North Shore pair hit the big time
This article first appeared in the North Shore Times
By Rohan Smith
A pair of rising Aussie Rules footballers with ties to the north shore have been drafted by their home city Sydney Swans.
Saint Ignatius’ Riverview student Dan Robinson was picked up by the reigning AFL premiers with the 50th pick in last Tuesday’s draft before former North Shore Bombers tall Sam Naismith was selected with pick 58.
Robinson, 18, was added to the official playing list after holding a NSW AFL scholarship for the past three years.
He said he was relieved to make the jump to professional football from a successful run with the Mosman Swans.
“It’s amazing and it’s really exciting,” he said.
“I’ve been here for the last three years on a NSW Scholarship, and I really just wanted to go to play at Sydney, and it’s ended up more than perfectly.”
Naismith, 19, joins the club after moving to Sydney from Gunnedah in Northern NSW and playing with the Bombers in the AFL Sydney competition.
The 208cm ruckman played in games for the Sydney Swans reserves in 2012 after being selected for the QBE Sydney Swans Academy.
He said he looked forward to the challenge and had already been welcomed by the club.
“The whole list, they’re a great group of guys, and they all congratulated me when I was selected,” he said.
“It’s a really welcoming environment.”
Photo from sydneyswans.com.au
