Round 10 (Sir Doug Nicholls Round)
Waalitj Marawar v GWS Giants
6.15pm, Sunday 17th May 2026
Optus Stadium, Perth
The importance of Sunday’s clash against the West Coast Eagles was not understated for the GWS Giants as Adam Kingsley’s side attempted to build genuine momentum heading into the demanding middle stretch of the AFL season. After the emotional and hard-fought comeback victory over Essendon, the Giants looked to have steadied their campaign, but the reality of the modern AFL competition is that momentum can evaporate as quickly as it arrives.
On paper the Giants looked warm favorites. Their running power from “D 50,” intercept marking, a midfield with Oliver, Callaghan, Coniglio and co, and a seemingly potent forward line even without Hogan gave them a clear advantage over a youthful Eagles outfit still learning the brutal rhythms of AFL football. Yet seasoned Giants supporters know only too well the dangers of these matches. The Eagles, despite their ladder position, are fiercely competitive at home and viewed the contest as an opportunity to ambush a wildcard aspirant.
Hovering over the club during the week was the growing speculation surrounding Toby Greene’s future. The Giants skipper remains unsigned beyond this season and the AFL rumour mill has inevitably gone into overdrive. Few players in the competition combine brilliance, intimidation, chaos and match-winning flair quite like Greene, and rival Victorian clubs will undoubtedly throw mountains of cash and opportunity in his direction should he test free agency. The whispers linking him to Geelong Football Club have intensified given his close friendship with former Giants star Jeremy Cameron, with some suggesting the lure of chasing an elusive premiership alongside Cameron at Kardinia Park could prove difficult to resist. Perhaps a farm next to Jezza might be the ultimate lure. Others have floated the ambitious prospect of Hawthorn making a play for Greene as they attempt to inject hardened midfield and forward-half steel into their rapidly emerging Premiership list.
For Giants fans, the thought of Greene departing is almost unthinkable. He is more than merely the captain he is the heartbeat, the agitator, the match-winner and the spiritual embodiment of the club’s swagger and edge. Since the club’s inception he has been central to its identity, often dragging the Giants into battle through sheer force of will. Yet football history is littered with champions who ultimately returned home or chased opportunities elsewhere when premiership windows began to narrow.
That is why matches like this against West Coast matter so profoundly. Every victory keeps the Giants firmly in finals contention, strengthens belief internally and perhaps most importantly reinforces to Greene that the club remains capable of challenging for a premiership during the twilight years of his extraordinary career.
In the first quarter the Giants asserted their trademark ground-ball dominance swarming the contest with relentless pressure and clean hands at stoppage, yet wasteful finishing prevented them from fully capitalising on their superiority. Despite repeatedly locking the ball inside forward 50 and creating a string of opportunities, the Giants managed just 2 goals 6 behinds to take a slender 10-point lead into the first break a margin that scarcely reflected their territorial control. The lively small-forward brigade looked particularly dangerous, with veteran Stephen Coniglio prolific around the contest and Clayton Oliver buzzing at ground level, snapping up loose balls and applying intense forward pressure that continually troubled the opposition defence.
The momentum of the match swung dramatically in the second quarter as Harley Reid, Tim Kelly and Elliot Yeo lifted the Eagles with a fierce surge of contested football and defensive pressure that rattled the Giants. What had looked like a controlled opening term for the Giants quickly unravelled as their midfield brigade went missing under the Eagles’ relentless intensity, with only Oliver consistently providing drive and composure around the stoppages. West Coast capitalised on turnovers and dominated territory to storm to a 14-point half-time lead, silencing the Giants’ early confidence. Yet a late opportunistic goal to veteran forward Jack Stringer from a costly Eagles turnover kept the contest alive, giving the Giants a much-needed pulse heading into the main break.
The second-half brilliance of Harley Reid and emerging star Bailey Williams proved decisive as the West Coast Eagles overwhelmed a fading GWS Giants outfit to record a hard-fought 17 point victory. After hanging in the contest at half time, the Giants simply had too many passengers after the main break, with their midfield depth and experienced core unable to match the Eagles’ energy, run and desperation around the ball. Aside from brief moments of resistance, the Giants looked flat and reactive as the game slipped away, raising serious questions about where the club sits in the AFL landscape.
The uncomfortable reality is the Giants’ season now sits precariously on the edge, and difficult list-management decisions may be looming regarding the ageing profile of key veterans including Stephen Coniglio, Jack Stringer, Lachie Whitfield, Josh Kelly and others. Kieran Briggs is a fierce competitor but week in week out is dominated by tall athletic ruckman. It’s a problem for the club that needs to be quickly resolved. Trade to secure a ruckman currently in the system. The draft won’t resolve the problem. Draftee ruckman can take up to six years to develop.
A list once viewed as perfectly positioned for a premiership assault is suddenly looking vulnerable, and there will inevitably be growing debate across western Sydney as to whether the much-discussed premiership window has quietly been slammed shut.
WAALITJ MARAWAR 1.2 7.4 9.6 13.10 (88)
GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY 2.6 4.8 9.10 10.11 (71)
GOALS
Waalitj Marawar: Waterman 3, Williams 2, Reid 2, Hutchinson 2, Murdock 2, Johnstone, Shanahan
Greater Western Sydney: Daniels 2, Gruzewski 2, Stringer 2, Bedford, Fonti, H.Oliver, Thomas
BEST (Richard’s best)
Waalitj Marawar: Reid, Williams, Waterman, Kelly, Young
Greater Western Sydney: Oliver, Thomas, Laverde, Ash
INJURIES
Waalitj Marawar: Nil
Greater Western Sydney: Nil
Crowd: 36,781 at Optus Stadium
Votes:
3 – H Reid (WC)
2 – B Williams (WC)
1 – C Oliver (G)
Read more from Richard Griffiths HERE
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Mr Griffiths, the Giants slammed the window shut on their own fingers through a combination of hubris and inexperience. They had plenty of chances between 2018 and the current day but there was always someone stronger and more organized such as Richmond and Brisbane.
As for the hubris, if you look at their smart alec sign denigrating Essendon, what is in the background, row after row of empty seats. That is reserved for the phantom army of Giants members who A. don’t exist or B. don’t turn up. If you are silly enough to try to get tickets you have to go through the hell that is Ticketmaster and the only cheap seats are behind the goals at the far, windy end. One used to walk into the SCG and watch a match from anywhere when the Swans were battling. If I want to go to Parramatta Stadium, I can walk by and purchase a ticket. Try to do that at “Engie”, best of luck. Simple solution – play Collingwood and the Swans at Olympic Stadium, the others, give everybody access to the members area in a move of goodwill.
I personally will never darken “Engie’s” door again, and I am sure that GWS will put this down to a crackpot, and keep their Liberal Party like delusions.