Wayne Schwass

Wayne Schwass
Personal information
Date of birth	27 November 1968
Place of birth	New Zealand
Original team(s)	South Warrnambool
Height/Weight	180 cm / 80 kg
Playing career^1
Years	Club	Games (Goals)
1988–1997 1998–2002 Total -	North Melbourne Sydney Swans	184 0(97) 098 0(57) 282 (154)
^1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 2002 season.
Career highlights
North Melbourne Best and Fairest 1994, 1995 North Melbourne Premiership player 1996 Sydney Swans Best and Fairest 1999 All-Australian 1999 New Zealand Hawks 2012

Wayne Schwass (born 27 November 1968) is a former Australian rules football player in the VFL/AFL who debuted in 1988.

He is notable as one of only a few New Zealand-born players of Māori heritage^[1] in the history of the VFL/AFL.

Schwass moved from New Zealand at the age of 10 to Warrnambool in Victoria, Australia area where he began playing Australian Rules before being recruited by VFL club Kangaroos.

"Schwatter" was a champion wingman, known for his blistering pace and courage who played in the Kangaroos' 1996 premiership side before becoming a leader in the Sydney Swans side.

In 2006, Schwass announced that he had suffered from depression during his successful AFL career. Since his retirement he has set up The Sunrise Foundation to help other athletes who suffer from depression.^[2]

He is now an AFL commentator for Triple M on Saturday nights and Sunday afternoons

In 2012, Schwass was a player coach for the New Zealand representative AFL side, the NZ Hawks, against the Australian AIS-AFL Academy team.^[3] He has long been a great supporter and ambassador for the game in New Zealand which has had several AFL and a large number of Australian State league players play in the past five years.

References

1. Māori overseas – Retaining Māori culture in Australia – Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand
2. "Men in Blue". The Bulletin. 7 June 2007. Archived from the original on 14 October 2007. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
3. De Kretser, Chris (31 January 2013). "Wayne Schwass helps New Zealand against AIS-AFL Academy team in Wellington". Herald Sun. Archived from the original on 5 October 2015. Retrieved 5 October 2015.

External links

• Wayne Schwass's profile on the official website of the Sydney Swans