The Swans' women's team fell short in their first game, while the men's team returned home with a win.
The Ottawa Swans' men's and women's teams travelled to Toronto on June 3 to play their respective games. The men's team faced off against the Toronto Blues in their second game of the season. They looked to bring home the win after stumbling against the Rebels in the previous match. The men won their game 19 (3.1) to 99 (14.15) with outstanding performances from Geoff Coventry, James Clock, and Riley Turpin.
Coach Joshua La Porta, credited the players' success to their resilience and maintaining a simplistic approach to the game. Coach La Porta wanted the new players to ease into the sport and enjoy their game days, saying, “Australian Football can be extremely complex for newcomers due to its dynamic gameplay, so one of our aims is to make it easy and enjoyable for our recruits.” By minimizing tactical instructions and fatigue early in the season, the team relied on their senior players to make strategic decisions in-game.
La Porta was pleased with the team's performance and looks forward to the upcoming weekend.
The women's season has started similarly to the men's team, with a loss to the Demon Blues, 69 (9.15) to 1 (1). However, the result does not accurately reflect how the game played out, as the Swans fought throughout but were unable to convert their chances.
The Demon Blues' experienced players' connection throughout the game was difficult to defend and created a formidable challenge for the Swans. Coach Yaser Abou Elenein took responsibility for the team's weak first-half performance, saying, “I didn't react quickly enough to get the matchups right, and our backline was under siege in the first half. The team fought admirably, but the sheer number of inside 50s was always going to hurt us.” The second half was much stronger for the Swans; however, the deficit was too significant to overcome with the number of inexperienced players on the team. Coach Yaser wanted to acknowledge Isabel Kleinbub and Angelica Gonzalez for their excellent performance in their first game for the Swans.
If the men's team is any indication of a trend, we can expect the women's team to perform better in round two of their season.
- Ali Boty
Last Modified on 10/06/2023 05:42