Night two of the Swans Experience was held at CLUB SWANS this week where more than 200 junior footballers were put through their paces by hosts Jude Bolton, Peter Everitt, umpire Jared Crouch and the new roving reporter Nick Malceski.
East Sydney Bulldogs, Maroubra Saints, Glebe Greyhounds and the Newtown Swans were the clubs represented on night two and after their quick meal they were ushered into the CLUB SWANS auditorium where they split into two teams.
They had to align with their footy foes; the Bulldogs and Greyhounds became the White team captained by Peter, and the Saints and Swans the Red team with Jude at their helm.
Special team-mates were introduced to the enthusiastic participants; joining the Red team were Martin Mattner and Dean Terlich whilst Pat Veszpremi joined the white and to even the numbers Nick joined the white team as well.
The game began and ran through the same format as week one, with quarter by quarter tasks, video messages from coach Paul Roos, quizzes, videos and challenges.
At half time, with the Red team in the lead, a special guest was brought in to meet the junior stars. Leo Barry made his way into the auditorium and struggled to make it onto the stage with the youngsters giving him a very affectionate welcome.
A question from the floor for Leo was about his favourite moment in football. Leo mentioned his famous mark in the 2005 grand final, admitting it would be tough to surpass that. The kids cheered.
There was one last guest for the youngsters; at three-quarter time Tadhg Kennelly made his entrance and recieved a welcome similar to Leo’s.
Tadhg also got a question from the floor; he was asked how old he was when he first started playing football. He told the kids his dad put a Gaelic ball in his hand when he was still in the crib and as soon as he could understand his dad insisted he would play Gaelic football. He then told of his journey from Ireland to Australia.
Each team finished off the final quarter with a passionate rendition of their respective club songs, with parents gathered in the audience acting as judges.
The final score was a win to the Red team, 10.6. (68) to White’s 10.6 (66). To conclude proceedings the whole group got into a circle to sing the Sydney Swans club song, with much gusto and energy.
As they all left the venue to board their bus, everyone was given a showbag. Six lucky junior players also won the chance to go into a draw for the grand prize of spending a day with the Sydney Swans:
Justin Cann
Pryangka
Tom McNamara
Cocoa Deep-Amek
Remy Davis
Winny Tang
If your club would like further information about The Swans Experience, please contact AFL NSW-ACT on 02 8333 8000.
Team photos from the night are available to download below. Simply select your team, then right-click on the link and select "Save target as..." from the drop-down menu.
East Sydney Bulldogs
Glebe Greyhounds
Maroubra Saints
Newtown Swans
