Sydney Swans In 2026
Here is my take on the Sydney Swans in 2026. Sydney Swans coach Dean Cox seems like a ripping bloke. A very likable chap who once was the greatest ruckman of his era. Now, in his second year as head coach of the AFL harbour side team he has begun the season 2 and 1. The Swans have a number of seriously talented footballers who are still on the more youthful stretch of their career curves. Errol Gulden, Chad Warner and Nick Blakey are game breaking talents. Isaac Heeney is the older superstar at the Bloods but he is still just on the right side of 30 at 29. That is the good news, the bad news is that Errol Gulden is out again with an injury for up to 4 months.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1khA40_7DA
The Swans Take A Hit With Another Long Term Gulden Injury in 2026
Gulden is a play maker and distributor of the football. He was out for half the season last year and the Swans struggled to win games in his absence. AFL football is a team game, however, with 18 players per team on the field. The media likes to make it all about the stars of the game but that is as much a narrative position as an absolute reality. They want to tell a story and having a heroic individual at its heart sells newspapers and gets eyeballs on screens. Coaches talk about systems and that players perform roles within those systems in a bid to win games. In defiance of that some superstars seem to be able to lift themselves above the pack to do things, which appear to turn matches. Sydney will have to do it without Errol for up to 4 months in season 2026.
Handball Forward For Metres Gained In 2026 For The Swans
AFL is an extremely skilful game, which happens at breakneck speed. The more skilled players facilitate scoring goals by beating the opposition via hitting targets by hand and foot. The 2026 version of AFL is about moving the ball more quickly by running and handpassing to overcome defensive zones. Pressure on and around the contest remains the key, especially when the going gets tough. Highly skilled teams can be undone through applying maximum pressure around the contest. We saw Hawthorn defeat the Swans via this very methodology. Teams that apply pressure in multiples of players, hunting in packs, like the Hawkes did can overcome their opposition. The Swans seemed to be lacking teamwork in losing these contests. There was no shortage of effort from the Bloods but I did not see players backing up their mates in the contest enough. This was unlike Hawthorn who hunted in packs and won contests on this basis.
Coach Dean Cox Too Open With Game Plan
Watching the pre-game TNF show on Fox Footy we saw Dean Cox sharing lots of game plan information with David King and the panel prior to the match. Sam Mitchell, the Hawkes coach was far more cagey in his interaction with the footy pundits. I thought to myself at the time, here is one bloke not trying to be everyone’s best friend and instead hellbent on winning this game. In the end, the chocolates went to Sam and Dean got to eat his dust. Coach Cox did not look a happy bloke after losing this one at the MCG before the bye. The Sydney Swans in 2026 are 2 and 1.
Swans Tried Hard But Couldn’t Get The Job Done
The Swans played their hearts out but were outgunned and outpressured over 4 quarters. The Sydney talls at either end were poor and outplayed by their Hawthorn opponents. Tom McCartin was well beaten by Chol and Gunston, especially in the first half. Lewis Melican lacks defensive skills in aerial contests and loses them too many times. Logan McDonald plays like a half forward flanker rather than a key forward. It is time to build him up and get some aerial presence out of him. Charlie Curnow has been disappointing but it is early days yet. Overall the Sydney team lacked intention and were beaten by Hawkes at key contests. Nick Blakey has been great and continues to give wonderful run and metres gained from the half back line.
Sydney’s Lack Of Aerial Presence A Concern
Of course, Sydney really missed Isaac Heeney, both around the ball and forward. Too often Sydney players fail to take marks around the ground. Joel Amartey was poor in this manner against the Hawkes but had been potent the previous 2 weeks in front of goals. Brody Grundy never stopped trying and gives everything most weeks, he could take more marks, however, around the ground. I do remember a number of games last season when the Swans were outpressured and beaten in contests. Not being strong aerially compounds problems when Sydney are under the pump. Whether the team needs a plan B to cope with these games or it is purely a matter of meeting and beating that level of pressure around the ball, I do not know.
Pressure Ratings Down In 2026
Overall pressure ratings have been down in these first 3 matches of 2026. Having said that, this is true of most AFL sides this season. The rule changes have sped the game up and reduced contests it seems. The powers-that-be have been manipulating the game via rule changes to produce a fast and high scoring contest. The stand rule enforcements favour those with the ball to a remarkable degree. Defending has never been more challenging in the AFL.
https://rsn.net.au/news/2026/03/25/afl-2026-sen-com-aus-game-ratings-for-round-3
The Blood’s Midfield
Angus Sheldrick is coming on and improving as a budding midfielder for the Sydney Swans in 2026. James Rowbottom remains the rock in the middle via his hard tackling and contest pressure. Chad Warner has had a slow start to the season and needs to do more to regain his mantle as a real star of the game, in my opinion. Isaac Heeney, now Vice Captain, is the Swan’s champion in the middle and continues to be a world beater. Tom Papley had an injury interrupted preseason and his pinch hitting in the midfield is a work in progress. James Jordan is another defensive midfielder, at times, and is a worthy contributor most games on this basis. The absence of Errol Gulden will be felt once again. Caiden Cleary was disappointing against Hawthorn, but that was one game and he is just getting started in AFL. Justin McInerney has been a standout in 2026, with his run through the middle and kicking goals against Carlton, Brisbane and Hawthorn.
“Heeney was almost knocked out by a careless Florent knee to the temple, whilst he lay prostrate on the ground. It says something about the character of Oliver Florent, in my view. Good riddance to a bitter lesser light. Isaac Heeney recovered and went on to play some fine football in that second half. “
- (https://www.golfdom.com.au/sydney-swans-season-2026-opening-round-game/)
Where will the Sydney Swans in 2026 end up, ladder-wise? Does Dean Cox have the nouse to take this team to the top? Perhaps, the inclusion of Simon Goodwin on the coaching panel will enhance the prospects of the Swans this season? I think, Charlie Curnow will need to fire up forward and start taking some contested marks and kicking goals for the Bloods to win enough games to be real world beaters. The team will have to toughen up and start winning the hard games, like the one they dropped to the Hawkes at the MCG if they are to progress to the upper echelon. It all starts again with the West Coast at Optus this week and the Eagles have won back to back for the first time in years. Go Bloods!
https://www.sydneyswans.com.au/afl
Robert Sudha Hamilton is the author of The AI Heresy; What Price Life?; America Matters: Pre-apocalyptic Posts & Essays in the Shadow of Trump; and other titles. NOW AVAILABLE AT APPLE BOOKS & GOOGLE PLAY BOOKS. Google Play Books AUDIOBOOK
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