A bevy of young Swans have been channelling their inner MasterChef by putting on a spread for two treasured volunteers.
Cheree and Geoff Curran, two passionate Swans members, will be treated to some nights off in the kitchen as a special thank you for their hospitality offered to the boys in the Swans’ housing program.
First-year players who arrive in Sydney are placed in share houses, leased by the football club, with teammates to ease their transition to AFL. They gradually progress to be house leaders over the following two seasons, helping the next wave of recruits settle into Sydney life, before moving on to their own dwellings.
About once a month the Curran family, including sons Patrick and Charlie, welcome the players into their dining rooms and feed them a wholesome home-cooked dinner before sending them on their way with containers full of leftovers and nutritious snacks.
And all out of the kindness of their hearts.
Recently, house by house, the boys are returning the favour. Making things interesting, Elise Cameron, the Club’s dietitian, has made these nights into a competition to keep the players on their toes in the kitchen.
Last Wednesday, the Darcy Cameron-Shaun Edwards-Sam Fisher household went head-to-head with the James Rose-Jordan Dawson-Will Hayward household.
Development coach John Blakey attended as a guest judge.
The first group took care of the barbeque dinner – eye fillets and kebabs – while the Dawson-led trio smashed out a gluten-free and nut-free apple crumble for dessert. Both teams each contributed two sides to the main course.
While the kitchen was “an organised mess” at times, head chef Elise Cameron declared the night an overall success.
“The main aim of the challenges is teaching the development players about how optimum nutrition can enhance performance,” Cameron said.
“The secondary aim is to educate and teach life skills that these players can use well beyond their years in football.
“These nights were specifically designed to allow the players an opportunity to show gratitude to people like Cheree and her family who support the players in an off-field sense.
“It’s also a good opportunity to build on their approach to team-work, an attribute which is critical both on and off the field.”
To prepare for the challenge, Cameron has been running several cooking classes in the Sydney Swans’ SCG kitchen.
A hive of activity, the classes involve guiding the players through a number of recipes and techniques that they can utilise in their own kitchens.
The next "Curran cook-off", scheduled for later this month, will see the George Hewett, Tyrone Leonardis and Toby Pink take on Lewis Melican, Ben Ronke and Ollie Florent.
The cook off gets underway in the Curran's kitchen.
Dinner time!
