He may have been the first man to dethrone Gary Ablett as Gold Coast SUNS club champion, but David Swallow hasn’t stopped to bask in the glory heading into 2015.
 
The West Australian has set the standard on the training track this summer, dragging teammates with him as the SUNS pursue a maiden finals appearance this season.
 
Swallow crafted a career-best season in 2014, averaging 23.3 possessions across 22 games to win the club best and fairest ahead of fellow vice-captains Tom Lynch and Dion Prestia.
 
The challenge for the 22-year-old is now building on that stellar form and continuing to produce it on a weekly basis; a task for all young players in the game during their infancy.
 
“I guess if you ask anyone they sort of look for a continual improvement. I was happy that I had a consistent year last year, but there are still areas of my game that I would like to improve,” Swallow said.
 
“I have focused on different improvement areas during the pre-season and spent time with different coaches working on specific weaknesses and things that I can improve moving forward.”

PHOTOS: Click here to view photos from the SUNS Training Camp 
 
Swallow has a tremendous resource in his immediate family. His brother, Andrew, is the captain of North Melbourne and after winning his first club best and fairest crown at 22 in 2009, the older Swallow has since added two more (2011, 2012).
 
The 22-year-old revealed that he does seek advice from his brother at times to help with his development. Although his brother isn’t one to inundate him with words of wisdom, only when they are required.
 
“I do speak to him from time to time about areas of my game and to just to see how he went about certain things during similar stages in his career,” Swallow said.
 
“He has experienced a lot during his career, so he’s a great person to talk to about certain things.”