As Sam Reid embarks on a desperate bid to prove his fitness for Saturday’s grand final, and the rest of his Sydney Swans teammates prepare for their moment on the game’s biggest stage, spare a thought for the man who should have been first in line to replace him, but is instead learning the most brutal lesson of his career to date.
The Swans had big plans for Peter Ladhams, the ruckman they brought in from Port Adelaide at the end of last season. He played a reasonably significant role in their home-and-away campaign, pulling on the colours 11 times and stepping into the breach when first-choice ruckman Tom Hickey has been injured or otherwise unavailable, while filling in as another handy tall forward option.
But when Reid went down with an adductor scare midway through Saturday’s preliminary final, a cold shiver would have gone down Ladhams’ spine.
Twice already has the 24-year-old fallen one game short of a grand final appearance, having played in two losing prelims for the Power in 2020 and 2021. This time, however, he can only blame himself, having fallen foul of the fine line between physical aggression and the laws of the game one too many times.
Ladhams put himself out of finals contention last month with an undisciplined late hit on an opponent in the VFL, where he had been trying to build a case for a senior recall in September. His high shot on Melbourne’s Taj Woewodin attracted a three-game suspension – and because Sydney beat the Demons in their qualifying final and earned the week off, there is still one more match to be served.
Hickey, who had already taken Ladhams under his wing as his ruck understudy, has now had to give him a shoulder to lean on.
Tom Hickey, left, and Peter Ladhams, who is suspended for the grand final.Credit:Phil Hillyard
“He’s had a really great attitude since it [happened]. It was a brainfade gone wrong,” he said. “I think he’s very remorseful for it. But we don’t we don’t hold grudges here. We put it wrap our arms around him and make sure he’s alright. He’s stayed really positive. He’s trained really well, he’s been doing extra training and biding his time.
“Grand finals and premierships and finals series, there’s so many hard luck stories. For every hard luck story, there’s a Ryan Clarke, who’s spent two years trying to get a game and hasn’t lost one yet this year and has been so important to us. And there’s a Sam Reid who, if he does get up, he’s come back from injury plagues and stuff like that. There’s the good and bad in every story.”
Swans fans had long filed out of the SCG on Saturday evening when Joel Amartey and Hayden McLean, the two remaining like-for-like contenders for Reid’s spot in the team, were doing shuttle runs on the field while the rest of their teammates celebrated their miraculous one-point win over Collingwood.
Along with Harry Cunningham, Ben Ronke and Will Gould, the pair sweated through 8.5km of work in a bid to stay sharp for the anticipated opening that will almost certainly be created by Reid, who was due to undergo scans on Monday. Club sources are bracing for bad news, although the Swans are staying outwardly positive until then.
Sam Reid is facing an uphill battle to prove his fitness for the grand final.Credit:Getty
Reid, 30, was lucky to avoid being delisted at the end of last season, in which he played just 10 games due to recurring soft-tissue injuries, as younger talls like Amartey, McLean and Logan McDonald overtook him in John Longmire’s pecking order. Reid also auditioned for a spot in defence during pre-season but was again superseded, this time by Paddy McCartin – but he eventually found his spot up forward, where he has been Sydney’s best and most reliable contested mark, while giving competent back-up to Hickey in the ruck.
“Fingers crossed for him,” co-captain Dane Rampe said of Reid’s diagnosis.
“He’s an important part, obviously – he’s been unbelievable for us, and he’ll get every opportunity [to prove his fitness]. He’s not one you’re going to rule out early. But I’ve got no idea … that’s the honest truth.”
Ladhams is contracted to the Swans until the end of 2025, and is seen as Hickey’s long-erm successor, but faces a hard summer as the consequences of his ill-discipline burn within him.
Hickey, meanwhile, is lapping up his first grand final week. The veteran journeyman had only played finals once before joining Sydney, and was part of the team that lost last year’s elimination final to the Giants by one point.
“I know, probably more than most, that winning isn’t guaranteed in AFL – let alone playing finals. So I’m just absolutely so grateful to be here and soaking it up,” the former Gold Coast, St Kilda and West Coast ruckman said.
“You always dream of it. Every pre-season, you think you’re a chance, but it gets around and you might not make finals. Years gone by, you’re hoping.
“This time, it’s been a really, really genuine feel that we’re that we’re capable this year to go pretty deep. And we’re here to the last dance. We’re going to have a swing.”
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