PROFILE
In order to secure their future, Swan Hill will turn to their past, with premiership coach Cal Beasy returning to lead the Swans for the first time since 2015.
Last season was one to forget for the competition’s former powerhouse, finishing eighth and with a 5-11 record. The club has since made the call to rebuild, while at the same time planning to stay competitive and push for finals.
Beasy, who led Swan Hill’s talented under 14s team to an undefeated premiership last season, seems the logical choice to take the reins as senior coach. And while realistic as to where his team currently sits, the new coach is also bullish about what the future holds for his home club.
“I’m pleased that I’m doing it, because there’s a lot of good young kids coming through the club and they’re going to need some good players to learn off over the next few years,” Beasy said.
“Watching them train together and getting better and fitter each week, it’s good to see – I’m pretty excited about what they can achieve as a group.”
“It’s important for the future success of the footy club to bring these kids through and for them to be learning off the right guys every Tuesday and Thursday night.”
While the next generation of Swans will be a big focus in 2023, Beasy and his team are still bullish on their chances of an improved showing – with a solid pre-season of recruiting also under their belts.
Swan Hill’s midfield, which has for a long time been reliant on veterans Matthew Wade and Xavier Moloney, has had a freshen up with former Werribee VFL on-baller Brandon Houlihan’s arrival. Joining him are a pair of premiership Tigers, with Nyawi Moore crossing over from Woorinen and Jose Miliado returning to the region after a couple of seasons with Macleod in the Northern Football League.
Also pulling on the maroon and white this season will be key forward Zach Mihocek from the North Shore Jets – with Beasy hopeful his new arrivals will give the Swans a more traditional structure.
“We’ve definitely lacked that bigger body and that predictability of a traditional key forward over the last few seasons and Zach (Mihocek) will provide that for us,” Beasy said.
“Hopefully his presence will also help out all the smaller crumbing forwards around him as well.”
“‘Wadey’ (Matthew Wade) and ‘X’ (Xavier Moloney) have shouldered the load through the middle for the last six or eight years – they deserve to not have to be the number one midfielder and get all the attention so ‘Houls’ (Brandon Houlihan) will definitely help and take a bit of the load off there.”
The departures of the Makepeace brothers to Ultima, along with a season long shoulder injury to Xavier Mertz will hurt – but shouldn’t have a bearing on the way the Swans play according to Beasy, whose message to his players will be a simple one.
“You work too hard to get the ball and to turn it over with a skill error, is a bit of a bug bear of mine – so it’s something we’ll work hard on leading up to and right throughout the season,” Beasy said.
“If we can decrease our turnovers, it lends itself to owning more of the ball and therefore owning more of the game, so once you’re in a bit more control, things sort of go your way.”
“I’d like to see us play a more open, hard running brand of footy and not only use the ball better, but be more direct going inside our forward fifty.”
FROM THE COACH
“We just want to improve on last year and become a more consistent side – we finished off the year okay, but just lost too many games through turning the ball over. We just want to be a bit more competitive and look to get back into the finals and see where we go from there.”
INs & OUTs
INs
Jose Miliado (Macleod)
Nyawi Moore (Woorinen)
Brandon Houlihan (Hoppers Crossing)
Elijah Miliado (Woorinen)
Zach Mihocek – (North Shore Jets AFC)
George Morgan (Donald)
Jacob Bath (Donald)
OUTs
Mitch Makepeace (Ultima)
Tyler Makepeace (Ultima)
Jack Fletcher (Ultima)
Max Dow (University Blacks)
Tom Spicer (Tooleybuc-Manangatang)
WHAT TO EXPECT IN 2023
It’s fair to say that Swan Hill’s list is in a transitional stage. While they have quality young players, they are still too young to make a meaningful contribution at senior level. Their list also contains a large number of older veterans – all of whom have been terrific servants of the club, but also not likely to improve any further. While their list is good enough to challenge for the five, their back six without Mertz is a concern – and if Brendan Blackmore and Tom Corridan play limited games, then it could be a bridge too far.
KEY PLAYER
Matthew Wade
There’s not a lot that hasn’t already been said about Swan Hill’s former coach and dual Jack Betts Medallist over the years. Although closer to the end than the start, last season’s club Best & Fairest is still one of the most damaging and impactful players in the Central Murray. His ability to dominate a match out of the centre square, then be just as effective forward, is almost unmatched. It remains to be seen how big of an impact relieving himself of the rigours of coaching will have on his game, but if his form continues in a similar fashion from last season, he may well be a three-time Jack Betts Medallist.
BIG IMPROVER
Jarvis Keogh
Keogh was one of the finds of the year in 2022, with a top five finish in the Swans’ Best & Fairest a true reflection of how good a year he had. After setting such a high standard, it’s hard to see how he can possibly take his game to another level – but by all reports, Keogh has put in a huge pre-season and will once again by one to watch.
THE BURNING QUESTION
Where should the Swans play Xavier Moloney – forward or mid?
One of the silkiest and most elegant players in the Central Murray league, Moloney has been slowly transitioning from the midfield to attack over the past few years. His 2022 numbers as a forward are deceiving, kicking just 14 goals from all 16 games – but also spending the majority of the second half of the year as a permanent midfielder. The arrival of Brandon Houlihan, Jose Miliado and Nyawi Moore may well free up Moloney to spend more time forward, where the lucky defender who opposes him will spend the four quarters a nervous wreck.
SWAN HILL PREDICTED BEST 22
B. Hamish Robertson – Brendan Blackmore – Tom Corridan
HB. Leighton Dullard – Jarvis Keogh – Tom Holdstock
C. Nyawi Moore – Matthew Wade – Adam Manning
HF. Tom Pontell – Zach Mihocek – Jose Miliado
F. Jared Halligan – Kallen Heslop – Xavier Moloney
R. Toby Thoolen – Brandon Houlihan – Luke Phelan
INT. Angus Monk – Matthew Battenally – Buol Majur – Elijah Miliado
