Sydney coach John Longmire isn’t using the word rebuild but says it’s time for him and his AFL side to evolve after their 41-point AFL derby loss to GWS.
Confronting an unprecedented challenge in his AFL coaching career, Sydney mentor John Longmire says he and his team must evolve.
Sydney’s hopes of a 10th consecutive finals berth are fading fast after they slipped to 1-5 for the year with a 41-point loss to GWS in Saturday night’s derby.
Longmire’s team bounced back from a horror 0-6 start in 2017 to reach the finals.
That was the first time in VFL/AFL history that any side had started a season with five losses and contested finals, underlining how unlikely the Swans’ path to September was.
The current side is also far more inexperienced and youthful than the 2017 team.
“Over the last 15-20 years, we’ve been having a real crack,” Longmire pondered after the derby defeat.
“We’re still going to have a crack but we’re also going to keep bringing through that next bunch of players – and keep teaching and developing.
“We’ve just got to keep teaching them to play footy … we’ll try and fast-track it as quick as we can.”
Longmire didn’t use the word ‘rebuild’ during his post-match press conference but adopted a philosophical attitude after the loss, especially regarding the steep learning curve for his club’s youngsters.
“Losses are important, we understand that. We’ve got to teach our players to play football, and the younger players to play football together,” the coach said.
“I don’t say that lightly. It’s a different group and we’re just teaching them.
“We’re trying as hard as we can to get that team up and going, in a competitive way, as soon as we can.
“I actually really enjoyed the challenge tonight … and I hope our senior players did too because we need to evolve the team.”
Longmire coached from the bench at the SCG against the Giants, giving him a chance to deliver one-on-one feedback directly to players.
“I’ve got to evolve too. I’ve done a little bit of it over the pre-season, recognising the changing (nature) of the group,” Longmire said.
Lance Franklin was a late withdrawal from the derby because of a hamstring strain.
Franklin joined former captains Kieren Jack and Jarrad McVeigh, veteran defenders Heath Grundy and Nick Smith, ruckman Sam Naismith and former Geelong forward Daniel Menzel on the sidelines for the Swans.
Longmire is upbeat a disappointed Franklin could return against Brisbane on Saturday.
“We spent a bit of time talking about it, umming and ahhing about it, but we just didn’t take the risk,” he said.
The perennial finalists have now lost seven of their past eight games at the SCG, a venue that has been a fortress for so much of the past decade.
Mark
Guest
The Swans will not make finals this year (I think everyone agrees on that) but they actually should have a big war-chest to spend at the end of this season on free agents. After moving Rohan and Hannebery on (both on good money) last off-season they made unsuccessful offers for Langdon and Moore. The following players, all on good money, will almost certainly finish up this year - McVeigh, Grundy, Jack, possibly Smith. They have a good record at developing young players and given their young, developing list, they are not far off getting back into premiership contention. But not this year.
clipper
Roar Rookie
The Swans had a great run over a good number of years, so a poor start or a poor year really isn't unexpected. What will be telling is how they cope with a bad run and if they can bounce back. Crowds still holding up - 30k, although it was a derby and almost 100k on FTA in Sydney, pretty good result.
Paul D
Roar Guru
I do recall you saying Longmire was going to struggle bigtime now he can't just put an extra man down back - certainly that seems to be the narrative so far. Be interested to watch how Sydney goes about it next weekend - I do think at some point Longmire needs to be a bit more longer term - do things like play Mills and Heeney through the middle, and maybe also send Buddy off to get himself fit with an idea of sustainability on this contract they're gonna have to eat for the next 3 years - you'd think they'd want him actually in a state to take the field for most of that. Your Ferrari doesn't move fast when it's up on blocks in the backyard. And for god's sake pension off McVeigh already
anon
Roar Pro
Longmire's choices have got him to the position he's in (bottom 4 club playing an awful style). It doesn't make sense that he will save them.
User
Roar Rookie
Given time and minor blip are a tad different
DingoGray
Roar Guru
I would argue that there has been some significant evolvement in their list in the last 12 months. I would say however that coaching department certainly hasn’t evolved. That’s the best step for the Swans. Whether that’s a new Head Coach or some more additions of new ideas to the assistants or more involvement and bit of horse pardon the pun but loosening of the reigns?
michael RVC
Roar Pro
Gutsless tripe from someone who will not declare. You are irrelevant.
anon
Roar Pro
You can only get big names if you have the money to spend, or occasionally you'll get a big name take less than they are worth to go to a current premiership contender. Swans are a bottom 4 side into the forseeable future and have no money for other big stars. They also don't have the advantage of players demanding to be traded to the home state as a Fremantle or West Coast do.
anon
Roar Pro
Of course they'll miss. You're the one who thinks this is just a minor blip.
Aus in Engerland
Guest
We all know what the original purpose of the COLA was; to help with the higher cost of living in Sydney, that ALL players on the list who live in Sydney are subjected to. We also know that Sydney treated it one way (as extra salary cap) and the AFL was unhappy about this. One thing I didn't realise is that the COLA was actually replaced by what should have been there in the first place. A rent allowance paid by the AFL. From the AFL equalisation statement of 4/6/2014... 'replace the current Cost of Living Allowance for the Sydney Swans and GWS Giants with a rental subsidy for each player on below average player payments. The rental subsidy to be paid direct to players by the AFL'. In other words there is still extra payments, but they go directly to the players (outside of the salary cap) and is weighted towards the lower end of the salary scale. But regardless, as Anon points out, there is nearly 4 years and $5Mill left of the Buddy contract. Buddy is already 32 and missing more of each season with injuries. We all love (yes, even the non Swans supporters like me) to see Buddy at his best. It's just exciting. But it looks like it will become more and more a rarity. And taking up so much salary on an occasional impact player leaves you short elsewhere. Will we in 2021 or 2022 see a Buddy-less Sydney on the field, but with a Buddy impacted wage bill off it? As Sydney lover Jake Niall wrote in 2017... 'The combination of no COLA and the Tippett-Franklin deals (which prompted COLA’s removal) means the Swans can’t pick up many mid-range players from other clubs.' And that's an important point. They have tried to free up salary cap (Mitchell, Rohan, Hannebury), but are letting go those middle/top end players to do so. It's making the list unbalanced/hurting depth, however you wish to put it. And like many commentators on here, I don't feel optimistic re the Swans over the next few years. But we write off the Swans at our peril. They do have a history of pulling recruiting rabbits out of the hat, getting the high impact players that bring in the crowds. Think Warrick Capper, Tony Lockett, Barry 'the thug' Hall and Buddy.
User
Roar Rookie
Nah after being finalists for 9yr averaging a gf every 3 years in that time, they'll miss more than likely.
anon
Roar Pro
Finals next year? Put your money where your mouth is.
User
Roar Rookie
Given time I reckon horse, Dean Cox, Stevie j, a ceo like Tom Harley and a few others certainly have greater footy accumen to transition the swans than those hollering the house is burning.
Asd
Guest
need more prongs up forward need players everywhere . Long mire looks like he doesn't enjoy the job now wont play finals for quite some time now.
anon
Roar Pro
Groin strains, hamstring strains. All bad signs for Franklin who still has 3 seasons and 16 games to run on his contract and has just under $5 million owing to him. They look like an old team that got close to the summit, know that their best days are behind them, know that the game plan doesn't cut it against good teams, so why bother.
MG
Roar Rookie
Fitzgerald's comment that the Swans will never win a cup while Buddy is there was worse. The 2016 Grand Final umpires certainly read that memo.
The Ghost
Guest
Sydney are officially a joke. Persisting with Longmire is folly. Enough is enough! How long will Bloods fans have to suffer before appropriate action is taken?
Roger of Sydney
Guest
When they lined up at the start the swans looked like a school boy team in comparison to the giants, bigger bodies, better over head and when the run slows in the second half the power of bigger bodies is still there. They will get better as the year goes on and at least last night they had a red hot crack, but we have some structural issues that won't go away now.
michael RVC
Roar Pro
A simple, fair article. Many teams including the other best 2 or 3 teams in the comp apart from Sydney have been through this.
The Regulator
Roar Rookie
Bloody oath Rod. AFL would be seething at Fitzpatrick's decision to pacify the likes of Eddie McGuire who has a clear dislike for Sydney in any way, shape or form (not just the football club). Sydney got absolutely crucified when they didn't do anything illegal. If they put it down to bring the integrity of the game into a disrepute, some sort of fine is adequate, not a two-year trade ban. Ridiculous overkill.