He only played the one game for the year and towards the end of the year he tore a hamstring which kept him out for six weeks. Unfortunately for Ed, he didn't have the season he wanted and we didn't get a result for him.
Paul Bevan
We thought he'd play mostly forward this year, just to add a bit of bite with his attack on the ball. It probably didn't work out early for him but certainly when he came back into the side, Bevo was really good for us down back, up forward and playing a number of roles.
Craig Bird
Birdy only had the four games for the year with a stress-related injury in his foot. He had a fantastic pre-season and he started really well in the NAB Cup series, but he just couldn't get on the park enough to have the year we hoped he could have had.
Craig Bolton
Played the first six games but he had an achilles injury that just didn't come good. In some regards, it's similar to Brad Johnson from the Bulldogs. He's a captain of our club that we needed out there but his injuries just didn't allow him to get out there this year.
Jude Bolton
He doesn't change from year to year. You know exactly what you're going to get from Jude every time he crosses the line. Again, his hardness at the contest and his ability at the stoppages was a strength. He continues to be an important member of our side.
Daniel Bradshaw
He had trouble with his knee through the year but every time he was out there, you could see his quality. Even to come back in the last game that he played in the finals, he had seven marks inside 50 and seven shots on goal after not having played for 12 weeks. We've just got to make sure we monitor him and make sure he's able to play 22 rounds next year.
Daniel Currie
His last five or six weeks in the seconds were his best period for the year. He is certainly developing, but the form of Mumford, Seaby when he was out there and Pyke didn't allow him to step up into the rucking role this year. He's a developing player who's improving each year and with another solid pre-season, he will be pushing these guys for selection.
Trent Dennis-Lane
Obviously we knew he could kick goals; he kicked 60-odd in the WAFL in 2009. In eight games he kicked 16 goals, so he's able to find the goals and he's able to find space to provide another option to goal for us. He was a valuable asset later in the year, after his first part of the year was hampered by a knee injury.
Taylor Gilchrist* (delisted)
Unfortunately for him, he's been moved on. He played some good football in the reserves this year but we just felt he wasn't in our long-term plans.
Adam Goodes
His form was up and down but he was our leading goalkicker this year. He's our trouble-shooter; he played mostly up forward but if things weren't going great in the midfield, we've got the ability to throw him in there. He's a great player and had a solid year.
Nathan Gordon*
Nathan's greatest asset is his hardness at the ball. His ability to cover the ground and run is up there with the elite runners in the competition and his work rate really shone out at reserve level. That's why he got promoted to the senior list. Hopefully with another good pre-season, he can step up again in 2011.
Heath Grundy
He was absolutely fantastic this year, playing on all the best forwards in the competition. Unfortunately for Heath, both Craig (Bolton) and Lewis Roberts-Thomson were injured and he had to shoulder most of the load. By the end of the year he was a bit weary and his form just dropped a little bit but he showed what a classy defender he is.
Dan Hannebery
Dan's an elite runner and an absolutely driven individual who is going to get the best out of himself. He's certainly stepped up again this year, going through the midfield and winning the NAB Rising Star. He's going to be a very good player for a long time at this football club.
Campbell Heath
He came off a knee reconstruction and found his way into the side, but had a down period for four or five weeks after that. Towards the end of the year, he started picking up his performance again. He's one that we're looking to hold down a defensive role in the future.
Kieren Jack
He had an outstanding season. His ability to shut down quality opposition but still find the ball himself is second to none. In his last six weeks, he was nearly the best midfielder in the competition. He's taken his game to another level and we hope that continues.
Lewis Jetta
A lot of people saw the Swans as a slow side and with the introduction of Ben McGlynn, Lewis Jetta and Gary Rohan, we certainly injected some pace into the side. Lewis' ability to break a game open with his pace has been fantastic. For a kid in his first year of AFL to come in and play 20 games in a year when we played two finals is a fantastic effort.
Lewis Johnston
With Jesse White, Bradshaw and Goodes going forward, Lewis hasn't broken into the senior side. He missed all of last year with an injury so this was his first year at it and he played some good football in the seconds. He's a third tall forward that's going to be able to lead up and present and take plenty of marks. He's not too far away from making a mark.
Josh Kennedy
He was fantastic. We eased him into the start of the season and as the season built, he improved with every game we played. Over the two finals, he was our best player. He's super strong, very clean with his hands and sets us up very well with Kirky's retirement.
Tadhg Kennelly
We certainly all thought that Tadhg would come back and make a difference. He's a great athlete, a great runner and he reads the game very well. He was like a breath of fresh air coming back into the place and he slotted straight in playing some very good footy.
Brett Kirk (retired)
Kirky's last year was solid. He wouldn't regard it as his best year in football but he did some fantastic roles for us throughout the year. His leadership has never been questioned and the boys rally around him all the time to get the best out of themselves. He's going to be missed and our future captains and our next leaders have got big shoes to fill.
Nick Malceski
After some soul-searching at the end of last year, he wasn't happy with his output after coming back from a knee reconstruction and when he came back for the pre-season he was super fit. That just carried on into the season and we saw the Malceski that came second in our best and fairest a few years ago. His kicking skills coming forward are a great asset to us.
Martin Mattner
You can always rely on Marty to play a role down back and with the versatility we have now with Marty, (Rhyce) Shaw, Tadhg and Malceski all being able to play off half-back, it gives us flexibility to mix and match. The four of them together make a good half-back line for us.
Ben McGlynn
When we targeted Ben, we knew he had the ability to run up and down and he also had the ability to add speed to us. He played most of the time as a half-forward, kicking 23 goals which is a good return, but he was everything we expected this year.
Dylan McNeil*
We've re-rookied Dylan this year. He was probably the player that was most consistent throughout the year in the seconds, playing as an inside mid. He's not overly tall but he's very good around the stoppages and he had a great year in the seconds.
Jarrad McVeigh
It was a good year from Jarrad. He sets the bar so high for himself and he would never make any excuses. He's a class player that the opposition puts a lot of time into each week, making sure that he doesn't have an influence on games.
Brett Meredith
Every time things are looking up for him, he comes across another injury. Again this year, that was the case. He's a class player who reads the game very well but his body just hasn't allowed him to get continuity playing senior footy. We hold him in high regard as a very good player for us; it's just a matter of getting his body right.
Jarred Moore
He missed six or seven weeks with an ankle injury but the first part of his year was very solid, before probably tapering off towards the end of the year. He's looking forward to having a big pre-season and he's very important to our structures up forward.
Shane Mumford
We knew we were getting a long-term quality player but he probably shocked all of us with the quality of football he produced this year. He's almost like having another midfielder out there, the way he follows up his own ruck work. He certainly had a class year and was probably unlucky not to make All Australian.
Matthew O'Dwyer (delisted)
He played one game this year. He started the year very well over the pre-season and played some okay games in the NAB Cup. Unfortunately with the side up and going in the first part of the year, Matty wasn't able to force his way in.
Ryan O'Keefe
Ryan sets the bar so high for himself. After winning the B&F last year, he was driving himself to perform well but with the debilitating groin injury that he had, he wasn't able to reach the heights of 2009. He's had an operation and should return to his brilliant best in 2011.
Henry Playfair* (retired)
It was a great effort by Henry to get back. He had surgery again to get his hamstring nerve complaint in order. He was certainly fantastic around the club in all his rehabilitation but unfortunately it's flared again and basically forced him into retirement.
Mike Pyke*
What he's done over the last two years is quite remarkable. To come from another code and be able to develop the way he has is a credit to him. He's reading the game much better, marking the ball much better and we would have been in a little bit of trouble without him.
Sam Reid
He wouldn't have imagined he'd get a game this year but at reserve level, he was one that just performed week in, week out. You saw when he played his game at senior level [in round 22], he was able to win 16 possessions, take eight marks and show that he can be a player of the future. We're very excited with what he's produced this year.
Ted Richards
He really looked at the start of the year that he'd lost a bit of his confidence and consequently, he was in and out of the side. He actually lost his way a little bit in the seconds but once he regained his composure and found his way back into the side, Teddy was nearly our best defender. It's a credit to him that he was able to turn his year around.
Lewis Roberts-Thomson
Lewie again was another one who had to work very hard over the pre-season to return to the form that we knew he could. Probably Lewis in the first part of the year was back to his best football, shutting down the opposition's best forwards and providing a really strong contest. Unfortunately a hamstring injury kept him out for eight weeks.
Gary Rohan
He played nine games this year and he's got electrifying pace. We know he can play forward and put on a lot of pressure and kick a goal, but we also know he can play down back. His versatility is going to hold him in really good stead and we're looking forward to seeing Gary playing many games for us in the years to come.
Mark Seaby
Unfortunately he had that broken ankle that kept him to five games, but Mark was just a quality person. He would have been really disappointed but his effort around the club to stay involved and be part of it was fantastic. He's been a valuable asset both on and off the field and hopefully he can have a good pre-season and get back to his early-season form.
Rhyce Shaw
Rhyce had an up and down year after coming off second in the best and fairest. He probably changed his year around in the second half of the season when we started tagging him on the opposition's best midfielder or small forward. By the end of the year, he'd got back to the Rhyce Shaw we'd seen the previous year.
Nick Smith
He's the guy whose name we throw up on the magnetic board and know he's just going to get the job done week in, week out. There's nothing flashy about him; he just gets it done. His leadership qualities are outstanding and he's going to have a long career at this club.
Byron Sumner
Byron didn't have the year that he would have hoped for. He showed that he can play at the level but he just lacked a little bit of consistency with his effort, probably both on and off the field. Hopefully we get that right and we see the best of Byron in the coming years.
Kristin Thornton (delisted)
He's been at the club for five years and unfortunately wasn't able to play the football he would like to have played and he moves on this year.
Patrick Veszpremi (traded to Western Bulldogs)
He only played the one game, and he was okay, but unfortunately for Patty, Daniel Bradshaw and Ben McGlynn were coming back the following week. He did have a disappointing year as far as he was concerned. We know he can produce some good football as a dangerous forward but he just wasn't able to do that consistently.
Jesse White
Jesse has plenty of improvement left in him and had an up and down year by his standards. He's certainly someone we think can hold down a key forward position in years to come, with the ageing of both Bradshaw and Goodes who are in their 30s. We've got to work on a few things with some of his body work over the off-season but he's developing very well.
* Rookie-listed player
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
