Sport
17 June, 2026
AFL greats almost make difference for Charlton seniors
Magner, through his friendship with both Navies captain Carl Thiesz and Swan, helped to bring the footy legend to Charlton.
UNDERSTANDABLY, all of the focus at Charlton on Saturday was on the nuggety bloke in the number 36 jumper for the Navy Blues.
Brownlow medallist and Collingwood premiership player Dane Swan was always going to be the centre of attention.
But it was another, much less celebrated former AFL player who carried the Navies to their best performance of the year when they rose from six consecutive 100-plus defeats to run Boort to 20 points.
James Magner played 19 games with Melbourne in 2012-13, winning two Brownlow votes in his debut match with the Demons.
His career ran out of steam pretty quickly, but against Boort he kicked six goals as Charlton booted 12 on the day, having scored just 15 goals in six completed matches this year.
Magner, through his friendship with both Navies captain Carl Thiesz and Swan, helped to bring the footy legend to Charlton.
The impact was immediate, with Magner kicking the first goal of the game, followed by majors to Jayson Stiles and Adam Baird as Charlton got out to a 12-point lead. When Magner kicked his third for the match early in the second term, the Navies were leading by 16 points.
Magner kicked another two in the third quarter, but Boort still led by 28 points at the final change. The margin was 33 points before Swan, who had been mostly playing at half-back, went forward and kicked a goal.
Another came to Charlton through Kris Clifford, but the impressive Danko Bzenic replied quickly, snuffing out any chances of a Navies win.
After a half a dozen games on the end of massive defeats, the final score felt like a victory for many of the Charlton crowd.
Magner’s was best afield, and Swan was also among the best. Liam Bianco’s three goals were important for Boort, for whom Carlos Egan continued his outstanding form.
Young Magpie Jake O’Flaherty, still eligible for junior footy, will one day be able to tell his grandchildren he shared the field with an AFL Hall of Fame footballer and kicked his first senior goal.
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