'He's still working': Dean Cox defends star Swans recruit Charlie Curnow as critics begin to swipe

Charlie Curnow is still a "work in progress" at the Sydney Swans, but there is only so much his coach Dean Cox can say to defend him against ongoing criticism.

The Sydney coach was pressed about the performance of his star recruit post-match on Thursday after his highly credentialed team was defeated by 17 points against Hawthorn.

Curnow was relatively quiet, despite showing early glimpses of the danger he can pose in the forward line when he is given the opportunity.

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Hawks gun Tom Barrass proved to be the biggest challenge for Curnow, who was restricted to just seven disposals and two marks after the first quarter.

It was the rapid decline after the first term that had greats stunned.

"Curnow was a really interesting one tonight - started the game well. He kicks two in the first term and you think 'Oh he's up and about'," Jason Dunstall said on Fox Footy.

"He had an interesting duel with Josh Battle early, then Tom Barrass went to him in the second half and just destroyed him. That made life really difficult for Sydney."

Leigh Montagna agreed, saying: "There were times where Curnow didn't will himself into the contest enough to bring it to ground, and allowed Barrass to do what he pleased.

"You can get beaten on the day by a good player — no problems there. But you can't get outworked. That's the one non-negotiable.

"That's the one thing you can't accept, if you're Charlie Curnow."

Dunstall made clear post-match on Fox Footy that if he were Cox he would give Curnow some honest feedback.

"I think Dean Cox is a forward enough coach to sit down and say 'Mate, we needed more from you'," he said.

Curnow's performance comes just two weeks after he kicked three goals in the club's season-opening victory over Carlton. He did not score any against the Lions last week.

Cox conceded the start to the season had not been what Curnow may have been hoping for, but added that the club would help him find "the ability to perform consistently:"

"He's still working his way through at our football club," Cox said post-match.

"One thing we try to say is, 'At all times, compete as hard as you possibly can and try to read the cues up the ground when we are bringing the ball through.'

"In the second half, our ability to execute centre-forward dropped away. At one stage we had 17 per cent scores-per-inside-50 in the last quarter and 38 in the first. So some of our entries and methods didn't help ... and he's playing on really strong defenders."

Asked if Curnow is still learning how to be a Swan, Cox was quick to defend him.

"One thing we try and say is, at all times, compete as hard as you possibly can, try and read the cues up the ground when we are bringing the ball through," he said.

"There's some inconsistencies throughout that at times and it will be a work in progress we've got to put time into."

Curnow will return to action with the Swans on April 4 when they face the West Coast Eagles.