Andrew Pridham takes cheeky shot at NRL rivals over crowd sizes
The Sydney Swans are set to become the first sporting club in Australia to open their gates to 10,000 people. And getting to this point before rugby league wasn’t lost on Chairman Andrew Pridham.
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Sydney Swans Chairman Andrew Pridham has taken a cheeky shot at his NRL rivals, questioning whether league clubs could have even noticed the difference in not being allowed crowds.
The AFL giants are set to become the first sporting club in Australia to open its gates to 10,000 people on July 5 at the SCG against the Melbourne Demons, a landmark afternoon that for once, Peter V’landys can’t steal away.
Due to the SCG’s large 48,000-seat capacity, the Swans will be able to get more bums on seats than any Sydney NRL club or the GWS Giants once the NSW Government eases its restrictions on sporting attendances at the end of this month to allow 25 per cent capacity at stadiums.
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Pridham says it’s a fitting boost for the club, given he argues no sporting club in NSW has been more impacted by the COVID-19 lockouts than the Swans, who average over 30,000 fans to home matches as opposed to NRL teams who are mostly flat out drawing crowds half that size.
Not only are the Giants and Sydney-based NRL clubs not allowed crowds of 10,000, Pridham has mischievously questioned whether the Swans’ Sydney rivals could fill that many seats anyway.
“No, you could argue, some clubs and some codes may not even notice,” Pridham told The Daily Telegraph.
“GWS last year their average crowd was 11,000 and even if they could get to 10,000 they can’t have 10,000 because (the Government law is) 25 per cent capacity at stadiums.
“The NRL averages less than 15,000 for the Sydney clubs, so for us, it has affected us more than anyone else because our average crowd is 32,000.
“The reality is some don’t get 10,000 even without COVID.
“Our game against Melbourne will be the first sporting event in Australia this year to have 10,000 people in it, which will be good for us, good for the SCG and good for our supporters.
“We’d be the only club that would be allowed to do it.
“We’ve made very little noise, but we’ve probably got the most reason to make noise because we’re the most impacted by crowds not being able to come in.”
V’landys scored a decisive points victory over the AFL in successfully landing Project Apollo on May 28, two weeks before Gill McLachlan got his code back on the road.
Pridham says there is no satisfaction in getting one back on the NRL, other than the spotlight it shines on the Swans’ comparative ability to draw a big crowd.
“Look, not really. It’s a bit of amusement really, isn’t it for us,” he said.
“What’s nice is it gives us an opportunity to highlight that pre-COVID, we don’t make a lot of noise, but we’re the only club in NSW that gets an average crowd of over 30,000 people.
“No one else in Sydney is remotely close to that.
“We’re very focused on being able to get back to allowing our fans to come and watch the game. That’s more important to us than getting one over anybody.”
Pridham said economically, the return of crowds can’t come soon enough. Last week in the season restart against Essendon at the SCG where 350 fans were allowed through the gates, the Swans lost an estimated $25,000.
Even when 10,000 are allowed the Swans won’t make money. The SCG Trust also need fans back to make any cash.
“We’d have to get something like 20,000 in before we start making any money out of it,” he said.
“But it’s very important to us to give our fans the opportunity to come. And plus, you’ve got to get back to normal so you’ve got to get things happening.”
CAN MCCARTIN HELP FILL BUDDY’S BOOTS?
– Ben Horne
Collingwood premiership great Mick McGuane says the first half of the AFL season will prove once and for all whether Sydney Swans’ swingman Tom McCartin is a key forward.
The 20-year-old rising star will be parachuted into the void left by Lance Franklin against Essendon on Sunday, but the jury is still out on whether McCartin’s long-term future might in fact still be as a defender.
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Sydney originally saw the 193cm prospect as better suited to the back half of the field, but some of McCartin’s outstanding performances over the past two years upfront filling in for Sam Reid and Franklin has gone a long way to changing their minds.
The immense talent told The Sunday Telegraph during the COVID-19 lockdown that he was determined to play out his career in Sydney and 2020 shapes as a breakout year for the young talent who not so long ago was told by doctors he would almost certainly never play the game again following a neck scare.
McGuane says the Swans will find out plenty about the future shape of their side over the first half of the season without Franklin.
“Are they playing him forward out of necessity? Is he a defender?” McGuane said.
“It’s really his time and the club’s time to find out.”
Fellow young gun Nick Blakey — who at 195cm is suddenly Sydney’s tallest forward — said the Swans rookie brigade has the confidence to carry on without their leader.
Blakey and McCartin believe the Swans can still make an impact on the AFL this season with a changing of the guard.
“As a group we’re still really optimistic about what we can do,” Blakey said.
“We’re obviously a young forward group down there with Tommy McCartin probably going to be our key forward.
“We’re really optimistic about what we can do as a group and we’d obviously love to have Bud out there.
“He makes us a better team and us as a forward line, he makes all of our jobs a lot easier when he’s in the team.”
Meanwhile, one of the Swans’ most ardent supporters has had his name picked out of a ballot for a prized seat at the return from COVID-19 game against Essendon.
John Payne was a team manager and gear steward at the Swans for almost two decades, retiring at the end of 2018 – and now his loyalty has been rewarded.
Only 350 fans will be allowed into the SCG on Sunday, and Payne says the clash will fill a void that’s been missing since football went into lockdown.
“I’ve been a member since 1994 … it’ll be a marvellous opportunity to see a game live,” said Payne.
“It’ll be different to being there when there’s 40,000 people there. But this is the first step and the AFL and the clubs and players been really good.”
HEENEY’S WANTS TO BECOME AFL’S BEST
– Ben Horne
Isaac Heeney says he is driven by a desire to become the AFL’s No. 1 player.
The Sydney Swans golden boy was humbled by comparisons to Dustin Martin this week; so much so, he deliberately didn’t read the rare praise offered by AFL greats Brad Johnson and Michael O’Loughlin about his enormous potential this season.
Heeney is modest and isn’t in it for the adulation, but the fact is, there is a competitive beast within.
The kid bred in rugby league territory in Newcastle has declared he’s ready to take on the responsibility and spotlight of being the Sydney Swans spearhead with Lance Franklin sidelined for half the season.
Heeney feels he is a long way from eclipsing Martin as the game’s benchmark, but an insatiable hunger to be the best is the 24-year-old’s driving force.
“My ultimate goal is to win a premiership with the Swans, but the way you do that, for me, I want to be the best player I can be,” Heeney told News Corp Australia ahead of Sunday’s blockbuster season restart against Essendon at the SCG.
“That’s what gets me up out of bed every morning.
“I want to be that best player on the field this weekend. I want to be the best player in the comp one day.
“It definitely does drive me and it’s nice that people have said a few nice words. Now I’ve just got to back it up and not put too much pressure on myself.”
Johnson told News Corp Australia earlier this week that Heeney can become one of, “if not the best player in the competition.”
O’Loughlin said he sees no limit to what Heeney can achieve.
What did Heeney make of the effusive praise?
“I didn’t read the article. Some people sent it to me and I clicked away from it. I didn’t read it, thinking it’s a pretty big rap and I don’t’ want to put too much pressure on myself,” he said.
Heeney has had a spotlight on him ever since he burst onto the scene at Sydney in 2015, but there’s a fair chance that attention might intensify in 2020 as he steps into Franklin’s enormous shoes as a key forward.
According to Heeney, he has a lot to prove, but feels as though he at least has the maturity now to master the step up amid the pressure that will inevitably come with being the headline act.
“I definitely feel like I’m a more rounded player than when I started,” he said.
“It’s a weird one … you just start to get football and it feels like it’s started to click over the past couple of years which is nice.
“It’ll take a bit of a leadership role with Bud and (Sam) Reid not being out there. I’m not putting extra pressure on myself but at the same time I know there’s a little bit more responsibility.”
At 186cm and 85kg, Heeney never saw himself as a key forward. But now he can’t wait.
“I’m so keen. I’m extremely keen for the challenge,” he said.
“It’s not something I saw myself getting into to be honest. My whole junior career I expected to be a midfielder.
“I’m a small fella. If I’m in that key position I’ve got to learn how to do that against the bigger players who have 10-15kg on me.
“It’s just knowing my strengths. Endurance, working up and down the ground and my aerial and my hands in the air. Making sure I’m a clean player whether it’s on the ground or in the air.
“If you’re a smaller guy, you try and isolate.”
Did AFL’s hardline contribute to Buddy injury?
Sydney is lamenting the possibility that Lance Franklin’s crushing injury setback may have been exacerbated by following the AFL’s strict isolation rules to the letter of the law.
The Swans are conscious of the fact Franklin’s hamstring and Sam Reid’s calf were low on the priority list when it came to the whirlwind of issues the AFL had to address in the middle of the COVID-19 lockdown.
However, they’re disappointed that the request they made to the AFL that two vulnerable players be monitored by club medical staff during the indefinite shutdown was blankly refused.
Sydney said their request was not about gaining a competitive advantage, as the AFL’s rules were designed to protect, but rather wanted to show a proper duty of care to two stars who had undergone pre-season surgery.
The Swans have praised the AFL for their overall handling of the unprecedented drama, but are now dealing with the fact their worst fears have been realised with Franklin and Reid set for extended stints on the sideline after suffering soft- tissue injuries upon their return to full training.
“It’s impossible to be certain. What we do know is you can’t rule it out. But it’s impossible to say for certain,” said coach John Longmire of the link.
“Were there other things at play? There probably is, but there was always some players we were mindful of through this period that needed strong rehabilitation work even though they were training.
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“It’s injury prevention work. It’s not about making them fitter. It’s about them maintaining the resilience to be able to play and train week-in and week-out. Not about trying to get an advantage.”
Swans chief Tom Harley said the reason why the club had been heartbroken by the devastating cuts to the football department was the same reason why they wanted permission to check on players in need.
“Clearly as a club your primary concern or focus is for your people,” said Harley.
“We absolutely understood and understand that the biggest issue out of the past couple of months has actually been the health of society and the community. And we all play a role and continue to do so in ensuring we’re flattening the curve as effectively as possible.
“A consequence of that was clearly a shutdown of facilities.
“Yes we’re disappointed (the request was blocked) and certainly disappointed now that Sam and Lance aren’t available for round one.”
SWANS READY TO UNLEASH ‘BLOND BUDDY’
Isaac Heeney might not be built like Lance Franklin but he has the rock-star swagger and confidence to kick Sydney a winning score.
That’s the opinion of Swans captain Josh Kennedy and former AFL champion Brad Johnson, who are adamant Heeney is the answer upfront for Sydney in the absence of any tall forwards.
After the Kurt Tippett venture failed, and now with the body failings of Franklin and Sam Reid, responsibility has fallen to the man who gives away 20kg in weight and 13cm in height to the man mountain he could replace.
Champion Data reveals Heeney’s output was consistent across the midfield and forward positions last season but he was ranked No. 1 target in the league for winning one-on-one contests.
Heeney, 24, kicked four goals for the Swans against Adelaide in round one in the absence of Franklin and Reid.
And despite Sydney’s love for having him in the midfield, there is a strong push for him to become a permanent fixture up forward during a personnel crisis.
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“I’d continue to play Isaac Heeney in the front half of the ground,” said Fox Footy expert Johnson, himself a small-sized weapon who could play as a key forward. “It really helps with their ball movement.”
Sydney face Essendon first-up at the SCG on Sunday week, and Heeney may be able to draw on the fact he kicked five majors against them in 2016.
However, he had 33 touches against the Bombers in the midfield last season, highlighting the conundrum facing Sydney’s coaching staff that they won’t want to rob Peter to pay Paul.
Kennedy said Heeney should play forward as the spearhead.
“I think so, yeah,’’ he said. “He showed in round one how damaging he can be down there and how hard a match-up he is.”
Sydney coach John Longmire has hit out at Franklin’s former fitness coach Andrew Russell for criticising his star for being overweight.
“He has been in great condition,’’ Longmire said.
Originally published as Andrew Pridham takes cheeky shot at NRL rivals over crowd sizes