Past Ryan O'Keefe - 2012 Norm Smith medalist, retired 2014

[Horts]

He wants to play next year. Said that a fair few times this year. He just isn't best 22 for us anymore. If he retires he will get a lap at ANZ

I just don't understand how the club is made to look like the bad guy in all of this. Not only on BF but from friends and colleagues all not believing the Swans won't give him a farewell game. None of whom have actually seen any of his performances this year and seen first hand how he's playing. Look at the Swans Facebook page every time they post team selection Thursday nights, full of nonsense about ROK.

If you're retiring, you get a thank you sendoff.

If you want to play on but are not required at your current club then you need to decide what you're going to do. You can't opt to explore opportunities elsewhere and still expect a send off at the club you'll be playing against next year. Makes 0 sense.

 

[The King!]

ROK started the year best 22 he was poor and he has not played well enough to get back simple as that, been a great servant but also been well paid for it

 

[The King!]

If he retires after 2 years elsewhere he can still come back for a lap and acknowledgement

 

[balldman]

He had tears in his eyes as he exited the field today in the Ressies realizing it will be the last time he steps on to the SCG in Swans colours.
It spoke volumes to me that in the guard of honour for LRT,ALL his teammates minus the topups,were there except for him.It was a sad note for a fellow Premiership member to end on.
As others have said,he will always be a dual Premiership player.

 

[RW]

It is sad, but it's one of the harsh realities of football, the game stands still for no one, even a dual premiership player.

He's had a magnificent career in the red and white, first as a talented half forward flanker (he was brilliant in the 2005 preliminary final) and later on as an incredibly tough and hard working midfielder.

 

[Tedeski]

It is very hard for a team sitting on top & fighting to gain that home final advantage, to just hand out a game to someone even as well loved & respected as Rhino. For starters, a player that may need important game time come finals will miss out on a game. Who? If someone who isn't capable to follow the gameplan should suddenly come in, then it can affect the whole flow of the game.

I have no doubt that the club would much rather Rhino calls it a day so that they can give him the send off that many of our other players have had when not finishing in the seniors.
He has expressed his desire to continue playing elsewhere so that in itself makes such a farewell very awkward as he hasn't actually retired.
I'll back the club. There are always going to be some unhappy players when exiting this game.
Lockett, Hall. Remember them?

 

[robbieando]

Heck even if he just "retired" so we could give him a nice send off and then most would't care (including myself) if he "thought it over" and gave it one more crack in case we needed him in the coming weeks or if he found another club for next year.

 

[Sydney Bloods]

Rhino will always be loved, as always i'm against a send off game. thats what s**t teams do, you make this team on form and commitment.

no one can ever question Rhino's commitment one of the greatest blokes to ever don the red and white.
but the form's not there, now we have young guys coming through in form and trying to prove their commitment to the club.

what does it say to them if we play guys who are out of form ahead of them?
carlton done that and they have gone from good to ok to crap
collingwood have done that and they have gone from great to good to serviceable.

the moment you start down a path of jobs for boys it becomes a slippery slope, not even goodes deserves a send off game when he's 58 and retires as an 26 time premiership winner.

that said, ROK decides to play on i think the swans should do something not many teams do..... that is when he decides to finally hang up the boots if we face the team he's playing for after he announces he'll be hanging up the boots, I say win lose or draw this club gives him an honour guard after the siren win lose or draw............ unless he's in a ******* richmond jumper.

and if we don't face the team he's playing for heck it, I say we call them up and tell them (don't ask we tell them, he's more important then their pitiful club) to have him at the SCG for the last game of the year and give him an honour guard anyway.

 

[DeadlyAkkuret]

I know we're all about foot speed and pressure acts etc. but am I the only one struggling to believe that O'Keefe would have less of an impact than Towers or B. Jack earlier in the year?

 

[melbournehammer]

I know we're all about foot speed and pressure acts etc. but am I the only one struggling to believe that O'Keefe would have less of an impact than Towers or B. Jack earlier in the year?

Speaking only for myself the answer to that question is yes if it is returning to play as a half forward flanker with goodes, Tippett, Reid and buddy in the forward line.

I said in the pre season he was painfully slow as a midfielder but as an inside midfielder you can hide a bit. I was at the Geelong game at skilled last season where he got moved onto bartel as a forward and if he didn't mark it, he simply couldn't get near it - and the Geelong back six don't have oodles of pace - rivers, lonergan, enright, Taylor, bartel - none of them are quick.

It wouldn't have surprised me if we had kept him in as a mid that over the course of the season he may have played some good footy and been in our bests occasionally, but no way known as a hff

 

[PaulRoos]

I was listening to Pebbles on ABC Radio for the call of the Swans v Saints game ...

Think life in footy after the boots could wel be with a mic. Yes good call and good insight into the game.

Well done. Ryan.

 

[Heeney2Franklin]

The injuries to Kennedy and Bird, however, will not pave the way for a fairytale recall for Ryan O'Keefe. This is despite the veteran's playing a similar inside role to Kennedy and Bird in the Swans' midfield.

"It's unlikely," Longmire said.
.

 

[GotTheGoodes]

He had tears in his eyes as he exited the field today in the Ressies realizing it will be the last time he steps on to the SCG in Swans colours.
It spoke volumes to me that in the guard of honour for LRT,ALL his teammates minus the topups,were there except for him.It was a sad note for a fellow Premiership member to end on.
As others have said,he will always be a dual Premiership player.

So ROK wasn't in LRT's guard of honour?

 

[sportsfan7]

So ROK wasn't in LRT's guard of honour?

Jared Crouch was also there!

 

[db swannie]

It is sad, but it's one of the harsh realities of football, the game stands still for no one, even a dual premiership player.

He's had a magnificent career in the red and white, first as a talented half forward flanker (he was brilliant in the 2005 preliminary final) and later on as an incredibly tough and hard working midfielder.

I will never foregt that final quarter against st Kilda, he was on absolute fire, kicked that goal from 50 that pretty much sealed the match, it was a great effort.

 

[db swannie]

I know we're all about foot speed and pressure acts etc. but am I the only one struggling to believe that O'Keefe would have less of an impact than Towers or B. Jack earlier in the year?

I think so. If he was playing well enough he'd get the call, but obviously he isn't.

 

[db swannie]

I couldn't help myself, I had to go and watch the highlights again:

 

[baja]

I think so. If he was playing well enough he'd get the call, but obviously he isn't.

He ranks the highest nearly every week in DT and SC scores, sorry but not getting to see them play I don't have a lot more to go by than that but it certainly raises my eyebrows every week especially when he doesn't get a mention with the numbers he keeps getting.

 

[Punts]

You need to go and watch the 2s and you will realise Baja. He is out of gas mate

 

[baja]

You need to go and watch the 2s and you will realise Baja. He is out of gas mate

fair enough but like I said if like me you don't get to see the games his numbers make you question it

 

[Tuco]

Is anyone on the board close enough to the guy to know what he's thinking? LRT pulled the pin knowing he wouldn't play again this year. But we're getting doughnuts from ROK at the moment.

Playing finals, I wouldn't expect him to pull the pin until the last chance to make a Morton-style cameo in the GF is past.

This means at best we might not get a chance for a "send off" until a lap of the ground during a home final? But if he's intending on playing on next year we may never know as a fan base until the trade period. If he leaves for another club willing to take a punt during the off season, we'll be losing a Norm Smith Medallist and Premiership legend of the club without so much as a golf clap.

Barry Hall got a send off in a car to a full house, and pretty much went to the dogs and said in the media his time up here was behind him, and looked forward to retiring and being thought of as a Bulldog.

 

[GoTheSwannies]

hall "retired" unofficially if i remember correctly. his time for us was up so he got a proper send off.

rok still has a slight chance of playing, and may find himself at another club next year, plus he's stuck in the reserves, so makes it all a bit difficult.

any chance of a send off against Richmond? or will that be an opportunity to get a game into a youngster?

 

[GoTheSwannies]

I couldn't help myself, I had to go and watch the highlights again:

that quarter was beautiful. the pressure and composure we had. and we just about took every opportunity we had and made it count. awesome quarter of footy by the whole team.

i watched the first half of the 05 gf the other day. that half was played quite well as well. soaked up the early pressure, pegged the goals back and built a lead, then kept posession to go in at half time on top. ill get around to the 2nd half soon enough

 

[The King!]

Who cares if ROK does do a lap or not, maybe he doesnt want to do one

 

[bedford]

It not the sort of stuff he likes