Swans duo to mark special milestones
By James Matthey
Two of the Sydney Swans favourite sons have taken vastly different routes so far in their respective AFL journeys, but both Dan Hannebery and Nick Malceski will reach significant personal milestones in Saturday night’s finals clash against Carlton.
Hannebery will take to the field in his 100th career game, while the occasion will also mark Malceski’s 150th appearance in a red-and-white jersey.
29-year old Malceski has taken a much longer path than most to reach the achievement, overcoming three serious knee injuries over the course of his career to become one of the Swans most valuable players.
Initially touted to make his debut in 2004, Malceski tore his left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in a pre-season trial game and was forced out of the entire year after undergoing a knee reconstruction, instead having to wait until 2005 to pull on the Swans guernsey for the first time.
After beginning to establish himself as a regular in the senior side, Malceski was dealt another cruel blow in 2008, injuring his right ACL, before suffering a recurrence of the injury in 2011, keeping him on the sidelines for the best part of the season.
2012 was a breakout year for the running half-back, who was instrumental in the Swans grand final win over Hawthorn, and he has continued that form in 2013, something which he attributes to having a strong pre-season.
“I’ve had a few setbacks along the way, I’m pretty happy to get there and become a life member of the Sydney Swans which is a great achievement and I’m just looking forward to playing Carlton on the weekend,” said Malceski.
“I guess winning a premiership drew a bit of confidence out of me, I just had a big pre-season, I really wanted to work on getting my run back and my hardness and I guess it’s flowed onto this year.
“My body has just felt good most games, I’ve been recovering really well and just going out there and playing footy and enjoying it which is the main thing.
“I didn’t really think about games, when you’re injured you just think about getting back and playing your first game so I worked hard to get to where I am now and hopefully I’ve got a few games left in me.
“There’s always moments where you’re going through your career that you think it’s pretty tough, but you get over them and I’m happy to be where I am now.”
In contrast, Hannebery has reached the 100-game mark at just 22 years of age, making his debut as a teenager while still at school in 2009.
He won the NAB Rising Star award in 2010, was crucial to the Swans 2012 premiership triumph, and has been part of a core group of Swans midfielders that have driven them to a top-four finish this season.
Hannebery said he was privileged to achieve such a milestone, and that being exposed to an elite AFL environment at such a young age has been a huge boost to his personal development.
“It’s a nice accomplishment, it’s something you have to give yourself a little pat on the back for, but something that come game day you’re certainly not thinking about,” said Hannebery.
“I honestly didn’t think I would get there, I think I was reasonably lucky to get those six or seven games initially in my first year as a school kid, I suppose the club was in a tiny rebuilding phase at that stage, they didn’t make the finals that year, but I was definitely lucky to get some footy into me, and no doubt that helped my pre-season going forward.
“It gave me an appreciation of how hard you have to work to be an AFL player and I think I’m just grateful and fortunate for the opportunity that Roosy (Paul Roos) and Horse (coach John Longmire) have given me and touch wood I’ve been pretty lucky so far in my career with injuries.”
While it may seem that everything has come easy to Hannebery in his career so far, going to school at Xavier College in Melbourne but training and playing with the Swans in Sydney was a challenge in itself, but one that has reaped plenty of rewards.
“It was a pretty surreal experience going to school Monday to Thursday then training up here later in the week and playing, then going back down to school early in the week, so it was a bit of a weird experience.
“It’s something that was good to be able to experience, it’s definitely helped my footy, and something I’ll remember for a long time.”
Hannebery also paid tribute to teammate Malceski, saying he was a great example for others to look to about the benefits of persevering through tough times.
“This year he’s had an amazing year so it’s an amazing story of persistence and resilience and someone that a lot of the young kids look up to, and he’s a leader of the footy club and it’s pretty special to celebrate the 150 with him this week.”
The two Swans superstars will be hoping to celebrate their achievements with a win over Carlton in Saturday night’s semi-final at ANZ Stadium.
