Sam Reid in struggle to make finals for Swans THE Swans' trinity of tall forwards has endured a further setback after confirmation yesterday Sam Reid will struggle to get back before the finals. The young forward, who had been out since round nine, reinjured his quadriceps muscle 10 minutes into the first quarter of his return match on Sunday. Scans confirmed Reid hurt the same muscle and coach John Longmire said last night the news was not good for the 21-year-old. "The new tear is a lower grade tear to what Sam initially suffered against Collingwood five weeks ago, however, given he has reinjured it, we will need to be very conservative with his rehabilitation," Longmire said. Reid joins an injury list that includes Adam Goodes, Lewis Roberts-Thomson, Alex Johnson, Lewis Jetta, Gary Rohan, Mitch Morton and Tom Walsh. The Swans recruited Kurt Tippett this year to take the pressure off Reid and along with Goodes the three were expected to create a headache for defenders. Tippett's suspension, then injuries to Reid and Goodes have ruined those plans and the three have not taken the field together. Defensive forward Craig Bird, who will play his 100th game against the Giants at the SCG on Sunday, said the team was disappointed for Reid. "Hopefully he's not out for too long, because he's such a crucial part of the team and we really want to get him back before the finals," Bird said. Bird missed 2010 with a foot injury and knows the frustrations of long-term recovery programs. "I missed the whole year with a stress fracture in my foot," he said. I wasn't actually able to run so I had to find other ways of building my fitness. Bird has consistently flown under the radar, but recently received 10 votes from both coaches for his efforts against Carlton. He says that putting together a full year last season (including the premiership) has helped him reach a higher standard. "I think it's been the most consistent footy I've played," he said. At the start of the year I came back through the twos and was just trying to find consistency. Bird, who is NSW born and bred, is looking forward to playing his milestone match against the cross-town rival. "There were certain times where I probably didn't think I was going to make it with a few different injuries," he said. I was happy to get through that and to go out and start playing senior footy again and I'm really happy just to make this milestone. We're really looking forward to a big game and hopefully we get a decent crowd.