Player Watch #5 Isaac Heeney

[Kennedy Parker]

Isaac Heeney

Isaac Heeney

5

Isaac Heeney

Age

27

Ht

185cm

Wt

88kg

Pos.

M/F

Career

Season

Last 5

D

18.2

5star

K

10.4

4star

HB

7.7

5star

M

4.9

5star

T

4.1

5star

CL

2.2

4star

D

14.3

3star

K

8.8

4star

HB

5.5

3star

M

4.8

4star

T

2.5

3star

CL

0.8

3star

D

10.4

3star

K

7.2

3star

HB

3.2

3star

M

2.8

3star

T

2.4

4star

CL

0.8

3star

is a crowd favourite and one of the best young players in the competition. The QBE Sydney Swans Academy graduate won the 2018 AFL Mark of the Year award, was selected in the AFL Players’ Association’s 22Under22 team in two of his eligible four years and played his 100th senior game in 2019. Heeney can be used in the midfield, forward line – where he booted four goals in star teammate Lance Franklin’s absence in Round 20 last year – or as a loose man in defence.

Isaac Heeney

5

Isaac Heeney

Age

27

Ht

185cm

Wt

88kg

Pos.

M/F

Career

Season

Last 5

D

18.2

5star

K

10.4

4star

HB

7.7

5star

M

4.9

5star

T

4.1

5star

CL

2.2

4star

D

14.3

3star

K

8.8

4star

HB

5.5

3star

M

4.8

4star

T

2.5

3star

CL

0.8

3star

D

10.4

3star

K

7.2

3star

HB

3.2

3star

M

2.8

3star

T

2.4

4star

CL

0.8

3star

DOB: 05 May 1996
DEBUT: 2015
DRAFT: #18, 2014 National Draft
RECRUITED FROM: Cardiff (NSW)

Isaac Heeney | AFL

Follow Isaac Heeney's progress through AFL

www.sydneyswans.com.au

 

[RUNVS]

OK, and if he doesn't, then what?

It isn't like we will drop him or trade him, but it means he won't have the impact he probably should have, his career won't be seen in the light it should have and there are games the Swans might lose that we probably shouldn't have either.

 

[caesar88]

It isn't like we will drop him or trade him, but it means he won't have the impact he probably should have, his career won't be seen in the light it should have and there are games the Swans might lose that we probably shouldn't have either.

We wouldn't be in the eight this year without Heeney. He is 3rd in our goalkicking and a lock in our top 5 for the B&F this year. He's been as pivotal in our rise this year as anyone on our list, so again I ask, at what point do we stop focusing on what he's not, and start enjoying him for what he is?

 

[Grand Uncle Horace]

Like Buddy, he is just fun to watch.

 

[RUNVS]

We wouldn't be in the eight this year without Heeney. He is 3rd in our goalkicking and a lock in our top 5 for the B&F this year. He's been as pivotal in our rise this year as anyone on our list, so again I ask, at what point do we stop focusing on what he's not, and start enjoying him for what he is?

Except he can be better. If we simply accepted players for who they are and did not try and make B players into A+ players we would not be doing our job as a football club. I mean look at Richards, if we went with your philosophy then he never would have become one of the best key defenders in the game as we would have been happy with what he was producing before that and gone "well he is good enough, no need to try and improve him"

 

[caesar88]

Except he can be better. If we simply accepted players for who they are and did not try and make B players into A+ players we would not be doing our job as a football club. I mean look at Richards, if we went with your philosophy then he never would have become one of the best key defenders in the game as we would have been happy with what he was producing before that and gone "well he is good enough, no need to try and improve him"

It's like you're not content that Heeney is an obvious A grader. It's really weird to be essentially looking for faults in one of our absolute best players simply because he has some quiet games.

But alright, I'll join in. Personally I think Hickey's been a huge disappointment as he's not really on Max Gawn's level.

Buddy is over the hill. Those few games he needed to be managed have cost him the chance to kick 1,000 this year. Does he even want to reach that milestone? You have to wonder... I'm beginning to think his motivation is waning in his final years.

Dawson needs to lift. Averaging under 3 tackles a game. I've always said he has a laconic style, but I'm amending that now... he's just downright lazy!

Mills attending a rugby match that became an exposure site? Six weeks out from finals? Is he taking this leadership thing seriously enough? Needs to pull his finger out if he ever wants to be a future captain.

And why isn't Errol as good as Sam Walsh yet? Is he yet another Swans youngster we've over-rated?

 

[RampeRobe]

Except he can be better. If we simply accepted players for who they are and did not try and make B players into A+ players we would not be doing our job as a football club. I mean look at Richards, if we went with your philosophy then he never would have become one of the best key defenders in the game as we would have been happy with what he was producing before that and gone "well he is good enough, no need to try and improve him"

Your logic is very flawed, essentially comparing apples to oranges.
You can’t put every player in the same basket, Heeney and Richards opposite ends of the talent spectrum, opposite ends of the field, Heeney plays arguably the hardest position in the football field, where defending is arguably the easiest. It’s like you think Isaac isn’t trying to get better or doesn’t want to play like he did on the weekend every week, he is incredibly talented but is also the product of a system which may not allow him to perform that way every week.
I think you need to take a step back and appreciate him for what he is.

 

[Grand Uncle Horace]

Your logic is very flawed, essentially comparing apples to oranges.
You can’t put every player in the same basket, Heeney and Richards opposite ends of the talent spectrum, opposite ends of the field, Heeney plays arguably the hardest position in the football field, where defending is arguably the easiest. It’s like you think Isaac isn’t trying to get better or doesn’t want to play like he did on the weekend every week, he is incredibly talented but is also the product of a system which may not allow him to perform that way every week.
I think you need to take a step back and appreciate him for what he is.

Horse has also called him out for his gutsy ability to front up and play through injuries.

His biggest weakness may be being crazy brave.

 

[S120]

I've made the comparison before but I think Heeney's next step will be similar to what Goodes' next step was after he won his first Brownlow. He wanted to be in the leadership group but wasn't voted in basically because he was seen to work on his own game to perfection but didn't drag other players along with him as much, didn't lead in a way which made others better enough. I think Heeney has that next level to go to - he clearly prepares himself to a tee but he has another level to go to when it comes to being the player who makes others better. He made the leadership group for the 2019 season but hasn't been in it since. And that's OK, not every ultra-talented player has to be in the leadership group (see Bud) but I think he does have leadership aspirations and can make that improvement to his game over the next few years to take himself another notch higher with his consistency.

 

[RUNVS]

It's like you're not content that Heeney is an obvious A grader. It's really weird to be essentially looking for faults in one of our absolute best players simply because he has some quiet games.

His inconsistency is a flaw, and a flaw that should be reasonably easy to improve. He has the skills, he just needs to be more consistently at the level we know he can produce. Look at guys like Kennedy, or Buddy, in their prime they would hardly even have a slightly down game, even the down games they did have they were still heavily contributing.

Also I am judging Heeney harshly, but only because I know how good he is. The truly A grade players don't have down games like Heeney has.

 

[caesar88]

His inconsistency is a flaw, and a flaw that should be reasonably easy to improve. He has the skills, he just needs to be more consistently at the level we know he can produce. Look at guys like Kennedy, or Buddy, in their prime they would hardly even have a slightly down game, even the down games they did have they were still heavily contributing.

Also I am judging Heeney harshly, but only because I know how good he is. The truly A grade players don't have down games like Heeney has.

You're comparing him to Buddy who is a key forward and JPK who is a pure mid. Name me one A grader whose position is a medium forward and then I'll judge him against them.

 

[grimlock]

Will be interesting to see where he plays this week. His move to the wing in the 2nd half of GWS sparked this spurt of form but with Cunningham returning it will necessitate a reshuffle of Dawson out of defence and possibly back to the wing.

 

[Wolftone]

I am glad he had a great game, but he has these flashes of brilliant games, and then goes quiet. It's not like I want Heeney to fail, but I want him to string some consistently great performances together. Recency bias is taking over right now when discussing Heeney's overall form

I think consistency is a matter of his body not being quite right. He seems to have trained off the soft tissue injuries he had before. His ankle seems to be ok. Sometimes a sprained ankle can be painful but not stop you doing stuff. But it impedes that stuff and you do not do them as well. His whole problem is that he hasn't had too much time where there has not been an injury interrupting his progress.

 

[Grand Uncle Horace]

I've made the comparison before but I think Heeney's next step will be similar to what Goodes' next step was after he won his first Brownlow. He wanted to be in the leadership group but wasn't voted in basically because he was seen to work on his own game to perfection but didn't drag other players along with him as much, didn't lead in a way which made others better enough. I think Heeney has that next level to go to - he clearly prepares himself to a tee but he has another level to go to when it comes to being the player who makes others better. He made the leadership group for the 2019 season but hasn't been in it since. And that's OK, not every ultra-talented player has to be in the leadership group (see Bud) but I think he does have leadership aspirations and can make that improvement to his game over the next few years to take himself another notch higher with his consistency.

I think it is hard with the mercurial talents he and Bud possess. For me Buddy leads in all sorts of ways and is clearly a team first person. He spends heaps of time with younger players and I am sure all our Fwds benefit from his support and insights. Bud is also a Footy Nerd. I love how he follows junior comps and pesters our recruiters with his thoughts.

Not saying Bud's path is the one Isaac should tread but I hope he finds his own way. As a person he seems to have inherited the Hanners mantle - a laughing, cheeky chatterbox. Any interview with him shows Isaac is smart and bloody funny. Just imagine going to the Footy with him as a spectator and some of your mates.

Just looking at some other great players who I think may have been ill equipped for leadership for a moment-

*Even without trying to recruit players to his prayer circle, Little Gazza was simply ill equipped to take a leadership role.

*I would also argue Buckley was not the best choice for the Pies.

 

[caesar88]

I think it is hard with the mercurial talents he and Bud possess. For me Buddy leads in all sorts of ways and is clearly a team first person. He spends heaps of time with younger players and I am sure all our Fwds benefit from his support and insights. Bud is also a Footy Nerd. I love how he follows junior comps and pesters our recruiters with his thoughts.

Not saying Bud's path is the one Isaac should tread but I hope he finds his own way. As a person he seems to have inherited the Hanners mantle - a laughing, cheeky chatterbox. Any interview with him shows Isaac is smart and bloody funny. Just imagine going to the Footy with him as a spectator and some of your mates.

Just looking at some other great players who I think may have been ill equipped for leadership for a moment-

*Even without trying to recruit players to his prayer circle, Little Gazza was simply ill equipped to take a leadership role.

*I would also argue Buckley was not the best choice for the Pies.

Nat Fyfe was also given the captaincy as part of his deal to re-sign with Freo in 2017. The playing group wanted Mundy with Lee Spurr as VC. He is not that popular with the squad.

 

[Grand Uncle Horace]

Nat Fyfe was also given the captaincy as part of his deal to re-sign with Freo in 2017. The playing group wanted Mundy with Lee Spurr as VC. He is not that popular with the squad.

Interesting. Fyfe is another crazy brave player. However I get the players' view. Mundy is a wonderful composed player who gets the best out of himself. I have long wished he played for us.

 

[S120]

Will be interesting to see where he plays this week. His move to the wing in the 2nd half of GWS sparked this spurt of form but with Cunningham returning it will necessitate a reshuffle of Dawson out of defence and possibly back to the wing.

I could see the changes being:

Cunningham into the back pocket --> Dawson back to the wing --> Gulden back to HF/pocket --> Ronke out

Mills into the midfield --> Rowbottom out

McDonald/Amartey into the forward line --> Bud out

That'd leave Heeney to play his current wing/CHF roaming role. I'm sure the coaches will want to settle the side down properly from now with Mills/Cunningham returning to be as stable heading into finals as possible.

 

[the hypnotoad]

Except he can be better. If we simply accepted players for who they are and did not try and make B players into A+ players we would not be doing our job as a football club. I mean look at Richards, if we went with your philosophy then he never would have become one of the best key defenders in the game as we would have been happy with what he was producing before that and gone "well he is good enough, no need to try and improve him"

you're saying heeney is currently a "B player"??? ...
and the idea that heeney himself isn't trying to be better every week ... wow
your thinking in both these 'arguments' is incomprehensible to me

 

[RUNVS]

you're saying heeney is currently a "B player"??? ...
and the idea that heeney himself isn't trying to be better every week ... wow
your thinking in both these 'arguments' is incomprehensible to me

His best is A+, but there is a reason why he hasn't ever been an AA while many in his draft class have been. Has Heeney ever been in the top 40 list for AA selection?

 

[the hypnotoad]

His best is A+, but there is a reason why he hasn't ever been an AA while many in his draft class have been. Has Heeney ever been in the top 40 list for AA selection?

i don't really care about that and i'm not sure it backs up your case
how many deserving sydney players are overlooked for AA every year?
how many deserving players across the league miss out?
if heeney played at any of the big vic clubs he'd have been AA by now, on hype/potential backed up by games like sunday's

yes, his best is definitely A+, and most of the rest of the time he's still an A-grader ...
but i'm not sure why this is still even a debate ... as C88 has posted, following your line of argument, what do you want the end result to be? an ultimatum to heeney: "live up to your potential by X date, or you have no future here" ...
we're now in a premiership window, earlier than any of us thought, and we can confidently say that window is open for five years at least, with good player management and a fair go with injuries ... heeney is a superstar who can win a grand final ...
if we were in richmond's position, or collingwood's, maybe you'd consider trading a player of heeney's ability for a very lucrative deal of young stars/draft picks ... maybe ...

 

[DeadlyAkkuret]

This is bloody tiresome. I guess we know we’re traveling ok when the best we can come up with is to pick holes out of the game of one of our best players.

It seems like a miserable pastime to me.


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[TheMase]

Looking at his stats this year I would say he has had 4 what I would consider bad games

Round 4 - 9 disposals, 2 behinds, 0 tackles, 0 clearances
Round 7 - 7 disposals, 0 goals, 1 behind, 0 tackles, 0 clearances
Round 13 - 10 disposals, 1 goal, 1 behind, 3 tackles, 2 clearances
Round 15 - 14 disposals, 0 goals, 3 behinds, 2 clearances

Isaac Heeney of the Sydney Swans AFL Games Played Stats

Isaac Heeney of the Sydney Swans AFL games played and stats.

www.footywire.com

Those are pretty bad games where he basically contributes nothing. He needs to eliminate these sort of games.

Following round 4 he missed round 5
Following round 7 he missed round 8

So one might assume he was injured during those games.

Not sure I would call Round 15 a bad game. 7 score involvements.

Not as bad as it seems to me.

 

[Heeney2Franklin]

This is bloody tiresome. I guess we know we’re traveling ok when the best we can come up with is to pick hole out of the game of one of our best players.

It seems like a miserable pastime to me.


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People just want Heeney to be in the top 5 players in the comp.

 

[Ticky009]

Will be interesting to see where he plays this week. His move to the wing in the 2nd half of GWS sparked this spurt of form but with Cunningham returning it will necessitate a reshuffle of Dawson out of defence and possibly back to the wing.

They might swing it when we have Dawson off the ground and do it that way.

 

[Olian]

They might swing it when we have Dawson off the ground and do it that way.

Dawson could go forward as another tall option with Heeney on the wing. Rotate them that way.

 

[rustycrate]

a