Goodes incentive for Swans rookie
ADAM Goodes may not have changed his mind about coming back to football, but he wants his jumper number to live on.
The magical Sydney Swans No.37, which was retired when Goodes walked away in 2015, will make a fitting comeback at the SCG on Saturday.
Young Indigenous prodigy Elijah Taylor specifically asked the club if he could inherit the famous jersey worn by his role model when he was drafted from Western Australia, and Goodes came back and gave his blessing.
Taylor, 20, who will make his debut against Gold Coast, is not saying he wants to be the next Adam Goodes. His motivation is that he has been inspired by Goodes to try to walk in his footsteps.
Retiring jumpers is a rare occurrence at football clubs, and the decision to reinstate Goodes’ number five years on was also not made lightly.
Taylor said by wearing the same number, he hoped to honour Goodes and what he stood for as a leader for Indigenous footballers.
“There were a few numbers mentioned, and I just said, ‘what about 37?’” Taylor said. “And they asked him and he was all good with giving me his number.
“It’s a good opportunity to get his jersey number because of what he’s done for, not only the AFL, but all our people as a community. I just wanted to follow in his footsteps. He was just very consistent … but just his story. I want to be that sort of player.”
Despite the rare connection they now share as Swans players, there has been very little contact between Goodes and Taylor. He received a phone call from Goodes when he was drafted but they haven’t bumped into each other since. However, Taylor hopes he can reach out to his mentor this week before he runs out for his AFL debut.
Taylor has formed a tight relationship with Swans superstar and Goodes’s fellow Indigenous icon Lance Franklin since arriving in Sydney.
He lived at Franklin’s house for a month and the all-time great has become his closest confidant.
Taylor kicked three goals last week in a practice game, and Franklin believes the talented prospect can light it up on debut.
“He just said, ‘go out and play your brand of footy, and you never know, you might kick a bag’,” Taylor said.
“Just living with him I saw how he goes about his footy, how he prepares and just how professional he is.
“It kind of opened my eyes to what I needed to do to play senior footy. I’ve tried to take that on board.”