Amartey party rolls on as Swans sign Buddy successor to long-term contract
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The Sydney Swans have locked away one of the pillars of their post-Buddy forward line after promising tall Joel Amartey committed to a three-year contract extension.
Amartey booted four goals in Sydney’s 171-point demolition of the West Coast Eagles on Saturday – equalling his career-best record, which he set earlier this year against Hawthorn.
Joel Amartey and Lance Franklin at Swans training.Credit: Phil Hillyard
His electric form and ability to pinch-hit in the ruck made him an obvious target for clubs from Victoria, where he is from, but the 23-year-old has chosen to stick it out with the Swans until at least the end of the 2026 season.
“I’ve been on rookie contracts a fair bit in my career so to get a deal with a few years on it was a big achievement for me,” Amartey said.
“With the young group we’ve got at the moment, I’m looking forward to the years to come and the rest of this season.”
Selected with Sydney’s second pick at the 2018 rookie draft, Amartey has the makings of another diamond-in-the-rough discovery by the club’s recruiting department, with the only question mark his ability to stay fit and play consistent football.
Joel Amartey has signed on for three more years at Sydney.Credit: Phil Hillyard
His strong start to the season was derailed by a serious hamstring injury during Sydney’s Gather Round win over Richmond in round five, but he returned ahead of schedule and now looms as a crucial part of their bid for a finals berth – which was boosted, in no small part, by the hefty percentage increase from their win over the Eagles.
“I haven’t rarely played more than five or six games in a row at AFL level to date. But my body’s feeling the best it’s ever felt, I take some confidence from that, and hopefully I’m able to string some games together,” Amartey said.
Having served as an understudy to veteran forwards Lance Franklin and Sam Reid, their likely retirement at the end of the year will open up even more opportunities for Amartey and key forward partner Logan McDonald, 20, who shape as the Swans’ long-term attacking cornerstones.
McDonald is only contracted until the end of 2024, and will surely be one of the next players Sydney will seek to tie down to a longer deal.
“Me and Logan have a great relationship – we complement each other in our strengths and what we bring,” he said.
“We’ve got a good connection at the moment but we’re still building on each other’s little nuances, what we like to do and how we like it. It’s really exciting, one for the future hopefully, and there’s plenty more games for us together to look forward to.”
The Swans’ September charge continues with a grand final rematch against Geelong at the SCG on Friday night. Amartey took no part in Sydney’s finals campaign last year, and was overlooked for the MCG decider in favour of an injured Reid – a decision coach John Longmire later admitted was a mistake.
“Geelong’s been the benchmark of the comp for the last 15 years. It’s a different challenge to last week, but we love challenges, and we’re going to face it front-on,” Amartey said.
“We’ve got a different look this week, back at home, in front of the SCG crowd on Friday night, so it should be a really good contest.”
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