Media Swans Talk in the Media 2025

[Ticky009]

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[giantsully]

I managed to get into the article again. Here's an AI summary


AFL Leadership Drama During Grand Final Week
As the AFL’s Grand Final festivities unfold, behind-the-scenes tensions are brewing over who will succeed Richard Goyder as chair of the AFL Commission. A key figure in the saga—Sydney Swans president Andrew Pridham—was conspicuously absent from major events, including a crucial meeting between club presidents and the commission.

Key Points:

• Pridham has been central to a push for greater club influence in the succession process.
• There are competing narratives: some say Pridham is trying to steer the outcome, others accuse Goyder of doing the same, and some are frustrated with both.
• Goyder chairs the selection committee, which has shortlisted Craig Drummond, Peter Gordon, and Peter Allen.
• Essendon chair David Barham stirred controversy by demanding clubs vote on the next commissioner, dividing opinion among presidents.
• Pridham supports Jeff Browne—his MA Financial colleague and former Collingwood president—who withdrew from the formal process but may still make a late bid.
• Pridham’s absence has sparked speculation, with some wondering if he’s sulking over setbacks.

The AFR (and the Oz) have been running a bunch of articles on this, many suggesting that Pridham has been the puppet master in challenging Goyder's approach to finding his replacement. I didn't realise until these articles that Browne is Chair of MA Financial (Colless also sits on one of the Boards, may not be the main one).

It's all messy in a "power boys will be boys" sort of a way.

 

[MF]

It's ****ing idiotic and cringe that we hang our hat on it.

Yeah, outside of being an amusing way to trigger Collingwood supporters on the main board I'd rather we just kept it quiet.

If you don't actually support a club in any tangible way (buying a membership, attending games or purchasing merchandise), you're not really a supporter, they're just your favourite team.

 

[bedford]

Yeah, outside of being an amusing way to trigger Collingwood supporters on the main board I'd rather we just kept it quiet.

If you don't actually support a club in any tangible way (buying a membership, attending games or purchasing merchandise), you're not really a supporter, they're just your favourite team.

This sums it up MF
As i said it's just crap and some get sucked in, i'm happy with the size of our membership , it's outstanding and will hopefully grow

 

[TheGoatBaron]

Yeah, outside of being an amusing way to trigger Collingwood supporters on the main board I'd rather we just kept it quiet.

If you don't actually support a club in any tangible way (buying a membership, attending games or purchasing merchandise), you're not really a supporter, they're just your favourite team.

To be fair, I can't get up those big steps without help at stadiums like the MCG and Marvel Stadiums, so I can't go to games anymore like I use to. It's easier for me to attend concerts. I'm still an AFL Swans supporting member though

 

[MF]

To be fair, I can't get up those big steps without help at stadiums like the MCG and Marvel Stadiums, so I can't go to games anymore like I use to. It's easier for me to attend concerts. I'm still an AFL Swans supporting member though

It definitely wasn't meant as a dig at anyone who doesn't attend games etc. I think if you have attended a game, purchased a membership or even brought merchandise from the club at some stage in the past you can still consider yourself a supporter.

My argument was that I doubt most of the supposed 1.2m "supporters" estimated from that poll have actually done any of that at any stage.

I know you're a diehard.

 

[TheGoatBaron]

It definitely wasn't meant as a dig at anyone who doesn't attend games etc. I think if you have attended a game, purchased a membership or even brought merchandise from the club at some stage in the past you can still consider yourself a supporter.

My argument was that I doubt very much most of the supposed 1.2m "supporters" estimated from that poll have actually done any of that at any stage.

I know you're a diehard.

Yeah point taken. And most of these people would be from NSW who would just say the Swans as their team because they're local

 

[bedford]

Yeah point taken. And most of these people would be from NSW who would just say the Swans as their team because they're local

Pinching my posts goat goat lol

 

[Big Blood]

This survey comes up every year. I'm sure the NRL one has Melbourne Storm as having a million supporters too

 

[TheGoatBaron]

Pinching my posts goat goat lol

Not my fault great minds think alike

 

[bedford]

This survey comes up every year. I'm sure the NRL one has Melbourne Storm as having a million supporters too

Probably every Victorian that doesn't follow League , so even more

 

[bedford]

Not my fault great minds think alike

And bad knees

 

[kickthething]

Why worry about this, it’s simply to give sponsors a ballpark number when considering where to spend their chashola. It’s go nothing to do w memberships or actually actively supporting the Swans……

 

[bedford]

Why worry about this, it’s simply to give sponsors a ballpark number when considering where to spend their chashola. It’s go nothing to do w memberships or actually actively supporting the Swans……

I don't worry , it's just false , how's that

 

[SM]

To be fair, I can't get up those big steps without help at stadiums like the MCG and Marvel Stadiums, so I can't go to games anymore like I use to. It's easier for me to attend concerts. I'm still an AFL Swans supporting member though

But you watch games, support the club actively, etc. the point is that stopping people on the street and asking them to name their favourite AFL club doesn't mean they do any of that.

 

[Arwib]

Yeah, outside of being an amusing way to trigger Collingwood supporters on the main board I'd rather we just kept it quiet.

If you don't actually support a club in any tangible way (buying a membership, attending games or purchasing merchandise), you're not really a supporter, they're just your favourite team.

This stuff is far less binary than I think people are accepting here. The big thing the Roy Morgan stuff shows for me is just how atypical committed fans are. It's market research, they're starting by asking what people are into, and they're getting like nearly half of all adults reporting being into the AFL, then going on to ask subsequent questions of the segment indicating fandom.

But the thing is, most people who consider themselves footy fans are far more casual than any of us posting on big footy dot com could ever be. League-wide, in RM's data a few years ago, only about 75% of the footy fan respondents reported watching a single game on TV in the last year, and only about 30% reported attending a single game. That's for all clubs, even the clubs in football states. We had more like 60% indicating any TV viewership, southern state clubs had more like 80%, but that's still not 100% now is it?

But in the end, clubs and sponsors are absolutely interested in the raw number of eyeballs they're getting on their logos, not just the ones who are buying memberships and going to games every other week, so the info has enough value to someone that they keep collecting it. That million people who are gonna at least potentially see QBE on the Swans kit at least a couple times a year, and positively associate it with the club they like, has value to both the Swans and QBE. It's why the Swans are pretty much the club with the highest sponsorship revenue in the league, give or take West Coast's corporate boxes revenue. Lots of eyeballs in Sydney and Melbourne is valuable stuff.

Interestingly, some of the more detailed Roy Morgan breakdowns in past years have also shown that the Swans also have just about the largest raw numbers of people who reported watching them on TV, and going to a game as well. It's just that the ratio of those things to the total million plus "supporter base" is lower, and the other implication comparing attendances and ratings is that a lot of people who consider themselves Swans fans are going to one or two games a year, rather than more often, and not catching them on TV all that often.

 

[bedford]

McKirdy has a story on Code about the 10 things that went wrong for us this year

 

[Adnico26Parker]

Is the Skilton being streamed ?

Just saw in this IG post about Tom Harley’s farewell that it’s being live-streamed

 

[Ticky009]

 

[The Blue Max]

Interesting we have 18 coming up in 2027, Nick Rampe will be due for another 5 year contract!

 

[KTT]

Interesting we have 18 coming up in 2027, Nick Rampe will be due for another 5 year contract!

Yep, been thinking about that.. Bugger all next year OOC - Rampe, Cunningham, Adams, Lloyd all likely to retire
Truckloads of OOC in 2027 - May be that we're thinking trading in 2026, and contracted players get a better return.
I think 2026 (being the year before Tassie come in) will be a massive trade / draft period.

What ever it is, there seems to be a clear plan

 

[robbieando]

Yep, been thinking about that.. Bugger all next year OOC - Rampe, Cunningham, Adams, Lloyd all likely to retire
Truckloads of OOC in 2027 - May be that we're thinking trading in 2026, and contracted players get a better return.
I think 2026 (being the year before Tassie come in) will be a massive trade / draft period.

What ever it is, there seems to be a clear plan

There is a pretty simple reason actually. The current CBA ends after the 2027 season and there is no set salary cap increase until that is done.

So most clubs won’t commit long term to the majority of their lists outside of their Top 10 players until they start to get an idea from the league what the projections are for the new TV rights deal which determine the CBA and in turn what the 2028 and beyond salary caps will be.

 

[bedford]

We read the same things

 

[Adnico26Parker]

Chris Keane on Trade Radio this morning:

 

[bedford]

Code reporter Jess Robinson has a Hayward story , she's the one who 1st brought up the trade last week

 

[hairy biker]

No Cookies | CODE Sports

No Cookies | CODE Sports

www.codesports.com.au

Admire his honesty.

(Hayward regarding his FA call) “I’m fully aware at the end of the day, it’s a business, you do what’s best for your business and sometimes that can be pretty brutal"

“There was probably a stage through the first half of the year (2024) where I genuinely thought I was going to be at another club.
I remember saying to Horse, you know, if this is where we sit, I’ll probably be at another club next year.
Not because I want to be, I don’t want to go to another club but the gap’s too big or whatever
I said I just need a little bit more from you guys, he was so understanding."

As to the future;

“I love this club, they drafted me, they’ve developed me and it’s a really good place to work..." and in regard to this year's trade rumours he's heard nothing "that has legs just yet”.