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The 2014 AFL season will be an exciting time for the harbour city and its footy fans. The Swans and Giants have made some handy acquisitions in the trade period and with the draft to come, a few more quality kids will join their lists.
The formula for future grand final success hinges on player movements, both during the trade period and the draft, and all clubs in the competition have a strategy they believe will lead them to ultimate glory.
I will now have a look at what the Swans and Giants have done during the trading period to improve their squads, the draft picks they have available to use and their goals for 2014.
Sydney Swans
They secured the biggest name in the game, Buddy Franklin, from the newly crowned premiers a matter of weeks after the final siren.
A $10 million deal over nine years raised eyebrows around the country and led to the usual calls for a review (read: scrapping) of the cost of living allowance afforded to the Swans and Giants to assist their players with the cost of living in Australia’s most expensive city.
It was also a signing that gave an almighty backhand to the Giants, who were the hot favourites to sign Buddy all year until the 11th hour, when he opted for the Swans.
The Swans believe it is smart business to get Franklin and they have a great track record of player signings going back as far as Tony Lockett.
The Swans will also be looking to get fitness into players that struggled with injury during 2013.
Alex Johnson will be back after having a knee reconstruction which ruled him out for the 2013 season.
He is a valuable member of the Swans backline and has the ability to play on both short and tall forwards. He was a key fixture during their 2012 premiership year.
Others to return include Lewis Roberts-Thompson, Lewis Jetta, Sam Reid and Gary Rohan (technically returned this year, but I expect him to have much more impact in 2014), which makes for very impressive reading if you are a Swans fan.
The Swans have lost Shane Mumford to cross-town rivals the Giants and Jed Lamb is also expected to sign out west also.
Andrejs Everitt and Jesse White have left to go to Victoria for more opportunity.
I only expect the Swans to use their first three picks in the upcoming draft which are 15, 32 and 35 and they should land another quality player at pick 15.
All in all they have a mighty solid squad in all areas of the ground and they also have great depth, notwithstanding the players that have departed during the trade period.
Their midfield is a combination of hard running, balling winning players and they have speed to burn.
The Swans’ famed culture ensures players know what is required of them on game day and they are desperate not to let their teammates down.
They love the ‘one-percenters’ as much as they do kicking goals.
Nothing less than a top four finish will be expected by their fans and the media. The Swans should be eyeing off a top two spot considering the talent now calling the SCG home.
The Swans are definite grand final contenders.
GWS Giants
Two tough years at the top level have culminated in a total of three wins. This is definitely not good enough if you are hoping to attract and engage with new fans in an area where AFL is in its infancy.
Although this was expected, it was brutal nonetheless.
Kevin Sheedy had a mandate to play kids and get games into them, which he did.
His marketing of the club was at times good and at other times very, very poor and it is questionable whether he still had the ability to coach at the top level.
The Giants lost out on Buddy but they did make some valuable acquisitions that will benefit the team in the long term and add a better balance to the team.
They secured dual premiership ruckman Shane Mumford from the Swans, premiership defender Heath Shaw from Collingwood and dual premiership defender Josh Hunt from Geelong.
They are also due to sign Jed Lamb from the Swans to add some extra depth to the midfield.
The ruck and defence were massive problem areas for the Giants in their first two seasons.
Jonathan Giles has battled away predominately on his own in the centre square and this took a toll not only on him but the team also, regularly getting smashed in the clearances.
Mumford will be the number one ruckman, with Giles supporting him.
Phil Davis, Stephen Gilham and Tim Mohr would be delighted to see Shaw and Hunt join the club and provide extra help down back.
They have been under immense pressure for the past two seasons as the ball continued to fly into the defensive 50. The addition of experienced premiership players is a massive plus for this end of the ground.
The trade period saw six young players move from the club and was headlined by Dom Tyson going to Melbourne and Taylor Adams going to Collingwood.
What the Giants also managed to do was improve an already strong position in the draft. They have picks one, two, 14, and 29 (which is all I expect them to use), which will ensure Tom Boyd and at least two other quality young players join the club.
The key for the club is to improve their fitness levels and skills. Their decision making under pressure and fatigue also needs dramatic improvement.
There were signs during games in 2013 of just how good the kids at the Giants could be, however nearly every game fell the same way, with them running out of legs in the second half.
They have great midfield depth, led by Callan Ward and Tom Scully. The ability of the kids who are now heading into either their third or second season is to try and emulate previous midfield champions who were able to run all day (think Shane Crawford, Ben Cousins, Robert Harvey etc).
The forward line they are putting together at the moment could be really damaging in the next two to four years.
Jonathon Patton and Boyd will most likely rotate between full forward and centre half forward, with Jeremy Cameron given a licence to roam and do as he pleases.
Cameron has shown only in his second season just how talented he is and how important he is to the long term future of the Giants.
The Giants will now work towards trying to emulate their cross-town rivals, where regular finals footy is expected.
They have great home grounds at Skoda Stadium in Homebush and Manuka Oval in Canberra and their new training facility at Tom Wills Oval, also in Homebush.
The Giants should be aiming for a Suns-esque third season in the big time, however I don’t see them winning eight games next year.
A realistic target is five or six wins and for Leon Cameron to stamp his authority and game plan on this team.
If you are a footy fan in NSW the teams are set to entertain you.
The Swans have an already solid and premiership winning list, the Giants are building towards the same level.
I for one am looking forward to what these teams will produce in the next few years and also the day when the Sydney derby is a legitimate contest, rather than a training run for the Swans and a guaranteed eight premiership points.
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