2nds Official Swans Academy Thread (Player News and Discussion)

Tesla Tenet

Premiership Player
Apr 13, 2016
3,118
3,603
AFL Club
Sydney
Maybe the academies are better then the Vic boys..
61d0252bf2b6a51e15ac43915c1c3ef8.jpg


Sent from my SM-G965F using Tapatalk
 
Jul 20, 2001
23,300
28,501
Sydney
AFL Club
Sydney
Other Teams
Sydney Swans
In other news, in the NAB league Gulden is averaging 27 possies (20 k8cks, 7hb), 6 marks, 2 tackles, 2 r50s, 8 i50s and 1.3 goals a game.

Very tidy so far.

Edit: those looking for stats it is in the nableague app. Bit finicky but worth it

Bloody strong numbers for and under ager I would have thought!
 

Kolah

Senior List
Dec 29, 2016
209
375
AFL Club
Sydney
Based on the past couple of years, and the rules, the Cat b rookie spots are for the academy kids. Firstly they don't need to bid for an academy kid, they simply register as a cat b prior to draft night. Second the cat b player salary is not taken into account for the overall salary cap. Currently wicks and bell are cat B. Belly was taken in his draft year after a couple of allies games, and maybe the state combine. Wicks was taken in his nds year after being overlooked by allies twice, and no combine invites. His development this year is pointing to a smart pick by the swans.

Accordingly the swans are not beholden to the allies, combines etc. They are very interested in neafl performance and believe that pathway is actually superior to allies etc as it indicates how the player will perform within the swans framework, and against men. The allies is simply too random to give a reasonable indication.

Regarding some comment by Crouchy. I would be amazed if he denigrated the academy program like that. I can assure you from first hand experience that the academy staff strongly consider their program to be in advance of the victorian program. Their reasoning is:

1. The academy is run by swans coaching staff and forms part of an afl club. The NAB teams are standalone and do not implement afl club frameworks and programs
2. The level of training and fitness work at the swans is far more advanced than the NAB teams. At the swans they are taught how to perform gym work properly, they get serious nutrition and they must learn structures etc. An NDS player for example does a preseason with the senior squad and trains with the seniors during the year. It is widely accepted that an academy player drafted by the swans will be a year ahead of a nab cup player. Most nab cup players will not have experienced a proper preseason.
3. The academy players get to play neafl. They get to play against men and afl listed players. Most NAB cup players arrive never having played a senior game. For example cody hirst had never played a senior game before arriving at the swans.

I am sure that the academy staff would be very passionate about these differences. Their main issue is that the interstate recruiters still largely feel that they have enough talent in the traditional areas. I know, again from direct experience, that the interstate interest is growing and this year there is more interest than last year.

The swans recruitment team very consciously keep the academy and the recruiters separate. They deliberately make sure they simply recruit the very best players from all sources. When you look at the size of the pool in victoria it makes sense that they will pick the majority from there. It makes sense that only 1 perhaps 2 academy will be drafted. In previous years it has been 2 (bell/brown then blakey/wicks). To bias academy would be a disaster.

In my view the academy is doing everything it can to get the boys there. It was the swans who pushed to re enter the nab cup to give the boys more exposure, and it is the swans who have pushed to improve the allies coaching by getting crouchy onboard.

At this point in time it is the clubs outside of nsw who do not see the value in looking too closely at sydney players.

For an academy player this leaves you with the question, should I go to Victoria and play NAB football and get more exposure given the other clubs will not look too closely at Sydney players. This is a difficult question. Dan Robinson did it and got drafted back by the swans! In last couple of years a couple of swans academy kids have done it, and none of them got drafted. I know of one kid who was invited to move to victoria but chose to stay with the academy for the reasons above, and did get drafted.

The pros of moving are the opportunity to get exposure in front of 12 victorian clubs. The cons are many:

1. You lose the benefit of the academy program as outlined above
2. You run the risk of trashing your hsc year
3. You start at the bottom in a new team and club
4. You do not have mum and dad to support you.

On balance the victorian move is risky and frankly if you can overcome all of the obstacles in victoria you would be good enough to get drafted from Sydney anyway.

In my view kids are better staying in sydney. Play NDS, get better, then when they are better equipped head off to sanfl or VFL where they have a good run at being drafted.

Great post. Lots of information, clearly explained. Thank you for taking the time to write it up.


On iPad using BigFooty.com mobile app
 
Bloody strong numbers for and under ager I would have thought!

Great numbers indeed.

What has me most excited by Gulden is that nearly every post-match scouting note I’ve seen on him has been glowing in it’s praise of what he actually does with the footy. Consistent talk about his creative and classy footy, high risk/high reward plays that he manages to pull off more often than not, and how his left foot makes things happen. Those same points came up again and again. I haven’t seen much of him so I can’t vouch but here’s the link to all things Gulden-related from this year:

 
Aug 9, 2016
4,390
5,587
AFL Club
Sydney
Given where we are at as a club, the pathway to playing firsts in faster time is attainable for our academy recruits. Players like Gulden and Campbell and those before them will, in time, create a dynasty. I can see the day where the core of our team are all ex academy players. I'm excited at this prospect. Eddies (let's bone her) Macguire's eyes may start to bulge and steam come out of his ears before making a putrid mess everywhere but I'm keen for that small sacrifice
 

Opts

Club Legend
Aug 18, 2017
2,573
3,023
AFL Club
Sydney
Other Teams
Brisbane Lions
What's the situation with Jackson Barling? A couple of years ago he was being talked about as a first round pick but I've heard nothing of him this draft. Has he failed to develop?
 

Cynic2019

Draftee
Jul 30, 2019
17
23
AFL Club
Sydney
What's the situation with Jackson Barling? A couple of years ago he was being talked about as a first round pick but I've heard nothing of him this draft. Has he failed to develop?
Two years ago, he was the best of the crop. He was far more physically developed and bullied everyone with his strength. But he hasn't grown much in height. He still has a very solid skill set, but the rest of the boys have caught him in the asset that made him dominate. I think he can reinvent himself and maybe needs a role. He has been thrown around a lot. He is a very good player though.
 
The AFL today announced the squads for the 2019 NAB AFL All Stars Futures match to be played at the MCG as a curtain raiser to the 2019 Toyota AFL Grand Final on September 28 at 10:00am AEST.
Three players from the AFL NSW/ACT region have been selected to play, including Sydney Swans Academy duo, Braeden Campbell and Errol Gulden. Following in the footsteps of his big brother Tom who played in this match last year, Josh Green from the GIANTS Academy has also been selected.
 

Ralphyboy

All Australian
May 25, 2016
631
2,097
AFL Club
Sydney
The AFL today announced the squads for the 2019 NAB AFL All Stars Futures match to be played at the MCG as a curtain raiser to the 2019 Toyota AFL Grand Final on September 28 at 10:00am AEST.
Three players from the AFL NSW/ACT region have been selected to play, including Sydney Swans Academy duo, Braeden Campbell and Errol Gulden. Following in the footsteps of his big brother Tom who played in this match last year, Josh Green from the GIANTS Academy has also been selected.
I don't rate Power as a coach.
 

DavyRed

Club Legend
Nov 5, 2009
1,784
2,852
Sydney
AFL Club
Sydney
If you live and die by results as a coach, how Power stays in charge of the Allies is beyond understanding!
Maybe ‘we’ (i.e. The Allies) are our own worst enemies in that regard and have set low expectations because we’re “only” the Allies and nobody expects us to do any better. Consequently if Power continues to meet those low expectations those in control let him keep his job. Meanwhile the boys, with the exception of the one or two favourites, continue to suffer.
 

Blood red

Team Captain
Sep 12, 2018
459
384
AFL Club
Sydney
Maybe ‘we’ (i.e. The Allies) are our own worst enemies in that regard and have set low expectations because we’re “only” the Allies and nobody expects us to do any better. Consequently if Power continues to meet those low expectations those in control let him keep his job. Meanwhile the boys, with the exception of the one or two favourites, continue to suffer.
Maybe instead of Allies, there is a Qld, NSW and an Allies (Tas and NT) team playing the Nats!
Make it truly national!!
Let the coaches and selectors come from their state, and are responsible for the growth of the game!
 

Ralphyboy

All Australian
May 25, 2016
631
2,097
AFL Club
Sydney
I went to the neafl game on the weekend. Definitely rate Gulden. Admittedly the terrible conditions suited him, however has an amazing attack on the ball, and good sense in traffic. He might be small but is very powerfully built. Given his young age it will be interesting to see how he develops.

As for the reminder of the toppies who played, huge respect. They all cracked in against a very big and physical Brisbane. They took an absolute pounding but kept going. Especially that Matt Eagles would really smash them in the tackles. The umpires certainly worked very hard to protect the young players as they were afraid of serious injuries (I overheard them). In the end it was Amartey and McLean who got concussed.

Obviously the number of spots the swans has to recruit academy kids is limited but I hope lots of them keep going either in NEAFL, SANFL WAFL or VFL. They should know that they can really play.
 
I went to the neafl game on the weekend. Definitely rate Gulden. Admittedly the terrible conditions suited him, however has an amazing attack on the ball, and good sense in traffic. He might be small but is very powerfully built. Given his young age it will be interesting to see how he develops.

As for the reminder of the toppies who played, huge respect. They all cracked in against a very big and physical Brisbane. They took an absolute pounding but kept going. Especially that Matt Eagles would really smash them in the tackles. The umpires certainly worked very hard to protect the young players as they were afraid of serious injuries (I overheard them). In the end it was Amartey and McLean who got concussed.

Obviously the number of spots the swans has to recruit academy kids is limited but I hope lots of them keep going either in NEAFL, SANFL WAFL or VFL. They should know that they can really play.

Yes. The Toppies stuck to their task. I hope at least a couple find their way on to an AFL list, preferably ours.
 

DavyRed

Club Legend
Nov 5, 2009
1,784
2,852
Sydney
AFL Club
Sydney
I went to the neafl game on the weekend. Definitely rate Gulden. Admittedly the terrible conditions suited him, however has an amazing attack on the ball, and good sense in traffic. He might be small but is very powerfully built. Given his young age it will be interesting to see how he develops.

As for the reminder of the toppies who played, huge respect. They all cracked in against a very big and physical Brisbane. They took an absolute pounding but kept going. Especially that Matt Eagles would really smash them in the tackles. The umpires certainly worked very hard to protect the young players as they were afraid of serious injuries (I overheard them). In the end it was Amartey and McLean who got concussed.

Obviously the number of spots the swans has to recruit academy kids is limited but I hope lots of them keep going either in NEAFL, SANFL WAFL or VFL. They should know that they can really play.
Yep, from what I could tell on the YouTube coverage Eagles seemed to carry on like a real flog. I’m not sure how much he contributed to McLean’s concussion but that sling tackle that led to one of our goals in the last quarter looked brutal.
 
Jun 19, 2011
11,085
15,832
Sydney
AFL Club
Sydney
Other Teams
Wallabies
I love seeing these stories. Seeing more Sydney-born players making their way into the AFL is really exciting. A long way to go, but I think the club's strong last 20 years has turned a small corner in the city's perspective of footy. The Swans are an established and significant part of the city and footy is now increasingly a real option for young kids to pick up. Getting an AFLW side will be a great next step for that.
 
Did anyone else watch the game Gulden was supposedly BOG in over the weekend?

I gotta say I wasn't blown away. Got a fair bit of the pill (though didn't seem like much more than anyone else) but he wasn't particularly clean or damaging. It was a weird match, the play was very stop-and-start, kinda resembled a rugby game, and Gulden did try to break it open by taking the game on but wasn't overly effective. But he did allay some of my concerns about his size - kid's tough as nails and crashing and bashing amongst grown men far bigger and stronger than him didn't stop him from getting his hands on the footy.
 
Back