The Giants are an invisible powerhouse, but they’re here to stay
Save articles for later
Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time.
Amid the many tributes spoken and grainy vision aired in the days following Ron Barassi’s death, it was easy to overlook that Australian football’s biggest name was also its most enthusiastic expansionist.
“My dream is to have four teams in Sydney,” Barassi, who died last Saturday aged 87, said in 2008. “I hope we are at that stage in another 50 or 100 years. That would mean all the kids are playing Aussie Rules and not the English game called rugby or rugby league or soccer.”
Sydney might have four AFL teams one day — with AI devising gameplans and halftime speeches, of course — but, as it stands, the city is struggling to rally behind just two.
The Sydney Swans earned their chops long ago, stimulating interest via premierships and the presence of an imposing superstar, whether it was Tony Lockett, Barry Hall or Lance Franklin.
But the GWS Giants remain a manufactured oddity on the sporting landscape despite enjoying the sustained success rival clubs in any code could only dream about.
They’ve made the finals six times in the past eight seasons — and never lost a match in the first week.
Toby Greene celebrates a goal with Giants teammates during the win over Port Adelaide.Credit: AFL Photos
When they meet Collingwood in the preliminary final at the MCG on Friday night, it will be their fourth appearance in a grand final qualifier since joining the competition in 2012.
They beat the same team in 2019 to progress to the decider, where Richmond thumped them by 89 points.
On performance alone, the Giants are a powerhouse – yet they remain virtually invisible in their own city and widely dismissed as the AFL’s bastard child outside it.
Giants officials cite their membership figure of 33,000 as proof of their growth and in some respects they are right because it dwarfs that of most Sydney clubs.
The worrying number is how many eyeballs are glued to TVs across the city whenever they play, and on that score, the Orange Tsunami is more Tangerine Ripple.
Their 23-point victory against Port Adelaide at Adelaide Oval on Saturday night was one of the standout performances of the season — not that many Sydneysiders would know it.
According to OzTam ratings, 750,000 people watched the match on Channel Seven across the five major capital cities but only 93,000 viewers switched on in Sydney.
That’s less than the 110,000 who watched Shakespeare and Hathaway, an offbeat English detective drama that was aired on the ABC at the same time.
The ratings were particularly lame when you consider the match had clear air in Sydney because the NRL semi-final between the Warriors and Knights had been played at 4pm.
Greene and his Giants teammates went largely unnoticed at Bronte on Monday.Credit: Kate Geraghty
Still, these numbers represent something of a success. According to a Seven spokesperson, the average Sydney broadcast audience watching GWS matches on their network has increased 75 per cent since last season.
Code wars are tedious. People can support whoever they want. As for the battle for young hearts and minds, as long as the young ’uns are out there keeping fit and playing sport, it shouldn’t matter whether they’re juggling a Steeden, Sherrin or korfball.
But the AFL picked this fight in rugby league heartland and, with each passing season, it’s becoming clearer to the mothership that it will take further time and money to rumble with mungo institutions like Penrith, Parramatta and Canterbury.
The Giants do have a story to tell, though, and none better than captain Toby Greene.
Picked in the Giants’ first draft in 2011, he’s gone from being the game’s dirtiest player to one of its most respected. He’s put his misdemeanours (assaulting a bouncer in 2014) and those of his father (who was jailed for nine months after headbutting a police officer at the 2019 grand final) behind him.
Earlier this month, he was named All-Australian captain. It’s a tale of redemption usually reserved for bad boy rugby league players.
Yet Greene lives in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, is rarely noticed in public, and sometimes asked to show his accreditation at the players’ entrance to Giants Stadium because security staff don’t recognise him.
So what, asks pugnacious Giants chair Tony Shepherd, who will finish up at the end of the year.
“This kind of talk pisses me off,” he says. “The Swans took 30 years to gain a foothold in the eastern suburbs and they had the 108-history of South Melbourne Football Club behind them. We’ve only been here since 2012, on our own. This city loves a winner and we need sustained success to get our roots down in Western Sydney. It’s going to take some time.”
Yes, it will take time. About 50 to 100 years.
Viva, Las Vegas
People still aren’t entirely sure why the NRL is playing a double-header in Las Vegas to open next season – gambling revenue, unearthing American talent, cheap shotgun weddings – but there’s plenty of interest.
More than 10,000 tickets have already been sold for the March 2 extravaganza at Allegiant Stadium, and that’s the length of the Vegas strip ahead of projections.
So far, most of the tickets have been purchased in Australia, but there are growing sales from within the US. The NRL is privately hoping for a crowd of 40,000 to 50,000.
So why is the NRL playing matches in Las Vegas? Because it wants to broaden its international audience and therefore international broadcast revenue.
Not all are sold on the idea.
“You want to be there for the first year,” one sceptical club boss says, “because I’m not sure there will be a second!”
All coming out in the Walsh
There’s a story in a recently released biography on Wayne Bennett – you may have heard about it – concerning Broncos fullback Reece Walsh.
Last year, Bennett was desperate to secure Walsh for the Dolphins when the young superstar told the Warriors he wanted out of the final two years of his contract. Walsh wanted to return to Brisbane to be closer to his young daughter.
When he signed with the Broncos, the Dolphins quickly spun a narrative that the Warriors had blocked him from signing with them because the Dolphins had poached recruitment man Peter O’Sullivan from them.
Warriors chief executive Cameron George and Walsh’s manager, Nash Dawson, vehemently denied this, claiming Walsh told them he only had eyes for the Broncos.
Bennett, though, doubled down on his criticism.
“We’ve been done over by player managers, and that’s what we feel at the club right now,” he told me in June 2022. “I can be candid with you. It’s the second time it’s happened. Our offer to Walsh was double what he’s going to get paid at the Broncos.
Dawson also denies this. “No offer from the Dolphins was tabled,” he said.
Why Fiji star kept eye on the ball
A nice little story from Fiji’s historic 22-15 victory over the Wallabies at the Rugby World Cup involves their hooker, Samuel Matavesi.
As Matavesi celebrated with delirious teammates on fulltime, it was hard not to notice the large gut beneath his white, skin-tight jumper.
He had, in fact, jammed one of the balls under his jersey as a keepsake, and fair enough, too, given what he and his comrades had just achieved.
His Twitter account revealed what was really at play: “Four years ago I promised my kids something from the RWC. Unfortunately my kit was stolen. Four years on I’ve kept the promise! Hopefully something they will treasure forever.”
Matavesi’s car was broken into in London following the last World Cup in Japan.
As for the Wallabies … I’ve got nothing.
THE QUOTE
“I’m talking to America here!” — NFL referee Alex Kemp while batting away Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith, who was whinging about the intentional grounding penalty Kemp had just given him. He then dropped his whistle and walked off stage.
THUMBS UP
Ange Postecolgou’s star continues to rise. This week, the Tottenham Hotspur boss was named the Premier League’s manager of the month. He’s also been shortlisted for FIFA’s manager of the year award for his efforts at Celtic.
Ange Postecoglou wills Tottenham Hotspur to a memorable Premier League win over Sheffield United on Saturday.Credit: Getty
THUMBS DOWN
Roosters fans have short memories. If anyone dared suggest Ben Cummins′ six-again error in the dying minutes of the 2019 grand final cost Canberra the game, they were roundly whacked. But oh how the worm has turned with Roosters fans slamming referee Ashley Klein for their side’s loss to Melbourne because he missed Harry Grant’s knock on … in the 25th minute.
It’s a big weekend for … Penrith, who are the last Sydney team standing in the NRL finals series. Fun fact: if Melbourne cause an upset and beat them at Accor Stadium on Friday night, it will be only the fourth decider in history that doesn’t feature a team from Sin City. All eyes on Jarome Luai’s dodgy shoulder.
It’s an even bigger weekend for … the Wallabies, who must beat Wales in their pool match in Lyon on Monday morning AEST to avoid the ignominy of being the first Australian team bundled out of the World Cup before the sudden-death rounds. All eyes on Eddie Jones’ left eyebrow that arches like a caterpillar when he’s deep in thought.
Watch the NRL Grand Final Exclusive Live and Free on Channel 9 and 9Now.
Sports news, results and expert commentary. Sign up for our Sport newsletter.
Most Viewed in Sport
From our partners
Source: Read Full Article
