DANIEL Bradshaw was one of the most experienced players at the Sydney Swans’ training session on Thursday but that didn’t stop him feeling like a new draftee.
The former Brisbane Lions star joined his prospective teammates for his first run at Lakeside Oval and admitted to some nerves as he prepared to exchange passes with Brett Kirk, Adam Goodes and Ryan O’Keefe.
“It is a bit strange. It’s hard to explain; it’s a bit like being redrafted,” he said.
“When you start as a young fella going to a new club, you meet a lot of people and try to remember a lot of names, which I’m not good at. There’ll be a lot of ‘kick it here, mate’ or ‘kick it here, buddy’.
“It will take a few weeks to get to know everyone’s name but I’m really looking forward to it. It’s a fresh start and it’s really exciting.”
While Bradshaw will be surrounded by relative strangers at the Swans, the presence of some familiar faces will help him ease into his new surroundings.
All-Australian defender Craig Bolton was one of his teammates at the Lions for three years, while Swans CEO Andrew Ireland and assistant coach John Blakey performed similar roles in Brisbane during Bradshaw’s stint with the club.
“I spoke to Bolts on the phone [before agreeing to join the Swans] and obviously I know Andrew from his time up in Brisbane and Johnny Blakey coached up there,” Bradshaw said.
“That makes the transition a bit easier as well, which probably helps in the decision.”
Bradshaw will sign a three-year deal with the Swans if he reaches their No.5 selection in the NAB AFL Pre-season Draft and he was confident his body was still up to the rigors of senior football.
“I know I’m nearly 31 but the body feels really good and mentally, I feel good so I guess [I’ll play] as long as the body and the mind feels good,” he said.
“I’ve been playing reasonably good footy in the last couple of years so I don’t see why I can’t play for at least a couple more, or beyond that.”
After booting 133 goals in the past two seasons, Bradshaw has a considerable claim to be the Swans’ prime target in attack in 2010.
However, he said he was more than happy to fill any role the Swans’ coaching staff asked him to play.
“With Jesse White down there and I think Goodesy might be playing a bit down in the forward line as well, I guess it doesn’t really bother me too much,” he said.
“There’s going to be three of us down there and it doesn’t really worry me whether I’m the focal point or not. As long as we’re kicking the goals and we’re winning, that’s the most important thing.”
