Wikipedia

Hayden McLean

Hayden McLean
McLean in 2019 playing for Sydney in the NEAFL
Personal information
Nickname Dossa
Born (1999-01-20) 20 January 1999 (age 26)
Original team Sandringham Dragons (TAC Cup)
Draft Pre-season supplemental selection, 2019
Debut Round 18, 2019, Sydney vs. Fremantle, at Optus Stadium
Height 198 cm (6 ft 6 in)
Weight 100 kg (220 lb)
Position Ruckman/key forward
Club information
Current club Sydney
Number 2
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
2019– Sydney 93 (95)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of round 18, 2025.
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Hayden McLean (born 20 January 1999) is an Australian rules footballer playing for Sydney in the Australian Football League (AFL). A 1.98-metre tall who can play as a ruckman or key forward, McLean began his career in the TAC Cup before a season in the Victorian Football League (VFL). He was recruited by Sydney on the eve of the 2019 season as a pre-season supplemental selection, and made his AFL debut later that year.

Junior career

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McLean attended St. Bede’s College in Mentone. He played junior football for the Beaumaris Sharks[1], where he was coached by Dermott Brereton[2] before joining the Sandringham Dragons in the TAC Cup.[3] He also was a member of the AFL Academy – spending time at the Sydney Swans as part of the development program[4] – and represented Vic Metro at the AFL Under 18 Championships. In 2017, McLean became Sandringham's captain and Vic Metro's vice-captain, but was overlooked in the 2017 AFL draft.[3][4]

He began playing in the VFL for the Sandringham Zebras, who were affiliated with AFL club St Kilda. McLean played 13 matches in 2018, averaging 5.2 marks, 10.3 hit-outs and 13.2 disposals[5] and rucking against AFL-listed players including Matthew Leuenberger, Braydon Preuss and Zac Smith. He was also named the club's best first-year player for 2018.[3] McLean trained with St Kilda in November, hoping to be selected in the 2018 AFL draft,[6] and was named by Fox Sports, which considered him similar to Adelaide ruck/forward Josh Jenkins, as a likely mature-age recruit.[7] However, he was again overlooked and moved to Adelaide to play with South Australian National Football League (SANFL) club South Adelaide in 2019.[3]

AFL career

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McLean was recruited by Sydney in March 2019 as a pre-season supplemental selection to cover the loss of defender Jack Maibaum to a season-ending anterior cruciate ligament injury.[5] His recruitment also increased the club's depth of tall players after Kurt Tippett's retirement.[3] McLean's selection was criticised by SANFL officials, as it deprived South Adelaide of an important recruit only a fortnight before their 2019 season began, leaving them unable to find a replacement in time.[8] McLean spent most of his first season in Sydney's North East Australian Football League (NEAFL) side, before a call-up to the AFL team in round 18 – a challenging match-up rucking alongside Robbie Fox against Fremantle veteran Aaron Sandilands.[9] He played three more matches to finish the season and extended his contract with Sydney to 2020.[10]

2021

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He kicked a career-high four goals in the Round 7 win against Geelong.[11]

2022

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McLean was selected for the 2022 AFL Grand Final by the Swans after not playing at senior level since round eight that season, making for a 140-day gap between senior games. This made it the second-biggest gap for players listed as inclusions for a grand final.[12]

2023

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Following the 2023 season, McLean signed a four-year contract extension to stay with the Swans until 2027 [13]

Personal life

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McLean is a third-generation VFL/AFL footballer, with his father Paul McLean playing for Fitzroy and his grandfather Tom McLean playing for Melbourne & North Melbourne. McLean's uncle, Glenn McLean, also played for Melbourne & Collingwood. [14]

Statistics

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Updated to the end of the 2022 season.[15]

Legend
  G  
 Goals
  K  
 Kicks
  D  
 Disposals 
  T  
 Tackles
  B  
 Behinds 
  H  
 Handballs 
  M  
 Marks
H/O
 Hit-outs
Season Team No. Games Totals Averages (per game) Votes
G B K H D M T H/O G B K H D M T H/O
2019 Sydney 41 4 0 1 23 20 43 12 19 53 0.0 0.3 5.8 5.0 10.8 3.0 4.8 13.3 0
2020[a] Sydney 41 6 5 1 24 14 38 13 15 14 0.8 0.2 4.0 2.3 6.3 2.2 2.5 2.3 0
2021 Sydney 41 12 11 6 67 35 102 53 23 30 0.9 0.5 5.6 2.9 8.5 4.4 1.9 2.5 1
2022 Sydney 2 9 11 3 47 34 81 28 14 38 1.2 0.3 5.2 3.8 9.0 3.1 1.6 4.2 0
2023 Sydney 2 22 21 14 150 121 271 97 55 213 1.0 0.6 6.8 5.5 12.3 4.4 2.5 9.7 1
2024 Sydney 2 26 27 19 179 107 286 116 59 179 1.0 0.7 6.9 4.1 11.0 4.5 2.3 6.9 0
2025 Sydney 2 19 25 12 106 71 177 68 32 72 1.3 0.6 5.6 3.7 9.3 3.6 1.7 3.8
Career 98 100 56 596 402 998 386 217 599 1.0 0.6 6.1 4.1 10.2 3.9 2.2 6.1 2

Notes

  1. ^ The 2020 season was played with 17 home-and-away matches per team (down from 22) and 16-minute quarters with time on (down from 20-minute quarters with time on) due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

References

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  1. ^ Gates, Zachary (15 March 2019). "McLean thrilled as Swans surprise". sydneyswans.com.au. Telstra Media. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  2. ^ https://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/hawthorn-great-dermott-brereton-wants-the-nab-league-to-become-an-under19-competition-to-stop-young-talent-being-lost-to-footy/news-story/80afbe838825437813951b1c9a3e13ea
  3. ^ a b c d e Cleary, Mitch (12 March 2019). "Swans fill final list spot with South Australian big man". AFL.com.au. Telstra Media. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  4. ^ a b Ryan, Peter (12 March 2019). "Sydney Swans add South Adelaide's Hayden McLean via rookie list". The Age. Nine Entertainment Co. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  5. ^ a b Balmer, Matt (12 March 2019). "Sydney add tall Hayden McLean to playing list". Fox Sports. News Corp Australia. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  6. ^ Navaratnam, Dinny (5 November 2018). "Saints put state league pair on trial as 2018 draft looms". AFL.com.au. Telstra Media. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  7. ^ Olle, Sarah (13 November 2018). "AFL draft 2018: Mature-age VFL stars AFL clubs should consider at national and rookie drafts". Fox Sports. News Corp Australia. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  8. ^ Sutton, Malcolm (25 March 2019). "AFL injuries bode poorly for state leagues with mid-season draft looming". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  9. ^ Rugari, Vince (19 July 2019). "Swans back rookie ruck to handle the AFL's biggest challenge". The Age. Nine Entertainment Co. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  10. ^ "Swans re-sign five, including former US college basketballer". AFL.com.au. Telstra Media. 8 October 2019. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
  11. ^ "Swans steal victory from Cats in SCG thriller". The Australian. 2 May 2021. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
  12. ^ https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/teams/sydney-swans/afl-grand-final-2022-teams-logan-mcdonald-dropped-hayden-mclean-last-game-ins-and-outs/news-story/433532d27ff55495a4b1ffdd68cb747c
  13. ^ https://www.sydneyswans.com.au/news/1418719/four-more-for-mclean
  14. ^ https://www.afl.com.au/news/97839/academy-trip-wrap-breakfast-running-and-family
  15. ^ "Hayden McLean". AFL Tables. Retrieved 22 August 2022.
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