2010 AFL Season Preview - Sydney
By Allblack
So what to make of Sydney. They have just had their worst season in a while. Lost their best two forwards, one of the best rucks in the country and the coach announced his future retirement. Still consensus would tend to indicate people expect them to bounce back next year and not without good reason.
Their backline is bolstered with the return of Kennelly although a lot of the hard work is done for them by the midfield controlling the speed at which the ball can be moved forward by the opposition. LRT played a lot of football last year which I have to say I think is a bad thing. The sooner he isn’t in their best 22 will be an indication they are getting better. Richards has been reliable when on the field but his output definitely seemed down last year. Bolton is not getting any younger but keeps on going and finds a way to negate the good forwards. Mattner proved a very good pick up as did Shaw who for mine still needs to tighten up. Malceski is a bit of a wildcard for them, he was a very good player before his “experimental” knee surgery and if he can rediscover that form he will make them a better team.
The midfield is hardly going to excite you. They will get the job done more often than not. Bolton though is showing signs the body has copped enough of a beating. Kirk is in a similar boat with his output dropping off a little last year and I expect it will drop further this year. McVeigh still has some improvement left. I rate McGlynn as a very handy pick up and think Kennedy will also be really good for them. I don’t see either as a game breaker though. Jack shows promise and I would expect to see a little more of Goodes back in the midfield this year after spending more time up forward last year. I don’t think the midfield has improved which must be a worry for Roos.
The forward line looks good. Bradshaw is a gun. If he can keep his body right I think he will have a really strong year. I think Rohan and Jetta will see game time up forward this year and both are exciting prospects. O’keefe started to find some form again towards the end of last season but expect he will spend more time bolstering the midfield. Jesse White is a really exciting prospect who I think will come along even further under the guidance of Bradshaw. I would also think Veszpremi will get more games this year and should show improvement.
The rucks are going to be interesting. They have invested heavily in bringing across Seaby and Mumford. I don’t know whether Seaby is good enough to justify first ruck status and whilst I think Mumford still has improvement left I have no doubt Sydney paid above the odds. They have Pyke as well but would be hugely surprised if he is still on the list come season end. Overall though they have enough options and should be pretty solid.
Roos is a proven coach. His record is amazing with the talent he had had at his disposal. For that reason I would never write them off. He builds a unit better than anyone else in AFL football. At the same time I suspect a lot of the coaching duties were undertaken by Longmire last year and expect maybe even more this year. I don’t rate him nearly as highly.
I think those talking of the Swans making the 8 are premature. I am not convinced last year was a down year but more the aging list struggling with a heavy game plan. I think even with some good trading and drafting last year they will still struggle to improve enough to make the 8. I think 10-11 for them is about the mark.