Sydney Swans veteran Jarrad McVeigh still motivated for success as he prepares for 17th AFL season
Jarrad McVeigh has never worked harder or put in longer hours and the Swans veteran still leaps out of bed in the morning with the vigour of a man far from finished with his AFL career.
Sydney
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Jarrad McVeigh has never worked harder or put in longer hours at the office but the Swans veteran still leaps out of bed in the morning with the vigour of a man far from finished with the business of winning.
The 33-year-old is about to tackle his 17th campaign and believes John Longmire’s squad has the right blend to ‘really push the top teams’ this season.
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McVeigh is confident a mix of youth and experience and individuals with the smarts to make big calls under pressure bodes well for the campaign ahead.
After a solid pre-season, McVeigh is full of optimism ahead of tomorrow night’s clash with the Western Bulldogs and he’s clear where the key to victory lies.
“Both teams respect each other highly,” he said. “Their midfielders are some of the best in the competition. It’s always midfield versus midfield to see who gets that ascendancy but that’s where it’s going to be won or lost. (Jack) Macrae and (Lachie) Hunter. They’ve got Liber (Tom Liberatore) back now, those hard nuts inside with elite hands. We’re going to have to be on our game to close that down.”
But McVeigh is adamant the Swans have enough weapons in their own set up to cause their hosts some real headaches.
“We don’t want to look too far ahead but we think we’ve got a good mix to really push the top teams,” he said.
“Our younger players were blooded a lot over the last few years. They’ve played 20 to 30 games which is a good mark and they’ll be looking to step up and really assert their careers this season. Hayward, Papley, Jonesy, those types of players that we’ve got full faith in. They’ve played in big games and they know what’s required. Then we’ve got that good youth coming through. The draftees who’ve come through this year look pretty good and I’m sure we’ll see them this year. Then you’ve got those older players who can blend in as well.”
He admits life has changed considerably in the day-to-day business of football preparation.
“The hours have gone up considerably,” he said. “(At the start) we were getting home at 12 o’clock most days. Now it’s seven till five. You’ve got so many more meetings, there’s recovery staff, then your game plan and training.
“Look it’s evolved but I still get out of bed every morning and am really excited to come to training. I love training and love being around the football club environment.
“I think mentally (as a more experienced player) you’re probably a lot stronger and more resilient and understand what’s required more.
“And working with these younger players, it keeps you up to date and you want to compete with them.”
He isn’t looking beyond round one at this point but admits he cherishes moments more as he approaches his 34th birthday.
“One of my favourite parts is when you’re driving to the game and seeing the crowd come in just looking at their faces and knowing they’re coming to watch you I guess,” he said.
The AFL news cycle has been filled this week with the disgraceful trolling of Tayla Harris with McVeigh wary of the social media environment.
“We speak about it to our players all the time,” he said. “I’m personally not on social media so I haven’t seen a lot of the stuff but I know our players after a win or loss cop a lot of abuse so I think it’s good people are calling it out. The conversation’s started and hopefully we can celebrate all forms of football and just appreciate what women and men bring to the game.”