Swan Districts add two more Victorian recruits

Excitement continues to build at Swan Districts for season 2024 with the announcement that Victorian duo Tom Panuccio and Mitch Roche, will be on board joining some familiar faces.

Panuccio is a former teammate in the Geelong VFL team of Swan Medal runner-up Jackson McLachlan while both he and Roche are former teammates and are good friends with fellow new recruit, and reigning Cats VFL fairest and best winner Jye Chalcraft.

The trio will now all be heading west together set to arrive in town in early December to begin pre-season training before the Christmas break.

Tom Panuccio is a young player who never imagined football could take him across the country growing up in Euroa, but now after two years in Geelong's VFL team he can't wait to get to Swan Districts.

Panuccio grew up the small Victorian town of Euroa, in the north east of the state with a population of just over 3000 people, and that saw him go on to play in the NAB League with the Murray Bushrangers.

He was always an emerging and hard-running talent who then made the move to Geelong to continue his footballing progress in the VFL and that's where he has spent the last two seasons.

Panuccio wasn’t quite sure what to expect when he embarked on his VFL journey, but having played 20 games for the Cats over the past two seasons, he has only continued to develop and now is looking for that to continue at Swan Districts.

"It's very exciting and I would never have thought footy could take me to the other side of the country," Panuccio said.

"I thought I'd also be Victorian and playing a lot of VFL footy, but you can never tell what's going to happen in the future. 

"With an opportunity like this, I thought it would be good to take the chance and see if I could go a bit further in footy, which is the exciting thing."

After playing with Geelong in the VFL the past two years, Panuccio felt now might be a good time to make the next step in his football career. 

He just wasn’t sure where that would be, but when he heard how highly Swan Districts' fairest and best runner-up Jackson McLachlan spoke of his move west, and then knowing that both Jye Chalcraft and Mitch Roche were coming across to WA, it soon became an obvious choice.

"I originally was just looking for a change to get over there and I had the captain from last year, Jackson McLachlan, who took me under his wing when he first came to Geelong who was already at Swan Districts," he said.

"I thought I'd get a hold of him and suss him out to see what the footy's like over there and I had that connection through him. It's just been really good that Jye's been able to go over there as well which is pretty exciting for us to both go over there. I think that's definitely going to help us both."

The fact that Panuccio will get to Perth and get to reunite with McLachlan, and then the fact that he will be making the move with both Chalcraft and Roche, and perhaps more importantly his girlfriend, means he's sure he'll have no trouble settling in.

"It will help a lot knowing a few people and doing it together," Panuccio said.

"I've never even been to Perth before either so for both me and Jye to experience it all together will be exciting and at least we'll be able to support each other through the challenges. 

Panuccio is no stranger to making big moves as part of his football journey having already left home to go to Geelong to play in the VFL, and now he is expecting another step up and to continue to develop once he gets to Swan Districts to play in the WAFL.

"The past two years at Geelong really developed my game a lot," Panuccio said.

"I'm just trying to embrace every opportunity I can and I think that will now help translate that into the WAFL with the bigger grounds, which should suit how I play my game."

As for what sort of player he is, Panuccio would describe his running ability and footy smarts as his great strengths.

"I back my endurance so running is one of my strengths and being able to read my play so footy IQ and the endurance are probably my two strong points," he said.

"With the bigger grounds and a lot more space to work in and a bit more area to use my strengths in reading the play is something that's exciting, and I think that will help me put my best foot forward to play my best footy."

As for what he's expecting once he gets to Perth in early December, Panuccio can't wait for the warm and sunny weather while from a football sense, he just can't wait to get to experience the Swan Districts Football Club.

"I'm looking forward to the nice weather from what I hear, that's always going to be nice coming from Geelong where it's raining all the time. It's just going to be nice to have a change of scenery and enjoy every minute of it and give it my best go," Panuccio said.

"Hopefully a premiership, that's always good so that's the first goal, but from what I've been through and all the teams I've played for through NAB League, I played a game with GWS in the VFL and now the last two years at Geelong, it's more about the friendships you make. 

"You're always playing with a lot of different mates when you get on the field and off the field it's always good to make friends for life. That's my point of view of how I see it and I can't wait to get over there to do that at Swan Districts."

Meanwhile, Mitch Roche joins the club for 2024 on the back of being the vice-captain at Shepparton United in the Goulbourn Valley League in country Victoria.

He put together a standout 2023 season at Country football level as a high ball-winning midfielder including a best of a 43-possession performance and since then his travelling the country for football commenced.

He has been in the Northern Territory recently playing with Waratah of the NTFL and now after finishing up his stint there last week, he will arrive in Perth to commence pre-season training at Swan Districts.

The explosive midfielder who can go forward to kick a goal says the move to Swan Districts all started when he found out Geelong VFL fairest and best winner Jye Chalcraft, a former Shepparton teammate of his, was heading west.

"It all came about starting with Jye who is one of my best mates," Roche said.

"I sort of wanted to improve my own game by playing at a higher level so I thought it was a good opportunity to try to get onto. I'm pretty keen on giving it a go now and getting to Perth to get started."

It's remarkable to think that Roche has never even visited Perth before but now he will be calling it home, but at the same time he is excited to be making the move and especially to be doing it with a couple of familiar faces, Chalcraft and fellow recruit Tom Panuccio.

"With me and Jye, before we even signed anywhere we talked about it and just though, stuff it, let's do it and get over to Perth," he said.

"Going with one of your best mates and Tom is coming over as well who I know from a while back and he's one of our mates too, so it's going to be a really good experience I reckon for all three of us.”

It's been quite the whirlwind of a few months for Roche who has left home in Shepparton to head to Darwin and now he's about to move to Perth, but it's exciting at the same time that football is taking him all over the country.

"It's definitely exciting and it's so different going from a little country town in Victoria to Perth. It's a massive change but I'm looking forward to it and starting a new life," Roche said.

On the back of the Reserves team winning the flag last year, competition for places in both the League and Reserves team will be strong at Swan Districts in 2024, but at the same time he thinks his strengths will suit the style of play.

The wider expanses of the WAFL grounds are something Roche is looking forward to taking advantage of although getting used to the Burley footballs might take a bit more time.

"It will be a little bit of a step up from what I've played before when I've mainly played just senior country footy," Roche said. 

"It's not a bad league, but it's definitely going to be a step up in the WAFL and the grounds are going to be quite a bit bigger too and they use different footies too. It's going to be a whole different experience and I'm looking forward to all the challenges it will present."