Editing Sydney Swans (section)

===Struggling times: 1946–1981===
Following the end of the second world war, South Melbourne consistently struggled, as their traditional inner-city recruiting district largely emptied as a result of demographic shifts. The club missed the finals in 1946 and continued to fall such that by 1950 they were second-last on the ladder. They narrowly missed the finals in 1952, but from 1953 to 1969, they never finished any higher than eighth on the ladder. By the 1960s it was clear that South Melbourne's financial resources would not be capable of allowing them to compete in the growing market for country and interstate players, and their own local zone was never strong enough to compensate for this. The introduction of country [[zoning (Australian rules football)|zoning]] failed to help, as the [[Riverina Football League]] proved to be one of the least profitable zones.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sydneyswans.com.au/club/history/timeline/1930-1960|title=Timeline: A second wave of success (1930–1960)|access-date=9 April 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sydneyswans.com.au/club/history/timeline/1960-1984|title=Timeline: Tough times see the Swans fly north (1960–1984)|access-date=9 April 2022}}</ref>

[[File:South Melbourne Football team from the Record 23 June 1951 Pg 3.png|thumb|1951 VFL team]]
Between 1945 and 1981, South Melbourne made the finals only twice: under legendary coach [[Norm Smith]], South Melbourne finished fourth in 1970, but lost the first semi-final; and, in 1977, the club finished fifth under coach Ian Stewart, but lost the elimination final. In that time, they "won" three [[Wooden spoon (award)|wooden spoons]]. Between Round 7, 1972 and Round 13, 1973, the team lost 29 consecutive games. By the end of the 1970s, South Melbourne were saddled with massive debts after struggling for such a long period of time.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sydneyswans.com.au/club/history/timeline/1930-1960|title=Timeline: A second wave of success (1930–1960)|access-date=9 April 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sydneyswans.com.au/club/history/timeline/1960-1984|title=Timeline: Tough times see the Swans fly north (1960–1984)|access-date=9 April 2022}}</ref>