Swans miracle

By Paul Pickering
A FIRST XI premiership within four years. That was the goal set by the Casey-South Melbourne hierarchy last winter.
It was a bold timeline for a club that had won just one game and been slapped with the wooden spoon in 2008-09.
But suddenly it doesn’t sound so absurd.
The Swans, so often the object of ridicule in recent years, became the feel-good story of the Premier Cricket summer en route to their first finals campaign since the relocation.
They won nine games, finished fourth on the ladder and went desperately close to progressing to a semi-final.
That being the case, you could excuse second-year coach Mark Ridgway and his skipper, evergreen all-rounder Damien Wright, for some mutual back-slapping. But that couldn’t be further from the reality.
As Ridgway revealed this week, the Swans’ quest to gain the respect of the competition has only just begun.
“We don’t want people to think that this year was a fluke,” he said, before returning to the club’s plan.
“Our goal was five wins this year, finals the next year, club championship the following year and a premiership the year after that.
“So we’re 12 months ahead of where we thought we should be, and we think that’s realistic.”
The 2011-12 club championship looks a long way away, with the Swans finishing in the bottom four in the seconds, thirds and fourths this season.
Ridgway is still confident though, citing the fact that the club had 21 players under the age of 19 on its books in 2009-10.
Given the massive improvements the Swans’ first XI made this summer, it’s hard to argue with Ridgway’s ambitious forecast.
Casey-South Melbourne had one of the most dangerous bowling attacks in the competition, with three legitimate wicket-takers in pace spearhead Jayde Herrick (42 wickets), seamer Matthew Hawking (28) and left-arm orthodox spinner Clive Rose (26).
The batting was brittle at times, particularly when Wright was on state duties, but the Swans did unearth two emerging stars in first-year recruit Rohan Blandford (417 runs) and classy opener Jake Best (324).
Wright (302 runs, 14 wickets) again looked a cut above his peers in seven Premier appearances, using the competition as a launching pad for a stunning finish to the Sheffield Shield season.
But how did it come together so quickly for the Swans?
“I’ve been asking myself that question quite a bit to be honest,” Ridgway said.
“The small steps we took this year were just about personal development, and a lot of our guys embraced that.
“Our guys were so used to being beaten that after a while they took it for granted. So our off-season was about understanding why we lose and making the adjustments to cater for that with a really simple game plan.”
That game plan was built on playing straight with the bat and bowling maidens.
From a bowling perspective at least, it was highly effective. But the Swans still have plenty of room for improvement in the batting and fielding departments.
Wright was the only player to average over 30 with the willow in hand, and the Swans dropped crucial chances throughout the season.
Ridgway’s major disappointment was the output from some of his senior players, who too often left the grunt work to their less-experienced team-mates.
He plans to eliminate that deficiency by recruiting at least three proven run-scorers over the off-season and reckons he’s got two on the hook already.
And that may be the most important legacy of the Swans’ success in 2009-10; the fact that Casey Fields is now an attractive home on the open market.
“In the past we had to beg people to come and play for us,” Ridgway said.
“Now we’ve got people knocking on our door.”
And Ridgway, the booming voice of the resurgent club, deserves his share of the credit for that.