THE Swans are pleased to announce a second Hall of Fame event. Tickets went on sale on Thursday December 16 for the 2011 Swans Hall of Fame dinner, following on from the sell-out 2009 event.
The inaugural Swans Hall of Fame was one of the most significant events in the Club’s long and rich history.
The event was a sell-out and more than 1300 people were there to see 23 former Swans players inducted into the Hall of Fame, with three of them - Bob Skilton, Bob Pratt and Paul Kelly - given ‘Bloods Legend’ status.
On that grand evening in Melbourne, Swans Chairman Richard Colless noted that a wonderful aspect of the Hall of Fame concept was that players who missed out on selection in the inaugural intake were not excluded from being inducted in the future.
Now that chance has come, with the Swans announcing that the second Hall of Fame dinner will be held in Sydney on Saturday, April 30, 2011.
If you missed the chance to be at the inaugural event, then now is the opportunity to get in early to secure tickets to what is sure to be a fantastic night.
Tickets for the event, to be held in the Bayside Grand Hall of the Sydney Convention Centre, Darling Harbour, went on sale at midday Thursday December 16. Buy TICKETS, or call the Events team on ph 02 9339 9123.
The Hall of Fame dinner will be the culmination of an action-packed weekend for the Swans.
On the evening of Friday April 29 the Swans play Carlton at the SCG in what will be the first game of Friday night football in Sydney since the famous 2005 semi-final, when Nick Davis booted four last quarter goals to propel the team to the preliminary final. The Swans haven’t played a home and away match on a Friday night in Sydney since 2003, so it will be an occasion not to be missed.
And the following night, the next intake of inductees will be announced. There was much speculation and debate before the inaugural Hall of Fame event about who would be chosen.
When the 23 names were announced, Richard Colless said: “While there are so many players worthy of induction no one could dispute that the 23 players selected from our VFA/VFL/AFL eras all thoroughly deserve their selection.”
Now the debate can start afresh in the countdown to the second Hall of Fame dinner, and the first to be held in Sydney.
More than 1500 players have worn the red and white since the Club began operating 137 years ago. So far only 23 of those men have been given Hall of Fame honour - who will be next?
The Swans hold a rare place in sporting history. Very few football Clubs of any code in the world have operated continuously for so long, and on many occasions the Club has defied the odds to not only survive, but thrive.
The second Hall of Fame event will celebrate the Club’s history and those people who made it happen. The full Sydney Swans team and all coaching staff will be in attendance for this historic event.
Those inducted into the Hall of Fame in the first intake were chosen from five eras. Peter Burns was the sole representative from pre-1897. Three players were chosen from 1897-1918 (Vic Belcher, Herb Howson and Bruce Sloss), six from 1919-1945 (Bob Pratt, Roy Cazaly, Mark Tandy, Laurie Nash, J. Herbie Matthews, Jack Bisset) , again six from 1946-1981 (Bob Skilton, Billy Williams, Fred Goldsmith, John Rantall, Peter Bedford, Ron Clegg) and seven from 1982 to 2009 (Paul Kelly, Tony Lockett, Barry Round, Mark Browning, Dennis Carroll, Gerard Healy and Greg Williams).
