdown against 2008 premiers at the MCG
Melbourne Cricket Ground
The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light...
.
In recent times the Swans have lacked from quality top draft picks, this is due to them not finishing any lower than 12th since 1994. Unlike teams such as , , and the Brisbane Lions
Brisbane Lions
The Brisbane Lions is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based in Brisbane, Queensland. The club was formed from the merger of the Brisbane Bears and the Fitzroy Lions in 1996...
who have declined or bottomed out in recent years, the Swans do not bottom out, rather they continue to develop their players to prepare them for the mental and physical demands of Australian rules football. Also, a lack of quality top draft picks is believed to have contributed to their long losing runs against top teams such as (which bottomed out in 2004 and 2005 after making the Grand Final in 2002 and 2003) and (which bottomed out in 2006 before going on to win the premiership in 2007).
Guernsey
The jumper is white with a red back and a red yoke with a silhouette of the Sydney Opera HouseSydney Opera House
The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in the Australian city of Sydney. It was conceived and largely built by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, finally opening in 1973 after a long gestation starting with his competition-winning design in 1957...
at the point of the yoke. The Opera House design was first used at the start of the 1987 season, replacing the traditional red "V" on white design. Until 1991, the back of the jumper was white with the yoke only extending to the back of the shoulders and each side of the jumper had a red vertical stripe. The current predominantly red design appeared at the start of the 1992 season. The club's major sponsor is QBE Insurance
QBE Insurance
QBE Insurance Group Limited is an Australian based general insurance provider, providing insurance services mainly to the Asia Pacific region, but also America and Europe . It has offices in 45 countries...
. In 2004 the club added the initials 'SMFC' in white lettering at the back of the collar to honour the club's past as South Melbourne Football Club. The move was welcomed by Melbourne-based fans.
Mascot
The Sydney Swans mascot for the AFL's Mascot Manor is Syd 'Swannie' Skilton.He is named after Swans legend Bob Skilton
Bob Skilton
Robert John "Bob" Skilton was an Australian rules football player who played as a rover for South Melbourne and Victoria between 1956 and 1971....
. The actual mascot at Sydney's home games is, however, still known as Cyggy (as in cygnet
Swan
Swans, genus Cygnus, are birds of the family Anatidae, which also includes geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe Cygnini. Sometimes, they are considered a distinct subfamily, Cygninae...
).
Supporter base
As the only AFL club in Sydney, the Swans have a large population base to draw on.In 2006, following the first premiership in 72 years, the club achieved a record membership and the biggest since 1999. There is still a healthy Melbourne following for the Swans, particularly a revival in the late 1990s. Almost 10,000 Swans members are (South) Melbourne based and the club experiences good support when the team plays in Melbourne and many also make the long trip to Sydney for home games as well. The club recently celebrated in 2007 their 25th anniversary since relocating from South Melbourne
South Melbourne, Victoria
South Melbourne is an inner city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 2 km south from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area are the Cities of Port Phillip and Melbourne...
, with parties hosted both in Sydney and their former home.
Some famous fans include movie star Nicole Kidman
Nicole Kidman
Nicole Mary Kidman, AC is an American-born Australian actress, singer, film producer, spokesmodel, and humanitarian. After starring in a number of small Australian films and TV shows, Kidman's breakthrough was in the 1989 thriller Dead Calm...
, singers Shannon Noll
Shannon Noll
Shannon Noll first came to prominence as runner-up of the first series of Australian Idol which led to him being signed to Sony BMG. Since then he has released five Top 10 albums and ten Top 10 singles. His first two albums That's What I'm Talking About in 2004 and Lift in 2005 debuted at No...
, Delta Goodrem
Delta Goodrem
Delta Lea Goodrem is an Australian singer-songwriter, pianist, and actress. Signed to Sony at the age of 15, Goodrem rose to prominence in 2002, starring in the Australian soap opera Neighbours as Nina Tucker. Goodrem has achieved eight number-one singles and three number-one albums in her home...
, Australian band Human Nature
Human Nature (band)
Human Nature are an Australian pop vocal group. The group was originally formed as a doo-wop band in 1989 while the current members were at school together in Sydney. So far, the band has had 17 Top 40 hits and five Top 10 hits in Australia since 1996 when their first album Telling Everybody was...
, Australian duo The Presets
The Presets
The Presets are an Australian electronic duo formed in 2003, consisting of Julian Hamilton on vocals and keyboards, and Kim Moyes on drums and keyboards. They released their debut album Beams in 2005 to positive critical response. Their 2008 release Apocalypso debuted at number-one on the ARIA...
, radio personality Adam Spencer
Adam Spencer
Adam Barrington Spencer is an Australian radio presenter, comedian, and media personality. He first came to fame when he won his round of the comedic talent search Raw Comedy in the mid-1990s...
, television personality Ian "Dicko" Dickson, media personalities Sandra Sully
Sandra Sully (journalist)
Sandra Sully is an Australian journalist and news presenter.Sully is currently a presenter of Network Ten's Ten News at Five in Sydney, alongside Bill Woods-Career:...
, Neil Cordy
Neil Cordy
Neil Cordy is a former Australian rules footballer and now television presenter.- Football career :Recruited from Traralgon, Victoria, he was the brother of fellow Australian rules footballers Graeme and Brian. His nephew, Ayce, currently plays for the Western Bulldogs after being selected under...
, former cricket legend Glenn McGrath
Glenn McGrath
Glenn Donald McGrath AM , nicknamed "Pigeon", is a former Australian cricket player. He is one of the most highly regarded fast-medium pace bowlers in cricketing history, and a leading contributor to Australia's domination of world cricket from the mid-1990s to the early 21st century...
, television presenter Tom Williams, Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
punter Mat McBriar
Mat McBriar
Mat McBriar is an Australian American football punter in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys.-Early years:McBriar began as an Australian rules football player, playing Australian rules for Brighton Grammar School...
, sports journalist Tony Squires
Tony Squires
Tony Squires is an Australian media personality, currently presenting the sport report on Seven News in Sydney. He is perhaps best known as the presenter of the comic sport news show The Fat, which ran on ABC television from 2000 to 2003....
and television actress Cornelia Frances
Cornelia Frances
Cornelia Frances is a British-born actress based in Australia since the early 1970s. Frances is best known for her recurring role as judge Morag Bellingham on Home and Away.-Early life and personal life:...
, amongst others.
| Year | Members | Finishing position² | Average Home crowd |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | 7th | 15,993 | |
| 1983 | 11th | 12,025 | |
| 1984 | 2,750 | 10th | 12,497 |
| 1985 | 2,777 | 10th | 10,137 |
| 1986 | 4,927 | 4th | 25,819 |
| 1987 | 3,594 | 4th | 22,032 |
| 1988 | 2,516 | 7th | 12,311 |
| 1989 | 2,631 | 7th | 12,317 |
| 1990 | 2,624 | 13th | 9,178 |
| 1991 | 2,907 | 12th | 11,521 |
| 1992 | 3,020 | 15th | 9,881 |
| 1993 | 3,097 | 15th | 9,423 |
| 1994 | 3,327 | 15th | 9,813 |
| 1995 | 6,088 | 12th | 15,949 |
| 1996 | 9,525 | 2nd | 24,996 |
| 1997 | 22,109 | 7th | 36,612 |
| 1998 | 31,089 | 5th | 31,549 |
| 1999 | 31,175 | 8th | 30,586 |
| 2000 | 30,177 | 10th | 25,308 |
| 2001 | 28,022 | 7th | 27,556 |
| 2002 | 27,755 | 11th | 25,270 |
| 2003 | 21,270 | 3rd | 32,244 |
| 2004 | 25,010 | 5th | 30,964 |
| 2005 | 24,955 | 1st | 31,516 |
| 2006 | 30,382 | 2nd | 32,877¹ |
| 2007 | 32,500¹ | 7th | 35,632¹ |
| 2008 | 26,721¹ | 6th | 32,834 |
| 2009 | N/A | 12th | 30,506 |
| 2010 | 28,671 | 5th | 31,586 |
¹(at 30 June 2008)
²following finals matches
West Coast Eagles
AFL team rivalries
AFL team rivalries are matches in the Australian Football League which typically draw large crowds and interest regardless of both teams' positions on the ladder...
against the Perth-based West Coast Eagles
West Coast Eagles
The West Coast Eagles are an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League. The club is based in Perth, Western Australia. The club was founded in 1986 and played its first games in the 1987 season. Its current home ground is Subiaco Oval...
between 2005 and 2007. Six consecutive games between the two teams (from the 2005 Qualifying Final to the Round 1 of 2007) were each been decided by less than a goal, resulting in two wins to Sydney and 4 to West Coast (including a Grand Final win each). The difference in aggregate across the six games was three points and the sum of the margins was thirteen points.
In 2005, Sydney lost the Qualifying Final to the Eagles by four points, only to later win the Grand Final by four points against the Eagles. In 2006, the Eagles lost the Qualifying Final to Sydney by one point, only to later win the Grand Final by one point against the Swans. Strangely, the total scores in those two games were also the same, but reversed – 85 d 84.
Below are the results of recent clashes between these rivals:
2005 Qualifying Final, Subiaco
- West Coast 10.9 (69) beat Sydney 10.5 (65)
2005 Grand Final, MCG
- Sydney 8.10 (58) beat West Coast 7.12 (54)
2006 Round 15, Subiaco
- West Coast 9.13 (67) beat Sydney 9.11 (65)
2006 Qualifying Final, Subiaco
- Sydney 13.7 (85) beat West Coast 12.12 (84)
2006 Grand Final, MCG
- West Coast 12.13 (85) beat Sydney Swans 12.12 (84)
2007, Round 1, Telstra Stadium
- West Coast 11.8. (74) beat Sydney Swans 10.13 (73)
This trend was broken when the teams clashed again in Round 16, 2007. The Eagles won the game 112–100, a margin almost as high as the combined total margins of the previous 6 contests between the two teams.
Round 4 2008 saw Sydney 16.11 (107) beat West Coast 5.15 (45) at ANZ Stadium. Although this game wasn't the traditional low scoring heart stopper (Sydney won by 62 points, its biggest win over the Eagles since 2000), it did have its fair share of controversy. Swans player, Barry Hall
Barry Hall
Barry Hall is a former Australian rules footballer. Hall is considered to be one of the best forwards of the modern era, being named All-Australian, leading his club's goalkicking on nine occasions and captaining the Sydney Swans to their 2005 AFL Grand Final victory...
knocked out West Coast's Brent Staker
Brent Staker
Brent Staker is an Australian rules footballer in the AFL, who plays for the Brisbane Lions.-Early life:Staker grew up in Broken Hill in remote country New South Wales....
, which made headlines worldwide.
However in Round 11 another epic took place at Subiaco Oval
Subiaco Oval
Subiaco Oval , known colloquially as Subi, is the highest capacity sports stadium in Perth, Western Australia...
with a thrilling 5-point win to the Swans, with Jude Bolton
Jude Bolton
Jude Bolton is an Australian rules football player with the Sydney Swans of the AFL. Bolton currently holds the record for most tackles in a VFL/AFL career....
kicking the winning goal with just 90 seconds left.
2008, Round 11, Subiaco Oval
- Sydney Swans 12.11. (83) beat West Coast 11.12 (78)
2009, Round 5, ANZ Stadium
- Sydney Swans 16.10. (106) beat West Coast 15.11 (101)
Overall of the 40 games played between the two teams Sydney have won 21, lost 19 and drawn 0.
Brisbane Lions
The Swans share a strong rivalry with the Brisbane LionsBrisbane Lions
The Brisbane Lions is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based in Brisbane, Queensland. The club was formed from the merger of the Brisbane Bears and the Fitzroy Lions in 1996...
, which is based on the ongoing sporting and political rivalry between the two states New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
and Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
. Since the mid-1990s the two sides have played for the Alan Schwab Shield, named after the late AFL administrator who worked to establish the two sides in traditional rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
territory. Between them the two clubs have won four of the past eight Premierships.
In recent years, the Swans have dominated the Brisbane Lions, even during the Lions' halycon years. Since 2003, the Swans have won 9 of 12 games against the Lions, plus a draw in 2007. Round 3, 2009 saw the Swans finally fall to the Brisbane Lions
Brisbane Lions
The Brisbane Lions is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based in Brisbane, Queensland. The club was formed from the merger of the Brisbane Bears and the Fitzroy Lions in 1996...
after five years of dominance. The Lions won by 33 points.
St Kilda
The Swans share a long and storied rivalry with St Kilda that dates back to the days when South Melbourne played at the Lake OvalLake Oval
The Lake Oval was an Australian rules football and cricket stadium located in Albert Park, Victoria. It was the home of the South Melbourne Football Club from 1878 until their relocation to Sydney in 1982 , and also of the South Melbourne Cricket Club...
on the other side of Melbourne's Albert Park
Albert Park and Lake
Albert Park and Albert Park Lake are situated in the City of Port Phillip, Victoria, Australia, 3 km south of the Melbourne CBD....
Lake, not far from St Kilda's old home ground Junction Oval
Junction Oval
The Junction Oval is an historic sports ground in the suburb of St Kilda in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Its location near the St Kilda Junction gave rise to its nickname...
. Because the Swans and the Saints used to be towards the bottom of the ladder on a regular basis after the Second World War up until St Kilda's move away from the Junction Oval
Junction Oval
The Junction Oval is an historic sports ground in the suburb of St Kilda in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Its location near the St Kilda Junction gave rise to its nickname...
, clashes between both sides used to be dubbed "The Lake Premiership".
Memorable but controversial matches between the two teams included a 8.8 (56) draw in 2002 where the Swans let slip a one-point lead to force a draw, a 36-point win to the Swans in 2004 which ended the Saints' undefeated start to that season
2004 AFL season
Results and statistics for the Australian Football League season of 2004.See List of Australian Football League premiers for a complete list.-Wizard Home Loans Cup:The Wizard Home Loans Cup Final saw St...
, a 51-point win for St Kilda in the finals that year, a 43-point thrashing for St Kilda where the Swans' game plan was heavily criticised, and a 31-point win in a controversial preliminary final later that year where Swans captain Barry Hall
Barry Hall
Barry Hall is a former Australian rules footballer. Hall is considered to be one of the best forwards of the modern era, being named All-Australian, leading his club's goalkicking on nine occasions and captaining the Sydney Swans to their 2005 AFL Grand Final victory...
appeared to punch Saints defender Matt Maguire
Matt Maguire
Matt Maguire is a professional Australian rules footballer currently playing with the Brisbane Lions in the Australian Football League .-St Kilda Football Club:...
but was let off on a lesser charge.
The trading of Adam Schneider
Adam Schneider
Adam Schneider is an Australian rules footballer playing for the St Kilda Football Club in the Australian Football League...
and Sean Dempster, as well as the team now being coached by the former assistant coach at Sydney, Ross Lyon
Ross Lyon
Ross Lyon is a former Australian rules football player for Fitzroy and the Brisbane Bears. He is the current senior coach of the Fremantle Football Club in the Australian Football League .-Playing career:...
, plus the fact that ex-Saints Barry Hall
Barry Hall
Barry Hall is a former Australian rules footballer. Hall is considered to be one of the best forwards of the modern era, being named All-Australian, leading his club's goalkicking on nine occasions and captaining the Sydney Swans to their 2005 AFL Grand Final victory...
, Tony Lockett
Tony Lockett
Anthony Howard "Tony" Lockett is a former Australian rules football player. Lockett is the highest goal scorer in the history of the VFL/AFL with 1,360 goals in a career of 281 games, that commenced in 1983 with the St Kilda Football Club, and finished in 2002 with the Sydney Swans...
and Peter Everitt
Peter Everitt
Peter "Spida" Everitt is a former Australian rules footballer who played for St Kilda, Hawthorn Hawks and the Sydney Swans in the AFL. He made his debut for St Kilda in 1993 and in 2003 began playing for Hawthorn. Everitt was traded to the Sydney Swans at the end of 2006. Following the club's 2008...
had played for the Swans, have led to a much stronger rivalry between the clubs, with matches being dubbed "Ross versus Roos" (from 2007 until 2010) by many commentators. For the record, Ross Lyon leads Paul Roos 5–2 in terms of head-to-head as of 27 March 2010. Sydney took the points in their two clashes in season 2011: first a 15-point win in Sydney in Round 22 and then a more convincing 23-point win in the elimination final at Etihad Stadium that not only ended the Saints' season but also handed them their first Saturday night loss at the venue since early 2003 (St Kilda had dominated the Saturday night timeslot at Docklands Stadium for more than eight years leading into the match).
Claims by St Kilda CEO Archie Fraser
Archie Fraser
-Career:Fraser played professional Football for Greenock Morton before moving to Australia in 1980 to play in Brisbane.His business experience has included major corporations covering national and international responsibilities with Inchcape PLC, Fuji Xerox, Adecco and Cendant Mobility.From 1996 to...
against Craig Bolton, suggesting Bolton had "tunnelled" Saints captain Nick Riewoldt
Nick Riewoldt
Nick Riewoldt is an Australian rules footballer who is the current captain of the St Kilda Football Club in the Australian Football League . He was the first draft selection in the 2000 AFL Draft.-Early life:...
, has led to outrage amongst Swans fans, and has also increased the rivalry between the two clubs.
North Melbourne
Stemming back from the 1996 Grand Final1996 AFL Grand Final
The 1996 AFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the North Melbourne Football Club and Sydney Swans, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 28 September 1996. It was the 100th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League/Australian Football...
loss to North Melbourne, Sydney has established a minor rivalry with the over recent history. The loss denied the Swans the chance to end the then longest premiership drought. The Swans 23 point lead and apparent winning lead mid-way through the second quarter further fuels the rivalry between the two teams as the Roos ran out eventual 43 point winners. The rivalry was further extended in 2000 when North Melbourne attempted to play "home" games in Sydney to further promote the game of Australian rules football
Australian rules football
Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
, which was deemed that the Kangaroos were trying to invade Sydney's "territory". A cumulation of close games, including a goal after the siren win by Daryn Cresswell in 2002, and immense and 100+ point winning margins, ensured the Swans' rivalry was maintained with the Kangaroos in recent years.
A clash in 2008 ended in a controversial draw, Sydney 8.16 (64) – Nth Melbourne 9.10 (64). Brett Kirk
Brett Kirk
Brett Kirk is a former Australian rules football player of the Sydney Swans, and is known colloquially as "Kirky", "Captain Kirk", during the 2005 AFL Finals Series, "Captain Blood" and by teammates as "Hippy". Kirk is a hard working and onfield leader who has played in a premiership with the...
believed he had kicked the winning goal with over a minute remaining but the ball was touched on the line by North's Michael Firrito
Michael Firrito
Michael "Spud" Firrito is an Australian Rules footballer for the Kangaroos Football Club. He made his AFL debut in round 12 on the 13 June 2003. He played 2 games that year and the following year received a Rising Star nomination. Although primarily a defender, he has been used by the Kangaroos as...
, ensuring a draw. Had the ball not been touched the Swans would have won by 5 points. Although Sydney had an extra player, Darren Jolly
Darren Jolly
Darren Jolly is a professional Australian rules football player currently playing for the Collingwood Football Club in the Australian Football League . Jolly has previously played for Melbourne, the Sydney Swans...
who was supposed to come off for Jesse White, on the field who was directly involved in the play.
These two teams met in the first week of the 2008 finals
2008 AFL finals series
The Australian Football League's 2008 Finals Series determined the top eight final positions of the 2008 AFL season. It began on the weekend of 5 September 2008 and ended with the 112th AFL Grand Final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on 27 September 2008...
, with Sydney running out convincing 35-point winners in front of the lowest ever finals crowd in Sydney, in a rain-affected match. It was their first finals showdown since the 1996 AFL Grand Final
1996 AFL season
Results and statistics for the Australian Football League season of 1996.See List of Australian Football League premiers for a complete list.-Lighting Premiership:...
and Sydney's win extracted some revenge for the Grand Final loss 12 years prior. Their only clash in 2009 (Round 14, which the Swans won by 15 points to end a four-game losing streak) was aired into both the Sydney
ATN
-Medicine:*Acute tubular necrosis, a medical condition involving the death of tubular cells that form the tubule that transports urine to the ureters*Asymmetric tonic neck reflex*Atypical trigeminal neuralgia-Television:...
and Brisbane markets rather than the live vs. match which was a high-rating television match around the rest of the country
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
In 2010 the Swans beat the Kangaroos in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
for the first time in more than a decade. In the second match, Swans ruckman Mike Pyke had a Goal of the Year contender disallowed as replays showed it had hit the post.
In 2011 the Swans won a thriller at Etihad Stadium by one point. It was the Swans' fifth-straight win over the Kangaroos, dating back to Round 6, 2007.
Premiers
- 1909 (as South Melbourne) – defeated Carlton 4.14 (38) to 4.12 (36)
- 1918 (as South Melbourne) – defeated Collingwood 9.8 (62) to 7.15 (57)
- 1933 (as South Melbourne) – defeated Richmond 9.17 (71) to 4.5 (29)
- 2005 (as Sydney Swans) – defeated West Coast 8.10 (58) to 7.12 (54)
Runners-up
- 1899 (as South Melbourne) – defeated by Fitzroy 3.9 (27) to 3.8 (26)
- 1907 (as South Melbourne) – defeated by Carlton 6.14 (50) to 6.9 (45)
- 1912 (as South Melbourne) – defeated by Essendon 5.17 (47) to 4.9 (33)
- 1914 (as South Melbourne) – defeated by Carlton 6.9 (45) to 4.15 (39)
- 1934 (as South Melbourne) – defeated by Richmond 19.14 (128) to 12.17 (89)
- 1935 (as South Melbourne) – defeated by Collingwood 11.12 (78) to 7.16 (58)
- 1936 (as South Melbourne) – defeated by Collingwood 11.23 (89) to 10.18 (78)
- 1945 (as South Melbourne) – defeated by Carlton 15.13 (103) to 10.15 (75)
- 1996 (as Sydney Swans) – defeated by North Melbourne 19.17 (131) to 13.10 (88); first grand final appearance after relocation
- 2006 (as Sydney Swans) – defeated by West Coast 12.13 (85) to 12.12 (84)
Officials
- Chairman: Richard Colless
- Directors:
- Jason Ball
- Bob Campbell
- Andrew McMaster
- Rob Morgan
- Greg Paramor
- Robert Pascoe
- Anddrew Pridham
- Lynn Ralph
- Chief Executive: Andrew IrelandAndrew Ireland (footballer)Andrew Ireland is a former Australian rules footballer who played for Collingwood in the VFL during the late 1970s.Ireland, who came to Collingwood from Ivanhoe, started his career as a forward and kicked 17 goals in his debut season before moving into defence...
- General Manager – Football: Dean Moore
- Player Welfare & Development: Dennis CarrollDennis CarrollDennis Carroll is a former Australian rules footballer who played with the Sydney Football Club in the Victoria Football League ....
Honour roll
| Year | Posn | Coach | Captain | Best & Fairest | Leading goalkicker (goals) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1932 | Johnny Leonard Johnny Leonard John "Johnny" Leonard was a player and coach of Australian rules football in the West Australian Football League and the Victorian Football League in the period 1922 to 1946.... |
Johnny Leonard | Bill Faul Bill Faul Bill Faul was an Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League .... |
Bob Pratt Bob Pratt Harold Robert "Bob" Pratt was a former Australian rules footballer from Mitcham, Victoria.Pratt played with South Melbourne Football Club in the Victorian Football League from 1930–1939 and again in 1946, and with the Coburg Football Club in the Victorian Football Association from 1940 to 1941... (71) |
|
| 1933 | 1 | Jack Bissett | Jack Bissett | Harry Clarke Harry Clarke (footballer) Harry Clarke was an Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL.Clarke was a wingman and won the Best and Fairest award for South Melbourne in their premiership season of 1933.... |
Bob Pratt (109) |
| 1934 | 2 | Jack Bissett | Jack Bissett | Terry Brain Terry Brain Terry Brain was an Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL.A lightly built rover, Brain was one of the few Victorians in the South Melbourne side of the 1930s which was known as the 'foreign legion'. Brain played 141 games for the club, including the 1933 Grand Final... |
Bob Pratt (150) |
| 1935 | 2 | Jack Bissett | Jack Bissett | Ron Hillis Ron Hillis Ron Hillis was an Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL during the 1930s.... |
Bob Pratt (103) |
| 1936 | 2 | Jack Bissett | Jack Bissett | Herbie Matthews Herbie Matthews Herbie Matthews was an Australian rules footballer who played for South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League. He was recruited from suburban Fairfield under the League's "father and son" rule. His father, 'Butcher' Matthews, partnered the great Roy Cazaly in South Melbourne's ruck... |
Bob Pratt (64) |
| 1937 | 9 | Roy Cazaly Roy Cazaly Roy Cazaly was an Australian rules football player famous for his high marks and ruck work, which gave rise to the phrase "Up There Cazaly".-Early life/career:... |
Laurie Nash Laurie Nash Laurence John "Laurie" Nash was a Test cricketer and Australian rules footballer. An inductee into the Australian Football Hall of Fame, Nash was a member of South Melbourne's 1933 premiership team, captained South Melbourne in 1937 and was the team's leading goal kicker in 1937 and 1945... |
Herbie Matthews | Laurie Nash (37) |
| 1938 | 12 | Roy Cazaly | Herbie Matthews | Len Thomas Len Thomas Len Thomas was an Australian rules footballer who played 187 games with South Melbourne in the VFL during the 1930s, before finishing his career as captain-coach at both Hawthorn and North Melbourne... |
Roy Moore Roy Moore (Australian footballer) Roy Moore was an Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League during the 1930s. His father Herbert Moore played a game for South Melbourne in their premiership year of 1909.... (34) |
| 1939 | 12 | Herbie Matthews | Herbie Matthews | Herbie Matthews | Bob Pratt (72) |
| 1940 | 10 | Herbie Matthews | Herbie Matthews | Herbie Matthews | Len Reiffel (33) |
| 1941 | 8 | Joe Kelly Joe Kelly (Australian rules footballer) Joe Kelly was an Australian rules footballer who played with Carlton in the VFL before becoming a coach.... |
Herbie Matthews | Reg Ritchie | Jack Graham Jack Graham (footballer) Jack Graham is a former Australian rules footballer who played for South Melbourne in the VFL during the 1930s and 40s.Graham was utility player but played mostly as a ruckman. Over the course of his career he was one of the few players who used the place kick and he played in losing grand finals... (33) |
| 1942 | 3 | Joe Kelly | Herbie Matthews | Jim Cleary Jim Cleary (Australian rules footballer) Jim Cleary was an Australian rules footballer who played for South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League .Cleary played as a fullback and won two best and fairest awards for South Melbourne, in 1942 and 1944. His reputation was marred somewhat by his involvement in what is referred to as the... |
Lindsay White Lindsay White Lindsay G. White was a forward for Geelong and South Melbourne during the 1940s and is regarded as one of the best forwards from that era... (80) |
| 1943 | 8 | Joe Kelly | Herbie Matthews | Herbie Matthews | Charlie Culph Charlie Culph Charles "Charlie" Culph was an Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League .Culph, a forward, was South Melbourne's leading goal-kicker in the 1943 VFL season... (35) |
| 1944 | 7 | Joe Kelly | Herbie Matthews | Jim Cleary | Ron Hartridge Ron Hartridge Ron Hartridge was an Australian rules footballer who played with St Kilda and South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League .... (31) |
| 1945 | 2 | William Adams | Herbie Matthews | Jack Graham | Laurie Nash (56) |
| 1946 | 7 | William Adams | Jack Graham | Bill Williams Bill Williams (Australian rules footballer) William 'Bill' Williams was an Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL during the late 1940s.A rover, Williams won the Best and Fairest award for South in 1946, 1947 and 1950... |
Harry Mears Harry Mears Harry Mears was an Australian rules footballer who played with Collingwood and South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League .A rover, Mears made his way into the Collingwood team from the league seconds... (32) |
| 1947 | 8 | William Adams | Jack Graham | Bill Williams | Bill Williams (38) |
| 1948 | 10 | William Adams, Jack Hale Jack Hale Jack Hale is a former Australian rules footballer who played with Carlton in the VFL during the 1940s before becoming a coach.... |
Jack Graham | Ron Clegg Ron Clegg Ron "Smokey" Clegg was an Australian rules footballer in the Victorian Football League.A brilliant key position player at either centre half-forward or centre half-back, he was awarded the Brownlow Medal in 1949 while playing with the then South Melbourne Football Club... |
Jack Graham (32) |
| 1949 | 10 | Jack Hale | Bert Lucas Bert Lucas Albert William "Bert" Lucas was an Australian rules footballer who played with Carlton and South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League .... |
Ron Clegg | Ray Jones (27) |
| 1950 | 11 | Gordon Lane Gordon Lane Gordon 'Whopper' Lane is a former Australian rules footballer who represented the Essendon and South Melbourne in the VFL. He played as a forward with a strong overhead mark and was rated by Jack Dyer in 1946 as 'the best centre half forward in the game'.He is best remembered for his performances... |
Gordon Lane | Bill Williams Bill Williams (Australian rules footballer) William 'Bill' Williams was an Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL during the late 1940s.A rover, Williams won the Best and Fairest award for South in 1946, 1947 and 1950... |
Gordon Lane (47) |
| 1951 | 8 | Gordon Lane | Gordon Lane | Ron Clegg | Bill Williams (41) |
| 1952 | 5 | Gordon Lane | Gordon Lane | Keith Schaefer Keith Schaefer Keith Schaefer was an Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League .Schaefer, who played as a centreman, won South Melbourne's best and fairest in 1952... |
Gordon Lane (33) |
| 1953 | 8 | Laurie Nash | Ron Clegg | Jim Taylor Jim Taylor (Australian footballer) James "Jim" Taylor is a former Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL during the 1950s.-Athletics:... |
Ian Gillett Ian Gillett Ian Gillett is a former Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL during the 1950s.Gillett was a ruckman but was also capable of playing the key positions. He was South Melbourne's leading goalkicker in 1953 and won the Best and Fairest award in 1956.-External links:... (34) |
| 1954 | 10 | Herbie Matthews | Ron Clegg | Eddie Lane Eddie Lane Esmond 'Eddie' Lane was an Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL during the 1950s.Lane was a 168 cm rover and handy goalkicker. His best season came in 1954 when he won the South Melbourne Best and Fairest award and finished equal 3rd in the Brownlow Medal... |
Eddie Lane (28) |
| 1955 | 10 | Herbie Matthews | Bill Gunn Bill Gunn (footballer) William Gunn is a former Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League during the 1950s.... |
Ian Gillett | Eddie Lane (36) |
| 1956 | 9 | Herbie Matthews | Ian Gillett | Jim Dorgan Jim Dorgan Jim Dorgan is a former Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL during the 1950s.Dorgan played in the back pocket and had his best season in 1956 where he won South Melbourne's Best and Fairest award as well as finishing 3rd in the Brownlow Medal.-External links:... |
Bill Gunn (28) |
| 1957 | 10 | Herbie Matthews | Ron Clegg | Jim Taylor | Fred Goldsmith Fred Goldsmith (Australian rules footballer) Fred Goldsmith is a former Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League.... (43) |
| 1958 | 9 | Ron Clegg | Ron Clegg | Bob Skilton Bob Skilton Robert John "Bob" Skilton was an Australian rules football player who played as a rover for South Melbourne and Victoria between 1956 and 1971.... |
Max Oaten Max Oaten Max Oaten is a former Australian rules footballer who played for South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League .... (34) |
| 1959 | 9 | Ron Clegg | Ron Clegg | Bob Skilton | Bob Skilton (60) |
| 1960 | 8 | Bill Faul | Ron Clegg | Frank Johnson Frank Johnson (footballer) Frank Johnson is a former Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL and Port Melbourne in the VFA.-Career:A 185cm ruckman, Johnson began his senior career playing with Port Melbourne in the VFA in the 1950s... |
Max Oaten (39) |
| 1961 | 11 | Bill Faul | Bob Skilton | Bob Skilton | Brian McGowan Brian McGowan (footballer) Brian McGowan is a former Australian rules footballer who played for South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League .... (38) |
| 1962 | 12 | Noel McMahen Noel McMahen Noel McMahen is a former Australian rules football player and a coach in the Victorian Football League .He played in the Melbourne premiership teams in 1948, 1955 and 1956... |
Bob Skilton | Bob Skilton | Bob Skilton (36) |
| 1963 | 11 | Noel McMahen | Bob Skilton | Bob Skilton | Bob Skilton (36) |
| 1964 | 11 | Noel McMahen | Bob Skilton | Bob Skilton | Max Papley Max Papley Max Papley is a former Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL.Prior to joining Souths, Papley had played with Moorabbin, captaining them to a premiership and kicking 6 goals in the grand final... (25) |
| 1965 | 8 | Bob Skilton | Bob Skilton | Bob Skilton | Bob Kingston Bob Kingston Robert 'Bob' Kingston is a former Australian rules footballer who played for South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League during the 1960s.... (48) |
| 1966 | 8 | Bob Skilton | Bob Skilton | Max Papley | Austin Robertson, Jr. Austin Robertson, Jr. Austin Christian Robertson was an Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL and Subiaco in the WANFL... (60) |
| 1967 | 9 | Allan Miller Allan Miller Allan Miller is an American actor, best known for the role of Harland Richards in Santa Barbara.Miller was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Anna and Benedict Miller.... |
Bob Skilton | Bob Skilton | John Sudholz John Sudholz John Sudholz is a former Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL.Sudholz was a strongly built full-forward from the Victorian town of Rupanyup and made his debut for South Melbourne in 1966. He topped the club's goal kicking for four successive seasons from 1967 to... (35) |
| 1968 | 9 | Allan Miller | Bob Skilton | Bob Skilton | John Sudholz (36) |
| 1969 | 9 | Norm Smith Norm Smith Norman Walter "Norm" Smith was an Australian rules football player and coach in the Victorian Football League. After 200 games as a player with Melbourne and Fitzroy, Smith began a twenty year coaching career, including a fifteen year stint at Melbourne... |
Bob Skilton | Peter Bedford Peter Bedford Peter Lawrence Anthony "Wheels" Bedford is a former Australian Rules footballer. He is best known for his time at Victorian Football League team South Melbourne, but he also played eight games for Carlton.... |
John Sudholz (35) |
| 1970 | 4 | Norm Smith | Bob Skilton | Peter Bedford | John Sudholz (62) |
| 1971 | 12 | Norm Smith | Bob Skilton | Peter Bedford | Peter Bedford (44) |
| 1972 | 11 | Norm Smith | John Rantall John Rantall John "Mopsy" Rantall was an Australian rules footballer in the Victorian Football League.Originally from Cobden, Rantall moved to the South Melbourne Football Club where he debuted in 1963. He moved to North Melbourne Football Club with the intention of playing in a premiership side in 1973 and... |
Russell Cook Russell Cook (footballer) Russell Cook is a former Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL. He won the Bob Skilton Medal in 1972.... |
Peter Bedford (28) |
| 1973 | 12 | Graeme John Graeme John Graeme John was Managing Director of Australia Post from 1993 to 2009. From 1990 was Australia Post's Chief Manager of National Operations.... |
Peter Bedford | Peter Bedford | Peter Bedford (52) |
| 1974 | 9 | Graeme John | Peter Bedford | Norm Goss, Jr. | Norm Goss, Jr. (37) |
| 1975 | 12 | Graeme John | Peter Bedford | Peter Bedford | Graham Teasdale Graham Teasdale Graham Teasdale is a former Australian rules football player who played for the Richmond Football Club in the VFL between 1972 and 1975, for the South Melbourne Football Club from 1975 to 1981 and then for the Collingwood Football Club from 1982 to 1984.... (38) |
| 1976 | 8 | Ian Stewart | Peter Bedford | Rick Quade | Robert Dean Robert Dean (footballer) Robert Dean is a former Australian rules footballer who played with Collingwood and South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League during the 1970s.... (37) |
| 1977 | 5 | Ian Stewart | Rick Quade | Graham Teasdale | Graham Teasdale (38) |
| 1978 | 8 | Des Tuddenham Des Tuddenham Desmond Vincent Tuddenham is a former Australian rules footballer who played during the 1960s and 1970s. He was a half forward flanker.... |
Rick Quade | John Murphy John Murphy (Australian rules footballer) John Murphy was a former Australian rules footballer who played in the Victorian Football League .- Playing career :... |
John Murphy (31) |
| 1979 | 10 | Ian Stewart | Rick Quade | Barry Round Barry Round Barry Round played for Footscray and South Melbourne/Sydney in the Victorian Football League between 1969 and 1985. Along the way, he played 328 games , won a Brownlow Medal in 1981 and was the Swans' first captain during the Sydney era... |
Tony Morwood Tony Morwood Tony Morwood is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Sydney Swans.He was usually seen in the half forward flank and it was in that position that he was named in the Swan's 'Team of the Century'.... (56) |
| 1980 | 6 | Ian Stewart | Barry Round | David Ackerly David Ackerly David Ackerly is a former Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne and North Melbourne in the VFL during the 1980s.Ackerly played in the back pocket and was South Melbourne's best and fairest in 1980 and 1982.... |
John Roberts John Roberts (Australian rules footballer) John Roberts is a former Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL. He was the club's leading goal kicker in 1980 and 1981.-External links:*... (67) |
| 1981 | 9 | Ian Stewart | Barry Round | Barry Round | John Roberts (51) |
| 19821 | 7 | Rick Quade | Barry Round | David Ackerly | Tony Morwood (45) |
| 1983 | 11 | Rick Quade | Barry Round | Mark Browning Mark Browning Mark Browning is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Sydney Swans from 1975 to 1987. He won the club's best and fairest award in 1983 and captained the Swans for the following two seasons.... |
Craig Braddy Craig Braddy Craig Braddy is a former Australian rules footballer who played with Fitzroy and the Sydney Swans in the Victorian Football League during the 1980s.... (48) |
| 1984 | 10 | Rick Quade, Bob Hammond Bob Hammond Robert 'Bob' Hammond is a former Australian rules footballer who played for North Adelaide and Norwood in the South Australian National Football League during the 1960s and early 1970s. He later served as coach of the Sydney Swans in the Victorian Football League .Hammond played his early football... |
Barry Round, Mark Browning |
Bernie Evans Bernie Evans Bernie Evans is a former Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne and Carlton in the VFL.Evans was a rover but was also used at half forward. He won South Melbourne's best and fairest award in 1984. In 1986 he moved to Carlton and played in that year's losing grand final... |
Warwick Capper Warwick Capper Warwick Capper is a retired high profile professional Australian rules football full-forward who played with the Sydney Swans with a short stint at the Brisbane Bears in the VFL .... (39) |
| 1985 | 10 | John Northey John Northey John "Swooper" Northey is a former Australian rules football player and coach. He played from 1963 to 1970 with the Richmond Football Club.... |
Mark Browning | Stephen Wright Stephen Wright (Australian rules footballer) Stephen Wright is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Sydney Swans during the 1980s and early 90s. He coached Highett Football Club in 2007 & 2008 in the Southern Football League.... |
Warwick Capper (45) |
| 1986 | 4 | Tom Hafey Tom Hafey Thomas Stanley Raymond Hafey is a former Australian rules football Victorian Football League player and coach. Hafey played for Richmond between 1953 and 1958, and coached four clubs—Richmond, Collingwood, Geelong and Sydney—between 1966 and 1988, leading teams to a total of four premierships... |
Dennis Carroll Dennis Carroll Dennis Carroll is a former Australian rules footballer who played with the Sydney Football Club in the Victoria Football League .... |
Gerard Healy Gerard Healy Gerard Healy is a former Australian rules footballer and commentator.Healy attended St Bede's College in Mentone, where he was the Senior Football Captain.-Melbourne Demons:... |
Warwick Capper (92) |
| 1987 | 4 | Tom Hafey | Dennis Carroll | Gerard Healy | Warwick Capper (103) |
| 1988 | 7 | Tom Hafey | Dennis Carroll | Gerard Healy | Barry Mitchell Barry Mitchell (footballer) Barry Mitchell is a former Australian rules footballer who played with the Sydney Swans, Carlton and Collingwood in the Australian Football League .... (35) |
| 1989 | 7 | Col Kinnear Col Kinnear Colin 'Col' Kinnear is a former Australian rules football coach who coached the Sydney Swans in the VFL/AFL. He is the son of former Melbourne player Joe Kinnear.... |
Dennis Carroll | Mark Bayes Mark Bayes Mark Bayes was an Australian rules footballer who played for the Sydney Swans between 1985 and 1998.Originally from Noble Park, Bayes kicked 174 goals in his 246 games for the Swans... |
Bernard Toohey Bernard Toohey Bernard Toohey is a former Australian rules footballer who played during the 1980s and early 1990s as a defender.Toohey started his career in 1981 with the Geelong Football Club, with whom he played for five years. He then moved north to Sydney and earned All-Australian selection in 1987... (27) |
| 1990 | 13 | Col Kinnear | Dennis Carroll | Stephen Wright | Jim West Jim West (footballer) Jim West is a former Australian rules footballer, playing with the Sydney Swans from 1990 to 1992.Recruited from Glenelg Football Club in the South Australian National Football League , West never really establishing himself in the lineup, only managing 37 games .The highlight of his career came... (34) |
| 1991 | 12 | Col Kinnear | Dennis Carroll | Barry Mitchell | Jason Love (52) |
| 1992 | 15 | Gary Buckenara Gary Buckenara Gary Buckenara played Australian rules football for the Hawthorn Football Club in the VFL during the 1980s.Buckenara first played senior football for Subiaco in the WAFL from 1979 to 1981. Subiaco agreed to lease him for three years for $210,000 and after a court case began his career at Hawthorn... |
Dennis Carroll | Paul Kelly Paul Kelly (footballer) Paul Kelly is a former Australian rules footballer, winner of the Brownlow Medal and captain of the Sydney Swans for ten seasons. He was and still is known to Swans fans everywhere as "Captain Courageous".... |
Simon Minton-Connell Simon Minton-Connell Simon Minton-Connell is a former Australian rules footballer in the VFL/AFL, and nephew of the great full-forward, Peter Hudson.-VFL/AFL career:... (60) |
| 1993 | 15 | Gary Buckenara, Brett Scott, Ron Barassi Ron Barassi Ronald Dale Barassi, Jr AM is a former Australian rules football player and coach. During a long and decorated career, Barassi has been one of the most important figures in the history of Australian football. His father, Ron Barassi, Sr., was the first Australian footballer killed at Tobruk during... |
Paul Kelly | Paul Kelly | Simon Minton-Connell (41) |
| 1994 | 15 | Ron Barassi | Paul Kelly | Daryn Creswell | Simon Minton-Connell (68) |
| 1995 | 12 | Ron Barassi | Paul Kelly | Tony Lockett Tony Lockett Anthony Howard "Tony" Lockett is a former Australian rules football player. Lockett is the highest goal scorer in the history of the VFL/AFL with 1,360 goals in a career of 281 games, that commenced in 1983 with the St Kilda Football Club, and finished in 2002 with the Sydney Swans... |
Tony Lockett (110) |
| 1996 | 2 | Rodney Eade Rodney Eade Rodney "Rocket" Eade is a former Australian rules footballer and the former coach of the Sydney Swans and Western Bulldogs in the Australian Football League... |
Paul Kelly | Paul Kelly | Tony Lockett (121) |
| 1997 | 7 | Rodney Eade | Paul Kelly | Paul Kelly | Tony Lockett (37) |
| 1998 | 5 | Rodney Eade | Paul Kelly | Michael O'Loughlin Michael O'Loughlin Michael Kevin O'Loughlin is a former professional Australian rules footballer, who played his entire Australian Football League career with the Sydney Swans.... |
Tony Lockett (109) |
| 1999 | 8 | Rodney Eade | Paul Kelly | Wayne Schwass Wayne Schwass Wayne Schwass was an Australian rules football player in the VFL/AFL who debuted in 1988.He is notable as one of only a few New Zealand-born players of Māori heritage in the history of the VFL/AFL.... |
Tony Lockett (82) |
| 2000 | 10 | Rodney Eade | Paul Kelly | Andrew Schauble Andrew Schauble Andrew Schauble is a former Australian rules football player.For over a decade, he was a consistent player in defence for both the Collingwood Football Club and the Sydney Swans. After being struck down by injury in 2004 and struggling to recapture his solid form, he was restricted to only 4 games... |
Michael O'Loughlin (53) |
| 2001 | 7 | Rodney Eade | Paul Kelly | Paul Williams Paul Williams (Australian rules footballer) Paul Williams is a former Australian rules footballer with both Collingwood and Sydney. Since retiring from playing, he has been an assistant coach, including a bried period as caretaker coach of the Western Bulldogs towards the end of the 2011 season... |
Michael O'Loughlin (35) |
| 2002 | 11 | Rodney Eade, Paul Roos | Paul Kelly | Paul Williams | Barry Hall Barry Hall Barry Hall is a former Australian rules footballer. Hall is considered to be one of the best forwards of the modern era, being named All-Australian, leading his club's goalkicking on nine occasions and captaining the Sydney Swans to their 2005 AFL Grand Final victory... (55) |
| 2003 | 4 | Paul Roos | Stuart Maxfield Stuart Maxfield Stuart Maxfield is a retired Australian rules footballer who played for the Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League . He was the Swans' captain until 5 May 2005, when he stood down from the position.... |
Adam Goodes Adam Goodes Adam Goodes is a professional Australian rules football player with the Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League .... |
Barry Hall (64) |
| 2004 | 5 | Paul Roos | Stuart Maxfield | Barry Hall | Barry Hall (74) |
| 2005 | 1 | Paul Roos | Stuart Maxfield² | Brett Kirk Brett Kirk Brett Kirk is a former Australian rules football player of the Sydney Swans, and is known colloquially as "Kirky", "Captain Kirk", during the 2005 AFL Finals Series, "Captain Blood" and by teammates as "Hippy". Kirk is a hard working and onfield leader who has played in a premiership with the... |
Barry Hall (80) |
| 2006 | 2 | Paul Roos | Barry Hall, Brett Kirk and Leo Barry | Adam Goodes | Barry Hall (78) |
| 2007 | 7 | Paul Roos | Barry Hall, Brett Kirk and Leo Barry | Brett Kirk | Barry Hall (44) |
| 2008 | 6 | Paul Roos | Brett Kirk, Leo Barry and Craig Bolton | Jarrad McVeigh | Barry Hall (41) |
| 2009 | 12 | Paul Roos | Brett Kirk, Adam Goodes and Craig Bolton | Ryan O'Keefe | Adam Goodes (38) |
| 2010 | 5 | Paul Roos | Brett Kirk, Adam Goodes and Craig Bolton | Kieren Jack Kieren Jack Kieren Jack is a professional Australian rules footballer for the Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League .- Early life :He is the son of former Balmain Tigers Rugby League star Garry Jack.... |
Adam Goodes (44) |
| 2011 | N/A | John Longmire | Adam Goodes and Jarrad McVeigh | N/A | Adam Goodes (41) |
1: Relocated to Sydney
²: Six rounds into the 2005 season, Stuart Maxfield ended his playing career due to chronic injury. Six players rotated as captain throughout the rest of the season: Brett Kirk
Brett Kirk
Brett Kirk is a former Australian rules football player of the Sydney Swans, and is known colloquially as "Kirky", "Captain Kirk", during the 2005 AFL Finals Series, "Captain Blood" and by teammates as "Hippy". Kirk is a hard working and onfield leader who has played in a premiership with the...
(Rounds 7, 8, 19 and 20), Leo Barry
Leo Barry
Leo Barry is a retired Australian rules footballer in the AFL with the Sydney Swans.Originally from Deniliquin, New South Wales, he attended St Ignatius' College, Riverview before being drafted as a zone selection in the 1994 National Draft and making his debut in the final round of the 1995...
(Rounds 9, 10, 21 and 22), Barry Hall
Barry Hall
Barry Hall is a former Australian rules footballer. Hall is considered to be one of the best forwards of the modern era, being named All-Australian, leading his club's goalkicking on nine occasions and captaining the Sydney Swans to their 2005 AFL Grand Final victory...
(Rounds 11, 12 and the entire finals series), Ben Mathews
Ben Mathews
-Overview:Ben Mathews is a former Australian Football League player with the Sydney Swans, originally recruited from the Corowa-Rutherglen region of New South Wales. In 2005 he was part of the premiership-winning side that defeated the West Coast Eagles. He announced his retirement on 2 September...
(Rounds 13 and 14), Adam Goodes
Adam Goodes
Adam Goodes is a professional Australian rules football player with the Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League ....
(Rounds 15 and 16) and Jude Bolton
Jude Bolton
Jude Bolton is an Australian rules football player with the Sydney Swans of the AFL. Bolton currently holds the record for most tackles in a VFL/AFL career....
(Rounds 17 and 18).
Team records
- For the records of every player to play for the club see – List of Sydney Swans players
- Most games – Michael O'LoughlinMichael O'LoughlinMichael Kevin O'Loughlin is a former professional Australian rules footballer, who played his entire Australian Football League career with the Sydney Swans....
(303) - Most goals – Bob PrattBob PrattHarold Robert "Bob" Pratt was a former Australian rules footballer from Mitcham, Victoria.Pratt played with South Melbourne Football Club in the Victorian Football League from 1930–1939 and again in 1946, and with the Coburg Football Club in the Victorian Football Association from 1940 to 1941...
(681) - Most goals in match – Tony LockettTony LockettAnthony Howard "Tony" Lockett is a former Australian rules football player. Lockett is the highest goal scorer in the history of the VFL/AFL with 1,360 goals in a career of 281 games, that commenced in 1983 with the St Kilda Football Club, and finished in 2002 with the Sydney Swans...
(16) - Most goals in a season – Bob PrattBob PrattHarold Robert "Bob" Pratt was a former Australian rules footballer from Mitcham, Victoria.Pratt played with South Melbourne Football Club in the Victorian Football League from 1930–1939 and again in 1946, and with the Coburg Football Club in the Victorian Football Association from 1940 to 1941...
(150) - Most games coached – Paul RoosPaul Roos (Australian rules footballer)Paul Roos is a former Australian rules football player and coach in the VFL and Australian Football League.Playing the majority of his career with Fitzroy, Roos was one of the teams greats, captaining the side for a long time and was acknowledged as its best player for several seasons, being named...
(153*) - Highest score – 36.20 (236) vs Essendon 11.7 (73), Round 17, 1987
- Lowest score – South Melbourne 0.5 (5) vs Carlton 3.6 (24), Round 8, 1899
- Lowest score since 1919 – South Melbourne 1.9 (15) vs GeelongGeelong Football ClubThe Geelong Football Club, nicknamed The Cats, is a professional Australian rules football club, named after and based in the city of Geelong, playing in the Australian Football League . The club has been the VFL/AFL premiers nine times, with a record equalling 3 in the AFL era. Geelong has also...
8.9 (57), Round 16, 1964 - Highest losing score – South Melbourne 24.10 (154) vs MelbourneMelbourne Football ClubThe Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed The Demons, is an Australian rules football club playing in the Australian Football League , based in Melbourne, Victoria....
24.23 (167), Round 1, 1979 - Lowest winning score – South Melbourne 2.3 (15) vs Melbourne 1.7 (13), Round 6, 1898
- Lowest winning score since 1919 – South Melbourne 4.15 (39) vs FitzroyFitzroy Football ClubThe Fitzroy Football Club, formerly nicknamed The Lions, is an Australian rules football club formed in 1883 to represent the inner Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy, Victoria and was a foundation member club of the Victorian Football League on its inception in 1897...
4.12 (36), Round 4, 1919- Since 1920 – South Melbourne 5.11 (41) vs St. Kilda 5.9 (39), Round 16, 1948
- Greatest Winning Margin – (171 points) – South Melbourne 29.15 (189) vs St. Kilda 2.6 (18), Round 12, 1919
- Greatest Losing Margin – (165 points) – South Melbourne 2.7 (19) vs Essendon 28.16 (184), Round 18, 1964
- Most games – Michael O'Loughlin
Brownlow Medal winners
Despite its lack of success, South Melbourne/Sydney has provided more Brownlow MedalBrownlow Medal
The Chas Brownlow Trophy, better known as the Brownlow Medal , is awarded to the "fairest and best" player in the Australian Football League during the regular season as determined by votes cast by the officiating field umpires after each game...
winners (14) than any other club.
South Melbourne
- Herbie MatthewsHerbie MatthewsHerbie Matthews was an Australian rules footballer who played for South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League. He was recruited from suburban Fairfield under the League's "father and son" rule. His father, 'Butcher' Matthews, partnered the great Roy Cazaly in South Melbourne's ruck...
(1940) - Ron CleggRon CleggRon "Smokey" Clegg was an Australian rules footballer in the Victorian Football League.A brilliant key position player at either centre half-forward or centre half-back, he was awarded the Brownlow Medal in 1949 while playing with the then South Melbourne Football Club...
(1949) - Fred GoldsmithFred Goldsmith (Australian rules footballer)Fred Goldsmith is a former Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League....
(1955) - Bob SkiltonBob SkiltonRobert John "Bob" Skilton was an Australian rules football player who played as a rover for South Melbourne and Victoria between 1956 and 1971....
(1959, 1963 & 1968) - Peter BedfordPeter BedfordPeter Lawrence Anthony "Wheels" Bedford is a former Australian Rules footballer. He is best known for his time at Victorian Football League team South Melbourne, but he also played eight games for Carlton....
(1970) - Graham TeasdaleGraham TeasdaleGraham Teasdale is a former Australian rules football player who played for the Richmond Football Club in the VFL between 1972 and 1975, for the South Melbourne Football Club from 1975 to 1981 and then for the Collingwood Football Club from 1982 to 1984....
(1977) - Barry RoundBarry RoundBarry Round played for Footscray and South Melbourne/Sydney in the Victorian Football League between 1969 and 1985. Along the way, he played 328 games , won a Brownlow Medal in 1981 and was the Swans' first captain during the Sydney era...
(1981) (co-winner)
Sydney
- Greg Williams (1986 co-winner)
- Gerard HealyGerard HealyGerard Healy is a former Australian rules footballer and commentator.Healy attended St Bede's College in Mentone, where he was the Senior Football Captain.-Melbourne Demons:...
(1988) - Paul KellyPaul Kelly (footballer)Paul Kelly is a former Australian rules footballer, winner of the Brownlow Medal and captain of the Sydney Swans for ten seasons. He was and still is known to Swans fans everywhere as "Captain Courageous"....
(1995) - Adam GoodesAdam GoodesAdam Goodes is a professional Australian rules football player with the Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League ....
(2003 co-winner & 2006)
Australian Football Hall of Fame inductees
- Bob SkiltonBob SkiltonRobert John "Bob" Skilton was an Australian rules football player who played as a rover for South Melbourne and Victoria between 1956 and 1971....
(Legend) - Roy CazalyRoy CazalyRoy Cazaly was an Australian rules football player famous for his high marks and ruck work, which gave rise to the phrase "Up There Cazaly".-Early life/career:...
(Legend) - Bob PrattBob PrattHarold Robert "Bob" Pratt was a former Australian rules footballer from Mitcham, Victoria.Pratt played with South Melbourne Football Club in the Victorian Football League from 1930–1939 and again in 1946, and with the Coburg Football Club in the Victorian Football Association from 1940 to 1941...
(Legend) - Herbie MatthewsHerbie MatthewsHerbie Matthews was an Australian rules footballer who played for South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League. He was recruited from suburban Fairfield under the League's "father and son" rule. His father, 'Butcher' Matthews, partnered the great Roy Cazaly in South Melbourne's ruck...
- Mark TandyMark Tandy (Australian rules footballer)Mark "Napper" Tandy was an Australian rules footballer in the Victorian Football League in the early 20th century....
- Vic BelcherVic BelcherVic Belcher was an Australian rules footballer in the Victorian Football League.Belcher was a tireless ruckman for the South Melbourne Football Club who could also play in a key position...
- Laurie NashLaurie NashLaurence John "Laurie" Nash was a Test cricketer and Australian rules footballer. An inductee into the Australian Football Hall of Fame, Nash was a member of South Melbourne's 1933 premiership team, captained South Melbourne in 1937 and was the team's leading goal kicker in 1937 and 1945...
- Ron CleggRon CleggRon "Smokey" Clegg was an Australian rules footballer in the Victorian Football League.A brilliant key position player at either centre half-forward or centre half-back, he was awarded the Brownlow Medal in 1949 while playing with the then South Melbourne Football Club...
- Peter BedfordPeter BedfordPeter Lawrence Anthony "Wheels" Bedford is a former Australian Rules footballer. He is best known for his time at Victorian Football League team South Melbourne, but he also played eight games for Carlton....
- John RantallJohn RantallJohn "Mopsy" Rantall was an Australian rules footballer in the Victorian Football League.Originally from Cobden, Rantall moved to the South Melbourne Football Club where he debuted in 1963. He moved to North Melbourne Football Club with the intention of playing in a premiership side in 1973 and...
- Barry RoundBarry RoundBarry Round played for Footscray and South Melbourne/Sydney in the Victorian Football League between 1969 and 1985. Along the way, he played 328 games , won a Brownlow Medal in 1981 and was the Swans' first captain during the Sydney era...
- Greg Williams
- Gerard HealyGerard HealyGerard Healy is a former Australian rules footballer and commentator.Healy attended St Bede's College in Mentone, where he was the Senior Football Captain.-Melbourne Demons:...
- Paul Roos
- Tony LockettTony LockettAnthony Howard "Tony" Lockett is a former Australian rules football player. Lockett is the highest goal scorer in the history of the VFL/AFL with 1,360 goals in a career of 281 games, that commenced in 1983 with the St Kilda Football Club, and finished in 2002 with the Sydney Swans...
- Paul KellyPaul Kelly (footballer)Paul Kelly is a former Australian rules footballer, winner of the Brownlow Medal and captain of the Sydney Swans for ten seasons. He was and still is known to Swans fans everywhere as "Captain Courageous"....
Team of the Century
Sydney announced its team of the century on 8 August 2003:Administration
Directors:- Richard Colless Chairman (1993–present)
- Jason Ball
- Bob Campbell
- Andrew McMaster
- Robert Morgan
- Greg Paramor
- Rob Pascoe
- Andrew Pridham
CEOs:
- Andrew Ireland (Current)
- Myles Baron-Hay (2004–2009)
- Phil Mullen (Acting)
- Colin Seery
- Kelvin Templeton
- Jordan Sembel
Supported charities
- Wally Jackson Research Fund
- Sydney Australian Football Foundation (SAFF)
The Sydney Swans are sponsored by radio station Triple M
2MMM
2MMM is a radio station broadcasting in Sydney, Australia. Triple M Sydney is part of the Austereo Triple M network and broadcasts on the 104.9 MHz frequency.-The Early Days:...
which broadcasts all of its games, including finals, live. Occasionally, 702 ABC Sydney
702 ABC Sydney
702 ABC Sydney is an ABC radio station in Sydney, Australia. It is the flagship station in the ABC Local Radio network and broadcasts on 702 kHz on the AM dial....
may cover Swans matches if they are played on a Saturday afternoon, regardless of where they are playing. If they play in Sydney during that time schedule, appropriately 702 ABC Sydney will cover the match.
In 2008 Network Ten
Network Ten
Network Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...
broadcasted all Swans games played in Melbourne and outside of New South Wales live, but on a half-hour delay when played in Sydney. Occasionally, the Seven Network
Seven Network
The Seven Network is an Australian television network owned by Seven West Media Limited. It dates back to 4 November 1956, when the first stations on the VHF7 frequency were established in Melbourne and Sydney.It is currently the second largest network in the country in terms of population reach...
may broadcast Swans games, mainly on Sunday afternoons, live. Most of their games however are broadcast by Fox Sports.
See also
- List of former and current Swans' players' entries
- List of South Melbourne/Sydney Football Club coaches (includes their W/L records)
- Australian rules football in New South WalesAustralian rules football in New South WalesAustralian rules football in New South Wales has been played since the 1870s, however it has a troubled history in the state, traditionally lags in popularity as a winter sport behind the rugby football codes....
- Lake OvalLake OvalThe Lake Oval was an Australian rules football and cricket stadium located in Albert Park, Victoria. It was the home of the South Melbourne Football Club from 1878 until their relocation to Sydney in 1982 , and also of the South Melbourne Cricket Club...
– former home of the Swans - AFL CanberraAFL CanberraAFL Canberra is the governing body for Australian rules football in the Australian Capital Territory.In November 2010 the five AFL Canberra Premier Division clubs merged with the Premier Division clubs of the Queensland Australian Football League to form the North East Australian Football League...
– Sydney Swans reserves fields a team in this competition.
External links
- Official website of the AFL
- Official website of the Sydney Swans Football Club
- "Around the Grounds" web documentary about the Lakeside Oval
| South Melbourne/Sydney Swans VFL/AFL Premiership Teams |
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