Swans get Tippett, and some familiar names

By Alison Zell

Kurt Tippett is officially a Sydney Swan, after the 2012 AFL Premiers selected the former Adelaide Crow with pick 11 in Tuesday’s pre-season draft.

But the 202cm forward/ruckman will be unavailable for the opening 11 weeks of the season as he serves a suspension over salary cap breaches surrounding his 2009 contract with the Crows.

Sydney coach John Longmire said on Tuesday that the club, and Tippett, were just happy that he is finally a Swans player.

“We set out, what seems to be a long time ago now, to get Kurt Tippett into our football club and we’ve been able to do that today so we’re obviously very pleased with that,” Longmire said.

Tippett was the Swans’ only selection in the pre-season draft with the club deciding to hold onto their other picks for the rookie draft, where they selected six new players.

The Swans showed they are committed to developing young NSW talent, selecting four rookies from the state, who had all been training with the Swans in the lead up to the draft.

QBE Sydney Swans Academy players Brandon Jack and Sam Naismith as well as NSW Scholarship holder Daniel Robinson joined AFL Sydney star Dane Rampe as home-town players selected by the Swans.

Longmire said the Swans’ local selections, as well as fellow New South Welshman Zac Williams and Joseph Redfern, who were picked by the GWS GIANTS, prove that NSW systems are able to provide a pathway to the AFL.

“I think the AFL have shown some terrific initiatives in bringing in the academies for both GWS and the Sydney Swans and we’ve seen today some of the local boys from those zones and those academies come onto AFL lists,” Longmire said.

“We’re thrilled to be able to give these blokes an opportunity to play AFL football and hopefully they grab it now and are able to run with it.

“We think it’s great for the code and hopefully the youngsters, as they’re making decisions as they come through, see a real pathway to AFL football at a local club.”

Jack is the younger brother of Swans star Kieren, and as well as uniting the Jack brothers, the Swans also picked up another familiar name when they selected Xavier Richards, younger brother of Swans fullback Ted.

“It’s great to see a couple of siblings come to this footy club,” Longmire said.

“Xavier Richards is a player that is a key position player, a young key position player that we’d like to bring into the footy club to help bolster our key position stocks.

“And Brandon Jack is part of the famous Jack name up here in Sydney and joins his brother Kieren, it’s just a great story.

“He’s come through our Academy system which is a big tick for our Academy system and another young local NSW kid who gets his chance on a Sydney Swans list.”

The draft was just a formality for Robinson who was told last month that he would have a spot on the Swans list in 2013.

Robinson had been a NSW Scholarship for three years and just finished exams at St Ignatius Riverview, playing for the Mosman Swans and Riverview.

Local AFL Sydney player Rampe was selected by the Swans at pick 37 after impressing during pre-season training with the club over the past few weeks.

Rampe was the 2012 Phelan Medallist, winning AFL Sydney’s Best and Fairest award after an outstanding season with the UNSW/Eastern Suburbs Bulldogs and also taking home the Howarth Trophy for representative player of the year.

“We drafted Dane Rampe today on our rookie list who has had a few years and maybe thought, at 22 years of age, that his opportunity might have passed by,” Longmire said.

“But this gives him an opportunity to come into an AFL system and try and have an impact.”

At 208cm, Naismith caught the eye of Swans recruiters while playing football for the Gunnedah Bulldogs and was selected for the QBE Sydney Swans Academy.

Playing for the North Shore Bombers in the AFL Sydney competition, Naismith lined up for the Sydney Swans reserves several times in 2012 and now finds himself a permanent part of the red and white.

At pick 16 the Swans also selected 19 year-old Jake Lloyd from the North Ballarat Rebels, a young midfielder with good endurance and elite kicking and handballing skills on both sides of the body.

Sydney Swans pre-season draft selection

Pick 19 – Kurt Tippett (Adelaide Crows)
D.O.B.: 08.05.1987
Height: 202cm
Weight: 104kg

Sydney Swans rookie draft selections

Pick 16 – Jake Lloyd (North Ballarat Rebels)
D.O.B. : 20.9.1993
Height : 180cm
Weight : 72kg

Pick 31 – Xavier Richards (Sandringham)
D.O.B. : 25.4.1993
Height : 194cm
Weight : 81kg

Pick 41 – Dane Rampe (UNSW)
D.O.B. : 2.6.1990
Height : 189cm
Weight : 89kg

Pick 57 – Daniel Robinson (NSW Scholarship)
D.O.B. : 3.7.1994
Height : 183cm
Weight : 84kg

Pick 64 – Brandon Jack (Pennant Hills/zone selection)
D.O.B. : 25.5.1994
Height : 182cm
Weight : 77kg

Pick 65 – Sam Naismith (North Shore)
D.O.B. : 16.7.1992
Height : 203cm
Weight : 104kg