Swanson played provincial rugby in South Africa for Transvaal and in 1971 he was selected for the Springboks to tour Australia. He did not play in any test matches for the Springboks and played in four tour matches scoring one try and one conversion.[3]
Rugby league
In 1972 Swanson signed a contract to play rugby league with Penrith in Sydney, Australia.[4] He played for Penrith for two seasons, 1973 and 1974.
^Greyvenstein, Chris (1992). Springbok saga : from 1891 to the new beginning (4th ed.). Cape Town: Don Nelson. p. 336. ISBN1-86806-095-0. OCLC105375255.
^Colquhoun, Andy (2004). The South African Rugby Annual 2004. Cape Town: SA Rugby (Pty) Ltd & MWP Media Sport. p. 447. ISBN0958440484.
^Colquhoun, Andy (2001). South African Rugby Annual 2001. Cape Town: MWP Media. p. 411. ISBN0958423180.
^"Penrith signs Springbok". Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995). 19 September 1972. p. 64. Retrieved 26 June 2020.