Gary Rohan
When a player is talked up by a former coach or manager before he’s drafted, it’s easy to take it with little more than a grain of salt due to the expectations placed on all draftees taken within the first round. In Rohan’s case, early praise from an excited Michael Turner wasn’t the only reason Sydney supporters took notice of the number 6 pick.
Blessed with the hair and skin tone that matched the colours of his newfound team and a natural speed and flair to go with it, Rohan and the Swans seemed to be a match made in heaven. Sydney was in need of an excitement machine and by all reports Gary was exactly that.
His debut didn’t come until round 7 that year, but Rohan would have felt relatively comfortable for a first gamer playing on the ground where he played much of his junior football. It wasn’t a high possession debut and Gary most certainly knew he was playing senior footy, but in difficult conditions he managed to slot a goal and impressed with his ferocity at the ball. We all knew he could be exciting, but he was equally as hard at it.
One of his most telling performances to date came in round 11, 2010, against the Bombers. In a game that was in the balance for the entirety, Rohan produced three crucial goals and looked incredibly composed given the circumstances of the match. It was his best performance of the season, but only a small sign of things to come. The very next week he showed that flair wasn’t the only string to his bow, by diving and sliding around the feet of a Port Adelaide player in his fearless endeavour for the ball.
After the glimpses of brilliance from 2010, it was hard not to be anxious about seeing more of Rohan in 2011. Unfortunately, his super sub effort against West Coast turned into a 4 month teaser as he was sidelined by a hamstring injury. As if he wanted to show us what we’d been missing, he kicked a blinder in only his second game back for the club in a historic win against Geelong which broke a 29 game winning streak, a lightning run down the wing of Kardinia that ended with a celebration to fit the occasion. In a mini purple patch for Rohan, he nailed a goal of the week nomination the following week from an impossible angle, the best of his three goals on the night.
It’s very early days but if Rohan continues to improve and doesn’t take a backward step, he could be a genuine match winner and the perfect replacement for the dual Brownlow medallist who currently owns that mantle.
Player review Submitted by DeadlyAkkuret
