THE SYDNEY Swans have appointed a second development coach to boost the club's efforts to produce the next generation of stars.
Former clubman Daniel McPherson takes up the role of development coach alongside existing development coach Brett Allison.
“I was responsible for about 17 players last year and we probably found it was too many,” Allison said on Thursday.
“So we decided to look for a bit of help and Daniel was a really good candidate.
“Daniel is a former player for the Swans and it's about helping us trying to find the best talent in NSW and
McPherson debuted for the Swans in 1994 playing 111 times for the club before retiring in 2003 aged 28.
“We'll both coach the reserve team in the
Three NSW regional rookies have joined this season. They are 18-year-olds Matthew Beckmans, Aaron Bruce and Dean Terlich who have been signed from the
Meanwhile former Oakleigh Charger Nick Smith and Matt O'Dwyer have been retained for a second year.
They join newcomers to AFL Jake Orreal from
For O'Dwyer it was a case of grabbing a second chance with both hands after he was cut loose last year.
Allison invited the former Calder Cannons youngster to train with the group late last year and he impressed so much with his attitude he's been given another season to impress.
Allison has similar hopes for his regional recruits.
“Terlich is about 184cm and around 77kgs and has a lot of speed and power,” he said.
“He's primarily probably a small forward along the lines of an Adam Schneider-type of player. He played for the Murray Bushrangers last year and was part of the NSW/ACT state side.
“Bruce is more of a half-back flanker or defender. He's from
“Whether we win or lose games is not that important. We're about finding out what various positions certain players can play, how they handle different situations,” Allison said.
“But the players themselves, once they get out on the field the natural instincts kick in and they're out to win.”
Last September that competitive edge saw the Swans' reserves grade side take out the grand final for a third consectuve time defeating Queanbeyan by 28 points at Manuka Oval, Canberra.
The reserves are back in training this Monday and the next month sees them undertake a conditioning, strength and skills training.
The Swans' first NAB Cup fixture for the senior side is on February 17 against the Hawks in
“Quite a few of those [reserves] players will get a game in that match because we do generally play a young side throughout that NAB Cup series,” said Allison.
“So in four weeks' time, they can be pretty much looking forward to playing some footy.”