Mark Robinson believes that Sydney midfielder Daniel Hannebery’s decision to give up drinking alcohol over the off-season could be impacting his performance on the field after a lacklustre opening two games for the Swans.
The 26-year-old has lacked impact in the club’s disappointing start to their 2017 campaign, a problem shared by some of the other veteran Swans midfielders in their two defeats to Port Adelaide and the Western Bulldogs.
The Herald Sun senior football reporter says that ever since Hannebery publically announced that he was curbing his off-field antics, including giving up consuming alcohol during the summer, he has not had the same influence as he could have otherwise have had for the Swans.
“He is a party boy, Daniel Hannebery. He has changed his social habits, which is including giving up drinking,” Robinson said on SEN’s Crunch Time.
“Daniel Hannebery doesn’t look like the same player and doesn’t have the aggression and the hunting of the ball at the moment.
“Two games down they are 0-2 and questions come, what’s wrong with Daniel Hannebery?”
Robinson also expressed disappointment at fellow Sydney on-ballers Luke Parker and Kieran Jack’s starts to season 2017.
“Luke Parker for three quarters I thought struggled. Kieran Jack’s another one who I thought has got old really quickly,” he said.
“I agree with the premise that they are not getting enough out of the older mids.”
David King believes that the toll of the Swans’ Grand Final defeat to the Dogs last year may still be having an impact on the club.
“Maybe they just need to ease into the season,” the Fox Footy analyst said.
“It’s a really quick start and I know the Dogs were in the Grand Final clearly as well, but the Swans just look like the previous year’s Grand Finalists to me.”