Nick Blakey looks set to continue his midfield role, a switch that proved very successful in 2020. Photo: GETTY IMAGES

Having missed the finals in consecutive years for the first time since 1995, Sydney finds itself in the midst of its first genuine rebuild in a generation.

And while the Swans did cop their fair share of spankings last season, encouragingly those instances were outweighed by performances that exhibited grit, competitiveness and heart – three traits that are synonymous with the famed “Bloods” culture.

The most pleasing aspect about that was that Sydney’s young crop played a significant role in driving those on-field efforts.

Sydney assistant coach Dean Cox believes the following four youngsters could take the next step in season 2021.

NICK BLAKEY
The highly-touted son-of-a-gun looked set to become one of the game’s most exciting key forwards in his debut year in 2019 when he booted 19 goals from 21 games in a struggling side as a 19-year-old.

But his development in attack stalled last year as he struggled for consistency. That led to the Swans switching him to the midfield, and given how effective he was in his new role, Blakey looks set to spend most of his time in that part of the ground this year as well.

“For him to be able to get around the ball, and he’s obviously got a lot of power and speed and can change an angle, he’s got a really good step and he’s a great decision-maker and ball user,” Cox told Footyology.

“So him along with ‘Dyl’ [Dylan Stephens] certainly give our midfield a bit of a different look. He’s got himself fit over the summer so hopefully he can translate that into games now.

“The ability for him to play the midfield is certainly a highlight – something we want to try and continue to grow with him. Whether he spends a little bit of time forward, that’ll happen over the year, but we want to see what he can do and add something different to our midfield group.”

At 195 centimetres and weighing in at 80 kilograms, Blakey certainly presents an awkward match-up for opposition midfielders.

“You see he’s somebody tall, he’s good overhead and he can use his power to get out of a contest, so he’s been playing that role throughout the pre-season,” Cox said.

MATTHEW LING
The Swans’ top pick from the 2017 national draft (No.14 overall) has had a rough run with foot injuries since joining the club, managing just three games after finally making his debut last year.

But Sydney rates the 21-year-old highly, and there’s a reason it drafted him so early. Fortunately for the defender, his body has been holding up really well throughout the summer, which has allowed him to have an uninterrupted pre-season.

With a clear run at it, Cox is hopeful Ling could finally realise his potential this year.

“He hasn’t been able to play consistent footy at any level which has been really difficult for Matt as well as the footy club,” Cox said.

“I think what he can do is he can play on the real dangerous small forwards and lock them out but he can also give a bit of run off half-back as well.”

If you’re a young small defender trying to learn your craft, what better way to fast-track your development than by playing on arguably the best small forward in the AFL during training?

“He’s had some really good match-ups with some of our small forwards and learned a hell of a lot playing on Tom Papley and the like,” Cox said.

“He learns as much as he can as quickly as possible, so that’s the good thing about playing these games, you don’t have to wait until we get into practice games against other teams, you’ve got them [star players] on your own list and they [youngsters] have a chance to have a crack at it.”

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DYLAN STEPHENS
Another former Sydney top pick (No.5 overall) from 2019, Stephens got a good taste of senior footy last year, playing eight games.

He finished his debut year strongly, too, bettering his personal best disposal tally in consecutive weeks against top-four sides Brisbane (16) and Geelong (19) in rounds 17 and 18 respectively.

With Sydney’s contested possession and clearance numbers reaching very low “un-Sydney-like” levels in 2020, the young midfielder could play a role in restoring the Swans’ status as one of the most hard-at-the-ball teams in the AFL – a reputation they forged and nurtured successfully for well over a decade.

“His running capacity is probably the biggest thing, being able to cover the ground at a higher speed for a long period of time has probably been his highlight throughout his junior career. He predominately played on the wing,” Cox said.

“Certainly for us last year he’s been showing he can go inside and learn his craft in there and that’s probably one thing that we want to make sure we can use to try and not just rely on him being an outside player, but to understand what it’s like around the stoppage and contest and from there be able to use his legs and spread.

“Generally, he’s a really good decision maker and executor by foot, so we’ll try and highlight that as well.

“The thing with Dylan is he’s probably not a big inside mid, so that’s a point of difference being able to get on to a loose ball more, just to try and stay involved contest to contest. The contested possession is one thing at the source, but there’s also pre and post [clearance], and I think he can certainly help us post-clearances as well.”

SAM WICKS
The 21-year-old small forward was probably best remembered last year for the unfortunate incident which saw his boot stud slice Collingwood youngster Isaac Quaynor’s shin open.

But aside from that, Wicks showed plenty of promise and that he had what it took to become a regular member of the Swans’ line-up as a defensive forward.

After debuting in round 10, he hardly missed a game, kicking three goals as well as averaging eight touches and, crucially, 4.5 tackles per game.

It was his performance against Port Adelaide in particular where his high-pressure capabilities came to the fore as he laid nine tackles in just his fourth match.

“The good thing with ‘Wicksy’ is he’s an academy product … who loves to tackle and chase and pressure to win the ball back as quickly as possible or to keep the ball in our front half,” Cox said.

“He’s got fitter, he can apply that pressure for longer stages, not only in forward 50 play, but he can get up and down the ground and whether he provides options when we’re coming out of our back half or getting into the forward line, his craft and crumb to set himself up to try and kick a goal first of all [is impressive].

“His finishing has improved over the summer and if he doesn’t get that opportunity to finish, he’ll chase and harass and do whatever he can to get after the opposition.”