In his first reserves game since 2010, Egan booted four goals and was named in the best as the Swans recorded a 71-point win.

Swans coach Brett Warburton admitted it was a big statement, but said it was further evidence of how far the club had come.

‘‘Chris is a tremendous talent, he’s just down on form,’’ Warburton said.

‘‘It is a big statement, but the club is bigger than me and Chris.

‘‘He’s in the top 10 in the competition at his best, let alone our side, (but) he’s just got to realise at the Shepp Swans he’s got to work hard and no-one is different.

‘‘He played in the reserves (on Saturday) and played his team role and hopefully he’ll be part of our team again soon.’’

Warburton said it was up to Egan how long he would spend in the reserves and not the club’s desperate bid to play finals.

He said the team’s success was about having 21 contributors, as evidenced by the crucial win against the Lions.

‘‘We know we might have to rely on a couple of sides being beaten along the way, but if we keep winning we give ourselves a chance and we deserve that chance because we’ve come a long way,’’ he said.

‘‘I think we’re the most improved side, besides Benalla, in the competition and our future is bright, but we needed that win.

‘‘I can only coach the way I played and that’s to never give up and I know the players have that attitude. We knew they were going to come at some stage, they’re a quality side, Seymour, but we had great leadership and 21 players put their hand up, instead of 15 or 16 of other weeks.’’

The Swans take on Shepparton United at Princess Park on Saturday.