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

DavyRed

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When theres a quality academy player, we take them (for a variety of reasons), ie, Campbell, Gulden, Blakey, Mills, Heeney - theres a lot of recent top picks. It means we dont take the player/type of player/position that we might have otherwise.
eg.. If we finish with p10 last year. All of our picks go towards Campbell and Gulden and we probably have a late pick to choose from the draft pool. If Campbell and Gulden dont exist, then we take a mid 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th round player from the pool with free reign to choose what type of player we want/need
Dont get me wrong, Im a huge fan of the Academy and this year am just as excited about Sheather as the other two (Good size and one of the quickest in this years draft)

We are tied in a way. We want to support the Academy.. We get those players on the cheap.. makes sense to match the bids and we always do.
hypothetical.. Next draft we might have a top 10 academy kid who plays small forward, but our genuine need is a tall defender. History says we pick the academy kid with our early picks and get a tall defender later in the draft.

Theres been a lot of praise for Dalrymple and his ability, just saying it will be nice to see his work
Thanks for clarifying.

I would hope that the selection of an Academy boy in the first round of the draft would be based primarily on their comparative football abilities, rather than just because they’re an Academy boy.
 

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Norm Smith Medallist
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Thanks for clarifying.

I would hope that the selection of an Academy boy in the first round of the draft would be based primarily on their comparative football abilities, rather than just because they’re an Academy boy.

Unless the AFL changes the bidding system, scenarios where we need to make those decisions are going to be really rare.
 
Jan 13, 2007
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Thanks for clarifying.

I would hope that the selection of an Academy boy in the first round of the draft would be based primarily on their comparative football abilities, rather than just because they’re an Academy boy.
I’m not sure that our history of selection of Academy graduates is suggestive of an undue bias towards them. All of those selected (matched) in the first round have justified their selection.
 
I’m not sure that our history of selection of Academy graduates is suggestive of an undue bias towards them. All of those selected (matched) in the first round have justified their selection.
Besides the first round, would anyone really have selected Marc sheather or James bell unless the swans took them?
 
Probably not. It is good to see Academy players being drafted by other clubs though, shows the system is working.
As a Sydney/NSW local I too love seeing local boys being drafted. So it definitely is very good to see players like Marc and James but also Luke Parks being drafted as it shows that people from NSW have a working system that they can be drafted from.
 
Feb 28, 2007
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As a Sydney/NSW local I too love seeing local boys being drafted. So it definitely is very good to see players like Marc and James but also Luke Parks being drafted as it shows that people from NSW have a working system that they can be drafted from.

Players in our academy are only going to get more notice soon because many of the players in their draft year will likely be playing in our reserves side, which they did anyway but now the reserves side will be regularly playing in Victoria where there is a lot more media and a lot more recruiters watching.
 

Ralphyboy

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Besides the first round, would anyone really have selected Marc sheather or James bell unless the swans took them?
Probably not, but once you get down to Cat B rookie the players are being selected for what they will become not what they are. On that basis, and given the lack of interest from other clubs in Sydney AFL, it is only the Academy who will know what talent these kids have. It is no different to a kid in Melbourne who has gone through the local and school comps, is well know to a particular club. That club might take him because they believe in him. A club in Sydney will not have these insights and so will favour it's own talent. Common sense really.
 

Ralphyboy

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I’m not sure that our history of selection of Academy graduates is suggestive of an undue bias towards them. All of those selected (matched) in the first round have justified their selection.
There is no undue bias. The swans and the academy are separate when it comes to recruiting. There are some advantages to a kid being in the swans academy, that are no different to any other kid in the country that develops in close proximity to an AFL club. For example a kid might play in Melbourne and be known by the AFL community there. This might give the kid a little bit of an edge in recruitment. For the swans they know the kids in the academy, they also know whether the kid will fit their playing style, and they know the kid will not suffer the go home factor. Further their costs are less for a sydney based kid, and there is a ready made family and friends network.

For these reasons where two kids are on an even footing but one is from Sydney the swans will most likely take the sydney kid.

I think in recent years the academy selections have proved to be either elite; heeney, mills etc, or if cat b; bell, wicks etc that they are easily the equal of other recruits on offer. It is a good program that is definitely contributing to establishing a good sydney side.
 
Aug 25, 2008
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Besides the first round, would anyone really have selected Marc sheather or James bell unless the swans took them?

Probably not, but you can say that about most rookie picks. The reason they get to the rookie draft is that they're speculative.

Do we think anybody else was lining up to nab Malachy Carruthers?
 
I'm really looking forward to when a NSW player gets drafted by a vic team only to return after their draft contract expires in 2 years.
 

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Norm Smith Medallist
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So predictable the uproar since we won with Gulden dominating. Some people are just incapable of seeing the forest for the trees.


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It's pointless engaging in the discussion because supporters want every advantage, perceived or real, removed from other clubs without acknowledging the advantages that come back to them.

The academies are an advantage to the Northern States.

But having 95% of the draft pool coming from VIC/SA/WA is an advantage to the teams in those states both in retaining and attracting talent.

The non NSW/QLD teams using GWS and Gold Coast as their training academy and poaching player after player after player is an advantage.

Richmond playing 10 games in a row (or whatever it was) at the MCG is an advantage.

The SA and WA clubs only having to compete with eachother when one of the many many SA and WA players want to come home is an advantage.

Vic teams only having to travel 5 or 6 times a year is an advantage.

Finishing 7th on the ladder and getting a home grand final against the team that finished 1st is a nice little advantage.

I could go on and on.
 
It's pointless engaging in the discussion because supporters want every advantage, perceived or real, removed from other clubs without acknowledging the advantages that come back to them.

The academies are an advantage to the Northern States.

But having 95% of the draft pool coming from VIC/SA/WA is an advantage to the teams in those states both in retaining and attracting talent.

The non NSW/QLD teams using GWS and Gold Coast as their training academy and poaching player after player after player is an advantage.

Richmond playing 10 games in a row (or whatever it was) at the MCG is an advantage.

The SA and WA clubs only having to compete with eachother when one of the many many SA and WA players want to come home is an advantage.

Vic teams only having to travel 5 or 6 times a year is an advantage.

Finishing 7th on the ladder and getting a home grand final against the team that finished 1st is a nice little advantage.

I could go on and on.

The grand final being at the MCG for the next 49 years as well was a slap in the face of it being a national competition.
 

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Norm Smith Medallist
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The grand final being at the MCG for the next 49 years as well was a slap in the face of it being a national competition.

I have no issue with the Grand Final being at the MCG. It's the best stadium in the country and the traditional home of football. I wouldn't want the GF anywhere else.

But I do have an issue with the Vic media and supporters who think it isn't a massive advantage to Victorian teams to play there against interstate teams.
 
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I have no issue with the Grand Final being at the MCG. It's the best stadium in the country and the traditional home of football. I wouldn't want the GF anywhere else.

But I do have an issue with the Vic media and supporters who think it isn't a massive advantage to Victorian teams to play there against interstate teams.
My issue is locking the grand final there doesn’t incentivize stadiums around Australia in increasing their capacity to potentially support hosting a grand final in the next 40 years.

A big Victorian middle finger to the rest of australia
 
Jan 13, 2007
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We wouldn't have had the points, we were sweating when we matched Campbell's bid a pick 5.

It was recently reported that the Swans expected him to be bid on around the early 20's
We’d have traded for the points. The Swans weren’t going to allow Gulden to be drafted elsewhere. No way. If I could see it, then they could see it.
 
lmao this is some bullshit crying foul over the main way NSW and QLD players are going to come into the league.

Guarantee you if the Academies are scrapped then NSW and QLD players will become obsolete.

Yeah I'm a VIC fan but idc about bias and all that. It's not like WA, VIC, SA clubs have an advantage from players wanting to stay home or come home...
 
Jan 13, 2007
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lmao this is some bullshit crying foul over the main way NSW and QLD players are going to come into the league.

Guarantee you if the Academies are scrapped then NSW and QLD players will become obsolete.

Yeah I'm a VIC fan but idc about bias and all that. It's not like WA, VIC, SA clubs have an advantage from players wanting to stay home or come home...

To be fair Adelaide don’t. They’re happy to get out!
 
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