Sydney Swans great Adam Goodes has joined his former teammates at the SCG as part of the club’s 10-year AFL premiership celebrations.
Key points:
- The SCG crowd gave Goodes a massive cheer
- He retired from the AFL at the end of the 2015 season
- Goodes has previously declined invitations to attend AFL functions
Goodes and much of the squad that beat Hawthorn in the 2012 grand final started the official premiership reunion with a lap of honour at the SCG while attending the Swans’ match against the Gold Coast Suns.
The dual Brownlow medallist has distanced himself from AFL events, but not from the Swans since retiring at the end of 2015 after playing 372 senior matches.
Much of Goodes’s final AFL season was marred by crowds booing him during matches.
Goodes did not join the motorcade of retiring players at the grand final in 2015 and has since declined invitations to attend Brownlow Medal events or to be inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame.
A sizeable crowd arrived at the SCG in time to watch the lap of honour but the Sydney faithful saved their biggest cheers for Goodes, who was pressed to recall events from the second of his two AFL premierships.
“It’s a bit blurry to be honest, but I was reliving it a little bit last night with the boys,” Goodes said.
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Despite the defeat to the Suns, Swans coach John Longmire — who was in charge back in 2012 — was pleased Goodes had joined his former teammates for the reunion.
“It was terrific. Obviously it means a lot to him to be around his teammates from that period,” Longmire said after the match.
“It was great to see him at the game and great to see him with his mates, it’s as simple as that.
“It’s great to see him with his mates.”
Almost all of the Sydney team that beat the Hawks by 10 points in the 2012 grand final joined in the pre-match celebrations, including premiership captain Jarrad McVeigh.
The 2012 Norm Smith medallist, Ryan O’Keefe, was unable to attend, while Rhyce Shaw was there in his role as a development coach for Gold Coast.
Current Sydney players Josh Kennedy, Luke Parker and Sam Reid were also at the SCG, but preparing for the clash with the Suns.
The 2012 premiership players formed a guard of honour for the current team as they ran out for the match.
AAP/ABC
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