Sydney Swans captain Jarrad McVeigh and wife, Clementine McVeigh. Photo: Pat Scala/Fairfax Media

An AFL player and his wife have admitted they "sped things up a bit" so he could play in footy finals on the weekend and also be there for the birth of their third child.

Sydney Swans star Jarrad McVeigh shared on the team's official website that his wife Clementine McVeigh was due to give birth on September 18.

Instead they welcomed their third child into the world on Tuesday, so he could play in the AFL semi-final against Geelong on Friday. The match will also see him become the fourth person to play 300th game for the Swans.

"We tried to put a few things in place because she was actually due next Monday, so we sped things up a bit," he said.

"The week has started off pretty well, everyone is healthy and happy so I'll quickly train today then head back to the hospital.

"Two father-daughters (for the future) is all right."

💕FLORENCE VIVIENNE MCVEIGH 💕My Heart Is Exploding ❤️👼🏼 A post shared by clementinemcveigh (@clementinemcveigh) on Sep 13, 2017 at 12:42am PDT

Clementine shared a photo of her cradling their newborn baby girl to Instagram.

The caption reads: "FLORENCE VIVIENNE MCVEIGH. My Heart Is Exploding."


Florence is the pair's third child. Sadly, their firstborn girl Luella, died aged four weeks after she was born with a heart condition. Their second born girl, Lolita-Luella is five years old.

Shortly after the birth of their second daughter in 2012 McVeigh told Fairfax Media how Luella would always be an important part of their family.

"We'll always remember Luella, what she brought to our lives," he said. "That's something you don't ever want to forget."

In July, on what would have been Luella's sixth birthday, Clementine told the Daily Mail Australia: "She made me the person I am today. She taught me the true meaning of love, compassion, gratitude and kindness".