Should Sydney try and splash the cash on a key forward?

SEN • June 28th, 2025 6:29 pm

Kane Cornes believes that the Sydney Swans should consider trying to bring in a big-name key forward like Charlie Curnow during this year’s trade period.

Whether it be Tony Lockett during the 1990s or Lance Franklin during the 2010s, the Swans have been known to recruit superstar key forwards who are able to dominate the competition.

But since Franklin retired, Sydney has struggled to find someone that replicated his singular output.

In his last season back in 2022, Franklin kicked 52 goals. No forward from the Swans has been able to better that feat with the closest being Joel Amartey with 43 goals during last season.

And it hasn’t helped either that key forward and former top-five pick Logan McDonald has not played a game this season having been out due to an ankle injury.

While Cornes admitted that not having McDonald has hindered Sydney's versatility, he thinks that the Swans should look at trying to land a big key forward as they have done previously.

“You wonder if they make a big splash (in the trade period),” Cornes said on SEN’s Crunch Time.

“Whether it’s a Charlie Curnow, we’ve seen them do it before with (Aaron) Naughton and many others.

“So, you just wonder whether they are plotting something big and whether they are capable of pulling something big.

“Because they are one team that doesn’t ever rebuild, Sydney. They are adamant against the rebuild and that hasn’t been their method and with the group that they have got, it’s not going to be their method now.”

The Swans had also been rumoured earlier in the year about trying to sign Jamarra Ugle-Hagan with the former number-one pick reportedly being open to a move there.

However, it should be noted that Ugle-Hagan denied this and appears likely to stay with the Western Bulldogs now.

Outside of that, there hasn’t been that much floated about Sydney bringing in a tall forward during this season’s trade period.

Although Adam Simpson notes that Sydney does have a history in surprising everyone and recruiting a big name forward to join the Swans as shown by their signing of Franklin in 2013.

“They’ve got history, haven’t they?” Simpson said.

“And I’ve got no doubt they’re talking to someone that we could be surprised about at the end of the year.”

As per Sydney’s injury list updates, McDonald is expected to return in about seven to nine weeks which would see him come back between Round 22-24.

Sydney’s next match is on Sunday afternoon when against Fremantle at the SCG.