Sharky Pete
Great White
Swans legend Retires
http://www.smh.com.au/afl/afl-news/b...0519-vdae.html
Brett Kirk to retire from the Sydney Swans
MICHAEL COWLEY
May 19, 2010 - 11:22AM
Swans co-captain and spiritual leader Brett Kirk is expected to announce today that he will be retiring from the club at the end of the season.
Kirk, from Albury, has been co-captain of the club since the Swans's premiership winning season in 2005.
He has played 225 games for the Swans since being recruited in the rookie draft in 1998.
Kirk was initially told by the club that he was not good enough and was sent back to Albury but he refused to accept the decision and returned to earn a contract in 1999.
Kirk won the best and fairest award at the Swans in 2005 and 2007 and was an All-Australian in 2004. He represented Australia in the International Rules series against Ireland in 2003.
http://www.sydneyswans.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/7106/newsid/94596/default.aspx
Sydney Swans co-captain Brett Kirk has announced he will retire at the end of the 2010 season.
Kirk, who has played 225 games since he came off the rookie list in 1999, said he had always played with his heart, and his heart was now telling him it was time to retire.
Widely regarded as one of the most courageous players in the game, Kirk has been co-captain since 2005, and was voted Club Champion in the 2005 premiership year, and again in 2007.
Kirk’s extraordinary work ethic, discipline and determination have come to epitomise the Sydney Swans. He has not missed a game since round 15, 2002, and has played 184 consecutive games.
Sydney Swans senior coach Paul Roos said Kirk left a legacy that would last forever.
“Brett Kirk is not only one of the greats of this football Club and the game, but he is an incredible example to everyone about what can be achieved with determination, hard work and a never-say-die attitude,’’ Roos said.
“To go from a player who not only battled to get on the Swans list, but was also almost finished as a player at the end of 2002, and then to end his career as possibly one of the top five players to ever play for the football Club is an achievement of mind over matter.
“It’s not only his legacy as a player that is extraordinary. Equally important is his enormous influence on the culture of this football club. Hopefully there will always be a little bit of Brett Kirk in the Sydney Swans Football Club,’’ Roos said.
Kirk said he had decided to announce his retirement now so that he could devote all his attention to doing his best for the team for the remainder of the season.
“I’m someone who has played with my heart, led with my heart, and this is a decision that has come from the heart,’’ Kirk said today, with his wife Hayley, and their four children at his side.
“The reason I’m announcing it now is because I started to have thoughts about it over the last week or two. I was resisting it, and it was causing me stress and pain, so I need to listen to my intuition.’’
Kirk said being involved in the 2005 premiership was the ultimate prize in a team sport, but his greatest legacy was not about on-field achievements.
“My legacy isn’t about stats or what I’ve done on the field. It’s more about the impact and significance I’ve had on the Club and people around it,’’ Kirk said.
“I’m most proud of being part of building a culture here, and helping our Club gain respect in the wider football community, and I’m proud of who I am.’’
Sydney Swans Chairman, Richard Colless, said he always told players when they started their careers that he wanted them to leave as better footballers and better people, but that most importantly the football Club would also be better for their involvement. “No-one has been a greater example of that than Brett Kirk,’’ Colless said.
"In the 136 years of the Club's existence, it's hard to believe that there would have been too many people - not just players - who have made a greater contribution to the fabric of our organisation.''
Sydney Swans Chief Executive, Andrew Ireland, said Kirk had been one of the Club’s greatest players and it was always disappointing when a player of that calibre finished their career.
“He’s been an ornament to the game, and has been in the top three in our Club championship every year since 2003,’’ Ireland said.
“There are not too many players who have had such a consistently good output over such a long period. Not only is he a fantastic player, but a fantastic person who has been very important in creating the culture at this football Club.’’
BRETT KIRK’S ACHIEVEMENTS TO DATE
Sydney Swans Club Champion, 2005 and 2007
Runner-up in Club Champion, 2003, 2004, 2006 and 2008
Sydney Swans Player of the Finals Series, 2006
Sydney Swans Co-Captain since 2005.
All-Australian, 2004
International Rules 2003, 2004
http://www.smh.com.au/afl/afl-news/b...0519-vdae.html
Brett Kirk to retire from the Sydney Swans
MICHAEL COWLEY
May 19, 2010 - 11:22AM
Swans co-captain and spiritual leader Brett Kirk is expected to announce today that he will be retiring from the club at the end of the season.
Kirk, from Albury, has been co-captain of the club since the Swans's premiership winning season in 2005.
He has played 225 games for the Swans since being recruited in the rookie draft in 1998.
Kirk was initially told by the club that he was not good enough and was sent back to Albury but he refused to accept the decision and returned to earn a contract in 1999.
Kirk won the best and fairest award at the Swans in 2005 and 2007 and was an All-Australian in 2004. He represented Australia in the International Rules series against Ireland in 2003.
http://www.sydneyswans.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/7106/newsid/94596/default.aspx
Sydney Swans co-captain Brett Kirk has announced he will retire at the end of the 2010 season.
Kirk, who has played 225 games since he came off the rookie list in 1999, said he had always played with his heart, and his heart was now telling him it was time to retire.
Widely regarded as one of the most courageous players in the game, Kirk has been co-captain since 2005, and was voted Club Champion in the 2005 premiership year, and again in 2007.
Kirk’s extraordinary work ethic, discipline and determination have come to epitomise the Sydney Swans. He has not missed a game since round 15, 2002, and has played 184 consecutive games.
Sydney Swans senior coach Paul Roos said Kirk left a legacy that would last forever.
“Brett Kirk is not only one of the greats of this football Club and the game, but he is an incredible example to everyone about what can be achieved with determination, hard work and a never-say-die attitude,’’ Roos said.
“To go from a player who not only battled to get on the Swans list, but was also almost finished as a player at the end of 2002, and then to end his career as possibly one of the top five players to ever play for the football Club is an achievement of mind over matter.
“It’s not only his legacy as a player that is extraordinary. Equally important is his enormous influence on the culture of this football club. Hopefully there will always be a little bit of Brett Kirk in the Sydney Swans Football Club,’’ Roos said.
Kirk said he had decided to announce his retirement now so that he could devote all his attention to doing his best for the team for the remainder of the season.
“I’m someone who has played with my heart, led with my heart, and this is a decision that has come from the heart,’’ Kirk said today, with his wife Hayley, and their four children at his side.
“The reason I’m announcing it now is because I started to have thoughts about it over the last week or two. I was resisting it, and it was causing me stress and pain, so I need to listen to my intuition.’’
Kirk said being involved in the 2005 premiership was the ultimate prize in a team sport, but his greatest legacy was not about on-field achievements.
“My legacy isn’t about stats or what I’ve done on the field. It’s more about the impact and significance I’ve had on the Club and people around it,’’ Kirk said.
“I’m most proud of being part of building a culture here, and helping our Club gain respect in the wider football community, and I’m proud of who I am.’’
Sydney Swans Chairman, Richard Colless, said he always told players when they started their careers that he wanted them to leave as better footballers and better people, but that most importantly the football Club would also be better for their involvement. “No-one has been a greater example of that than Brett Kirk,’’ Colless said.
"In the 136 years of the Club's existence, it's hard to believe that there would have been too many people - not just players - who have made a greater contribution to the fabric of our organisation.''
Sydney Swans Chief Executive, Andrew Ireland, said Kirk had been one of the Club’s greatest players and it was always disappointing when a player of that calibre finished their career.
“He’s been an ornament to the game, and has been in the top three in our Club championship every year since 2003,’’ Ireland said.
“There are not too many players who have had such a consistently good output over such a long period. Not only is he a fantastic player, but a fantastic person who has been very important in creating the culture at this football Club.’’
BRETT KIRK’S ACHIEVEMENTS TO DATE
Sydney Swans Club Champion, 2005 and 2007
Runner-up in Club Champion, 2003, 2004, 2006 and 2008
Sydney Swans Player of the Finals Series, 2006
Sydney Swans Co-Captain since 2005.
All-Australian, 2004
International Rules 2003, 2004
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