Sydney coach John Longmire addresses Sam Taylor’s ‘smug’ comments, downplays Wicks drama

John Longmire isn’t buying into comments from GWS’ Sam Taylor that his side his smug and downplayed any concerns around Sam Wicks heading into Saturday’s Sydney derby.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – APRIL 28: John Longmire, Senior Coach of the Swans addresses his players during the 2024 AFL Round 07 match between the Hawthorn Hawks and the Sydney Swans at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on April 28, 2024 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

The Giants’ claim that the Swans are a “smug” team heading into this weekend’s Sydney Derby is water off a horse’s back for John Longmire who insists his team’s sole focus is on restricting one of the most exciting sides in the AFL.

On Monday, GWS defender Sam Taylor stated that there is dislike between the two teams who both sit in the top four ahead of Saturday’s clash.

Longmire said he wasn’t concerned by the comments and insisted his headaches revolved around the amount of talent the Giants are set to welcome back, including Taylor, Toby Greene and Stephen Coniglio.

“I wasn’t so much focused on the comments, I didn’t read them,” Longmire said.

The Giants are set to be boosted by the return of three of their biggest stars for the Sydney Derby. Picture: Phil Hillyard

“This is a team that last week defeated last year’s grand finalists by nine goals and had those three guys out. They’re playing super footy … they’ve got some young players that have come in and done a great job, so I’ve been looking at that and trying to move our magnets around as well.

“They don’t have a bad player at the moment, there’s no question. I think about that a lot, sometimes a bit too much. If you sit back and look at their best stats, both teams have been pretty similar, but their form has been outstanding and their depth, it’s not just one player doing it.

“I’m looking at what they do well, their speed, their ability to set mark. They’ve got a reasonable player in Jesse Hogan. You’d have to ask them a bit more detail about what that’s about. I’m not focused on that, I’m looking at the game itself and excited about that.”

The Giants are currently the best attacking team in the competition, while the Swans have the second-best defence. It creates a mouth-watering contest between two of the premiership favourites this season.

Longmire feels that the two sets of players inherently know each other’s game by now considering how the rivalry has developed, with the result coming down to individual brilliance on the day. And he’s so far resisted the call to lean on former Giants coach and current Swans head of football Leon Cameron for any insider knowledge.

A starring performance in the VFL from Luke Parker has him set for an AFL return. Picture: Phil Hillyard

“He hasn’t said anything yet, he hasn’t given me anything so I’ll have to ask him,” Longmire said.

“We know the Giants well and they know us well. We’ve also got Mark McVeigh, they’ve got some staff members from us. In the end, both teams know each other well and how they play as individuals.

“It just goes into the game with we’ll see what we get, knowing from my perspective how much respect I’ve got for that team. And Leon would reinforce that, how good their players are.”

The Swans are set to welcome back Luke Parker this week after he impressed in his VFL return, amassing 34 disposals against Box Hill. Dane Rampe is also in the frame to make a comeback as he progresses strongly following a hamstring strain.

Longmire also confirmed that Braeden Campbell will likely not spend a third consecutive week as the sub, while Will Hayward was one of a couple of players being managed through knocks this week.

“Parks and Ramps, we’ll see how their training goes this week,” Longmire said. “They’ll have a run around (on Tuesday) and hopefully they get going and feel good.

“The important one will be on Thursday and after training pick the team hoping those two are available. (With Parker), we’ve just got to make sure we set him up for the season … we want to win this week, but it’s about the season.

“I’d like to play (Braeden) at senior level. He was a bit quiet for a couple of weeks but we know he’s a really flexible player … we’d like to get him some more game time.

“We’re hoping (Will) is okay. There’s a couple of those guys that won’t do a lot today at training, they’ll just have a jog. We’re confident that they’ll be prepared and we’ll know more Thursday about what the squad looks like.”

Longmire hosed down any concerns around continued disharmony in the squad surrounding Sam Wicks. Picture: Phil Hillyard

The experienced coach also played down any concerns around squad harmony following footage of Sam Wicks that circulated online following the Hawthorn game.

Longmire felt confident that his team had moved on from the incident that saw Wicks miss two games of football earlier in the season, with the team emphasis on celebrating the process and not the end result.

“Chad Warner kicked a goal in similar circumstances and no one got around him,” he said. “We’ve been focused on celebrating the players that caused the goal, rather than the outcome.

“All I can say is that with Sam, I think it’s going okay. If you look at how Sam is going, he’s played a valuable role in our team over the last couple of weeks. And I think from the team’s perspective, we dealt with that a month ago, and we’ve all moved on.”