From drought-breakers to dream-makers, Swans’ celebrate 20-year anniversary with famous surnames in Sydney Academy

Michael O’Loughlin’s son James is in the Swans Academy alongside a number of the offspring of his 2005 premiership teammates, a fact he can see leading to a bright future for the Bloods.

As the Sydney Swans celebrate the 20th anniversary of their 2005 grand final triumph on Saturday night at the SCG, there will be some familiar names at the ground for the Bloods’ faithful to cheer on.

O’Loughlin. Davis. Kirk and Buchanan, just to name a few.

But it’s a testament to the lasting legacy that the club has attempted to develop that those four names aren’t just part of one of the Swans’ most iconic moments. They’re also part of their future.

The Sydney Swans Academy now has more than 700 participants across the state, but among them are four players with famous surnames attempting to follow in their parents’ footsteps.

James O’Loughlin, Skout Kirk, Jordan Davis and Marley Buchanan weren’t alive in 2005 when their respective parents, Michael, Brett, Nick and Amon, were part of a team that broke a 72-year premiership drought.

However, thanks to the on-field exploits of their fathers and the extensive work by the Swans to create a local talent pathway, the link between the past and the next generation remains as strong as ever.

Sydney Swans 2005 Premiership players with their Swans Academy sons and daughters. Amon and Marley Buchanan, Brett and Skout Kirk, Michael and James O’Loughlin and Nick and Jordan Davis. Picture: Phil Hillyard

THE WEIGHT OF HISTORY

He might have been hoping to get drafted to Carlton, but when the Swans read out Michael O’Loughlin’s name with the 40th selection of the 1994 draft, neither party knew just how much of an impact the other would have on their future.

O’Loughlin was a two-time All-Australian who kicked 521 goals across his 303 games in the red and white. He also became the first Swans player to ever make 300 senior appearances, one of the many accolades he achieved across his storied 15-year career.

While the on-field success was always his immediate focus, in the early years, O’Loughlin was also given the perspective of exactly what it took to keep a club like the Swans alive in Sydney.

“I got here at the end of ‘94, and the club was building, but we just didn’t realise what it really took to sort of grasp and hold onto one and win a grand final,” O’Loughlin said.

“I remember with a number of other players being on the telephone trying to sell membership packages. It’s incredible to see the numbers we see today and the legacy of that hard work.

O’Loughlin quickly emerged as a talented player when he arrived at the Swans in the mid-90s.

“And the players before me, the Mark Bayes, Dennis Carrolls, Paul Kellys. They did it really tough and without their resilience and strength, we wouldn’t have been around. So I count my lucky stars that we had those people within the club.

“Then the individuals keeping the club afloat with their own hard-earned. I’m talking about the Mike Willesees, Peter Weinerts, Basil Sellers, et cetera. The first premiership in Sydney wouldn’t be here without those guys.

“It’s much bigger than the 22 who ran around and kicked a footy at the MCG to win that premiership”

It’s part of the reason why creating a connection with Sydney fans was always a priority for O’Loughlin. As much as the team that broke the drought in 2005 deserve to be celebrated, to him, it always represented much more. He wanted them to feel a part of something, while inspiring as many others as he could along the way.

“We’re all a lot older and you struggle to remember stuff sometimes,” he said. “It’s so long ago since that game.

“I remember talking to one of the players and they were talking about an incident in a game in round 18 or 19. I said, ‘I can’t remember that’. We all have a bit of a laugh, that banter comes out and it’s like being back in the locker room. There’s no other place in the world like a Swans locker room.

“It’s still a dream come true. I call that the people’s cup because it meant a hell of a lot for our supporter group from South Melbourne all the way to the Swans.”

The 2005 premiership might have been the on-field pinnacle for O’Loughlin, but he knows the drought-breaking flag’s impact is far greater. Picture: Gregg Porteous

A FAMILY AFFAIR

Family has always been incredibly important for O’Loughlin. He talks effusively about celebrating the 2005 triumph with his mother, Muriel, while shared lots of other milestones with relatives along the way.

But as he transitions into the next chapter of his relationship with football, a doting father on the sidelines, it’s given him even more perspective on how lucky he was, and the life lessons he learned from coaches like Ron Barassi, Rodney Eade and Paul Roos.

“(James) was lucky because he got to watch his uncle Adam (Goodes) play those last few years, and he remembers that,” O’Loughlin said. “It’s just something that he was always going to do.

O’Loughlin ahead of his 300th AFL game with James (R) and daughter Taya. Picture: Phil

“He’s got a lot of work to do and a lot to learn, but he’s a good kid with a great work ethic, he’s miles ahead of me at 17. So who knows where the future lies?”

James is following in his father’s footsteps in more ways than one. He’s described by the Swans as an “agile and silky” forward with an “innate goal sense and lightning-quick hands”. Sound familiar?

However, it’s clear to his dad that the vehicle for James’ growth in the Academy is a far cry from where Aussie rules stood in the city when he arrived in Sydney 30 years ago.

“I think people forget to remember because we’ve been so successful over the years, is our football club has almost been extinct on a number of occasions,” O’Loughlin said.

“When I got here in ‘94, Craig Holden who was welfare office, implemented Team Swans which was us going to schools and promoting the game which was bloody hard work. We were going to Penrith and even further to teach people the rules and encouraging them to come to games.

“No one wanted to kick the footy 20 or 30 years ago here. The number was very small, so to have the numbers that we have is incredible.

“(James) has got a long way to go, but he’s been surrounded by this incredible football club growing up, as have my daughters. Who knows where his future lies, but the one thing he knows is the great quote from Ron Barassi, ‘If it is to be, it is up to me’.”

And while O’Loughlin would love for nothing more than for James to follow in his footsteps and play in the red and white, he knows the Academy has a much bigger purpose.

Not only is it about helping grow the game in Sydney, but in particular, the Swans’ First Nations Academy is prioritising an urgent need to help address the declining numbers of Indigenous players in the AFL.

O’Loughlin and Goodes have worked extensively post their footballing careers to create pathways for Indigenous kids to reach their potential. Picture: Phil Hillyard

O’Loughlin, along with Goodes, have been at the forefront of empowering First Nations children in this country. They established the GO Foundation to help provide scholarships for Indigenous students to reach their full potential.

And as James prepares to take the biggest steps in his own journey, his dad is grateful to be part of a legacy that is greater than just the O’Loughlin name.

“I’ve been lucky that a lot of people have helped me along my journey,” O’Loughlin said. “And when you get older, you try and repay that back to others to achieve their dreams.

“The First Nations Academy continues to provide opportunities for young people to dream. Not everyone’s going to play professional AFL or AFLW, but you’re going to learn incredible lessons along that journey. I’d love to also find the next Adam Goodes that comes along and plays as well.

The former Swans forward knows the 2005 premiership celebrations are far bigger than the 22 players on the field that day. Picture: Mark Dadswell/Getty Images

“As an ex-player contributing to that, I’m really proud. Probably along with winning that grand final, which was amazing, but the best work that Adam and I will ever do is the GO Foundation, and being the major sponsor of the First Nations Academy. I love that.

“This (20 year anniversary) is much bigger than the players holding that cup. This is a piece of history for everyone that’s been involved in the red and white, and all the way down.”