Tom Swift

DOB

6/7/1990

Height

191cm

Weight

85 kg

Junior club

Claremont/Swanbourne JFC

Arrived

Pick 20 in the 2008 national draft

Number

15

Debut

Round 10 2009 vs Carlton
(185th Eagles player)

Games

34

Goals

8

B&F Top 10

0

Best Finish

N/A

Last app.

Round 20 2012 vs Geelong

Departed

Retired at the end of the 2012 season to pursue medical studies

Other clubs

Claremont (WAFL) 2008-2013, 2015-

Promising midfield prospect Tom Swift struggled to cement his place in the side in four seasons and copped more than his fair share of grief from supporters, before quitting to pursue a medical career.

West Coast career[]

The tall midfielder was considered a top prospect as an under-16s player, described by Brisbane legend Michael Voss as "the best 16-year-old player in the country". Unfortunately, knee injuries prevented him from playing under-18s and as a result he was a bit of an unknown quantity when drafted by West Coast.

Swift made his debut midway through 2009 and played ten games for the season. He showed plenty of promise in a number of those games, never more so than the final-round demolition of Richmond when Swift received maximum Brownlow votes from the umpires (but controversially no Rising Star nomination).

He built on that in 2010, adding another 13 games while also performing well for Claremont. He was amongst the best in the Tigers' grand final loss that season.

With the Eagles surprising everyone with strong form in 2011, Swift found himself struggling to get into the side. He played just five AFL games, although he excelled at Claremont and was among their best in the grand final victory over Subiaco.

Swift had to wait until round 10 to get his first opportunity in 2012, showing a glimpse of his potential with 25 possessions and a goal against Brisbane. Despite that showing he was given just five more games for the season, starting most of them as the substitute.

At the end of 2012 he stunned the club by announcing that he was giving away football to study medicine.

Post-AFL career[]

Swift made one appearance for Claremont in a Foxtel Cup game in 2013 but otherwise sat out of football for two years. He returned to the Tigers for the 2015 season and played eight games, including their elimination final loss to the West Coast-aligned East Perth. After another change of direction, Swift moved into investment banking in Victoria.^[1]

Stats[]

AFL	Gm	G	B	K	M	H	D	T	Cl	WAFL	Gm	G	B	K	M	H	D	T
2009	10	4	3	79	39	99	178	33	18	Clar	9	3	6	112	38	93	205
2010	13	2	1	86	42	142	228	46	25		11	4	3	115	52	162	277	31
2011	5	1	2	46	23	37	83	5	6		17	6	5	247	77	222	469	62
2012	6	1	2	33	10	35	68	17	8		16	3	8	169	63	181	350	41
Tot	34	8	8	244	114	313	557	101	57
Avg		0.2		7.2	3.4	9.2	16.4	3.0	1.7