Posted by Vietnam Swans on February 22, 2008
Last weekend, the Saigon contingent of the Vietnam Swans went on a Footy Boot Camp down to Vung Tau.
Big Joe & Little Lek, Mighty Matty Johnsy, Muzzaaaaagh!, Captain G Very Angry Train, Drew Truckie and Fabulous Phil were all there. A special appearance by the Little Guy, Pacey Stacey at the Dog Races on the Saturday night was specially disappointing for the bookies.
The weekend was in preparation for the hit out against Malaysia on 8 March.
Speaking of the dogs, that’s where we trained: in the middle of the dog track for a couple of hours in the searing temperatures. Literally, half the team was sick (the night before). Fairly soft performance that.
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Posted by Vietnam Swans on August 16, 2007
In an article titled, “Ghosts of failures past haunt Cats” that appeared in yesterday’s Age newspaper, Greg Baum looked at Geelong’s prospects at the business end of the season.
“Geelong sits four games clear on top of the ladder and is already the minor premier. It has won 14 games in a row, the second-longest winning streak in the club’s history and one of the 12 longest by any club. The previous three clubs to compile similar sequences — Carlton 1995, Essendon 2000 and the Brisbane Lions 2002 — all won premierships, emphatically.”
The story looks good. But Baum then points out Geelong’s well known flip side:
“Geelong has not won the flag since 1963. Among clubs of the former VFL, only Footscray is more starved. In the interim, the Cats have lost five grand finals, also losing six preliminary finals.”
In conclusion, Baum thinks “a defeat now for the Cats would be a hitch, not a crisis. But Geelong knows that its biggest threat at the moment is Geelong. So do punters.”
The Swans Blog decided to get to the bottom of this story and contacted Bomber Thompson for his own thoughts. According to Bomber, Cats’ supporters should not worry. He spoke reassuringly and enthusiastically about the Cats, and described their recent form as “priceless”.
Meanwhile, for those Vietnam Swans in Hanoi, training will be on tonight as usual at Dead Cat Stadium, commencing at 7.15pm. Only 2 1/2 weeks before the Hong Kong Dragons get here.
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Posted by Vietnam Swans on June 25, 2007
Last week, the Melbourne contingent of the Swans comprising Micky J, Greg Banova and Dave Rehn got together outside Princes Park in Melbourne to meet new recruit, Max Sharples.
Max was mighty because he brought the footy with him which allowed everyone to go through a few drills. The photographic evidence is impressive if not conclusive.
However, it seems that Greg was ridden twice which means he’s the one who most needs to work on his defensive skills. Admittedly, it looked like nothing would have stopped Rehnie or Max.
Best climb? Possibly Max but like his brother in Laos and all of his Elephant mates, doesn’t seem to find it necessary to be anywhere near the ball.
For my money, it’s Micky J in his vote-catching red pants. Note the open mouth in case the ball penetrates through his hands. Also, no one used Mick’s rat’s tail to ride him. In fact no one rode him at all. Must be the best defender and attacker in that group of illustrious Swans.
Posted in Asian Champs, Training | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Vietnam Swans on June 18, 2007
Amazing scenes at Dead Cat Stadium, Hanoi, last Thursday night. The Hanoi chapter started flying for the round ball! They decided to join forces with the Irish contingent of Gaelic Footballers who are preparing for their own international tournament in Singapore next weekend. Perhaps feeling a bit defensive, Daryl Taber was very quick to point out that there were some high potential AFLers amongst that lot.
For this scribe currently based in Saigon, I was stunned to see the “lost” Clint Lambert’s name reappear on some email lists. I was thinking his reappearance might suggest he was a closet Gaelic Footballer. However, rumours have started surfacing this week, in the chase for sponsorship support, that previous President Taber may have banished him from the club after he obscured sponsors’ logos (Jaspas and Red Apron) in a footy match way back in March of last year! That’s how seriously the Swans treat their sponsors.
Cambodia and our Elephant Friends in Laos had their training session on Thursday as well – but still, no photographic proof. Despite all the modern technology, those of us in the Swans Control Room are still relying on hope.
On Saturday in Melbourne, 4 managed to get to Princes Park for a training session with Max Sharples and contrary to earlier rushed reports, Max was the one to bring the footy. Apologies to Bar Fly and Tommy for inadvertently not getting your names on the original email.
Also on Saturday, Dead Cat came back to life with the Magnificent Sherrin. 7 tried out in a scratch match. Growds and Trav performed particularly strongly.
In the deep south, Saigon’s training was delayed until Sunday evening at Parkland (due to the RMIT pitch being under repair). 12 of us turned up – but without our Super Savvy Coach, Scotty, who is in Malaysia. We welcomed Peter Grave for his first ever session. Other highlights included the return of Kris, Johnny, Euan and Pago who replaced his normal Sunday session with training.
The lights came on at 6.45 and they were just bright enough to make it glary when you looked at them.
In Sydney, Singapore and Canberra, the line has gone quiet…
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Posted by Vietnam Swans on June 3, 2007
Down in Saigon yesterday, we had 12 people turn up for a training session which finished off with a scratch match. Magnificent to have a few numbers.
However, Vietnam continually throws out fresh challenges. Just as we’re getting some momentum in the lead up to the Champs, RMIT will lock down their ovals for 4 weeks for “rest and repair”. So we need another venue badly!
Further bad news is that Noam leaves Saigon tomorrow bound for India. He is a very recent recruit to Aussie Rules and starred for Hanoi (!) in the recent match against Saigon. But there is also some good news. On his way to India, he’ll cruise through Hanoi. When he’s there, he’ll slip straight into training with the Hanoi-based Swans on Thursday night.
Noam’s a very lucky man as he will be one of the very few from Saigon to have experienced the hallowed dirt of the world-famous, candle-lit, Dead Cat Stadium.
It’s great to have footy happening in both cities.
Posted in Asian Champs, Training, sport | Leave a Comment »
Last weekend, the Saigon contingent of the Vietnam Swans went on a Footy Boot Camp down to Vung Tau.
