This is not altogether a surprise given John Longmire’s young charges finished 16th last year, but the Swans were one of just three clubs overlooked along with Adelaide and North Melbourne. Even Gold Coast, which has not made the finals in its 10 years in the competition, was tipped by two skippers to reach September.
Curiously, one respondent tipped Lance Franklin to return to his best and claim this year’s Coleman Medal – but even that was not enough for him to think the Swans would leap back into the top eight for the first time since 2018. For the record, the Swans were tipped by some captains, albeit support was minimal in 2003 and 2009 after missing the finals the previous years, but Kennedy’s sentiment that his club is perennially underestimated holds some truth.
Despite falling a rung on the ladder and winning a lower proportion of games, the Swans believe they took a step forward in 2020 given the raft of first- and second-year players they fielded.Kennedy was not bold enough to utter the “f” word for his developing team but he said anything was possible if things click.“I don’t see a ceiling on what that could mean for us in terms of finals or how deep it could take us.