Injured Collingwood great Dane Swan hopes he hasn’t played his last AFL game, but says he holds no fears about life after football.
The Brownlow medallist says he doesn’t know if he’ll fully recover from breaking three bones in his right foot in Collingwood’s season-opening loss to Sydney.
Swan said he would push to return late in the season.
“I’m certainly going to try and come back as early as possible,” he told the Nine Network’s The Footy Show on Thursday night.
Swan expects to find out during his lay-off whether he has the desire to extend his decorated career into next season.
“The next three months will give me a real good feel of how I feel, about actually if I miss footy,” Swan said.
” … Or if I have a real passion to play and miss being out there and being able to help the side … if that makes you want to extend it for another year or however long.
“I know I might be like `you know what, I don’t really miss it at all’.
“So that is something that will play out over the next 10 weeks, to see if I actually do really miss playing footy.”
Swan said he wasn’t fearful of the end to his playing career.
“I don’t have any fear about not playing AFL footy,” he said.
“I think I’m ready for my next stage of my life, whether that is at the end of this year or the year after or the year after that.
“But it will come and I’m actually really looking forward to the next stage of my life.”
Swan said he also wasn’t scared of being told by Collingwood that he was no longer required.
“I will have Collingwood’s best interests at heart too. I owe them a lot more than they owe me,” he said.
Swan said if the Magpies believed his body could no longer be trusted “I’m happy to shake hands and leave.
“Right now I’m just worried about getting my foot sorted,” he said.
anon
Guest
"Dane Swan is a guy I feel as though I should dislike." He's a grub. Beat up a guy and left him with an intellectual disability in the early 2000's. Went away with a big payout from Swanny!
DingoGray
Roar Guru
Swanny is not done. He probably make a bigger contribution at Full Forward then the Spud they've got playing there at the moment.
JamesH
Roar Guru
Dane Swan is a guy I feel as though I should dislike. He plays for Collingwood (which should be enough of a reason to put me off), he has tattoos all the way down to his fingers and feet, he hangs out with Dustin Martin and he's been known to associate with bikies. But I just find myself admiring him. There is something about him that is engaging, to the point where his interview was far and away the highlight of last night's Footy Show. Maybe it's the dry sense of humour, or his relaxed attitude towards life. Perhaps it's his frank honesty - his complete acceptance of the notion that his club owes him nothing was refreshing. Or maybe it's just that a keg-on-legs who doesn't fit the elite footballer stereotype can become one of the most decorated (pardon the pun) footballers of the modern era. I can't believe I'm saying it, but the game will miss him when he goes.