Heath Shaw understands why Nick Riewoldt didn’t take part in his tribute video
Heath Shaw copped a ribbing from former teammates and foes in his 300th game tribute video but St Kilda great Nick Riewoldt declined an offer to be involved. The Giants veteran says there’s no hard feelings.
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When Heath Shaw celebrated his 300th game six weeks ago, there was one AFL great who couldn’t bring himself to be part of a tribute video.
Congratulations, praise and gentle — or not so gentle — ribbing flowed in from the likes of Mick Malthouse, Dale Thomas and Eddie Betts to recognise one of the game’s most wholehearted competitors.
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But one of Shaw’s most fabled opponents politely declined an invitation to take part.
St Kilda legend Nick Riewoldt was asked if he’d like to share his thoughts from an iconic moment they shared in the famous 2010 Grand Final replay, when Shaw came from nowhere to smother him on the goal line and set the tone for Collingwood’s premiership triumph.
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Needless to say, Riewoldt would prefer to leave that nightmare in the past. And fair enough.
In fact, Shaw understands where he’s coming from.
The GWS Giants experienced those same depths of despair when the Western Bulldogs pipped them by a single kick in one of the greatest games of the modern era — the 2016 preliminary final. Shaw, the uncompromising challenger who will abuse teammates to get the best out of them, lives to win and therefore understands better than most perhaps would, Riewoldt’s decision.
“Oh yeah, you can’t change the past. You can dwell on it, or you can move past it,” Shaw says.
“Obviously it was a long, long time ago and he probably doesn’t want to relive that memory which is fair enough. He probably sees it as a missed opportunity for him and in such a big game. I don’t hold any grudges towards anything like that.”
Shaw’s way of dealing with past pain is to confront it front on. The agony of preliminary final night 2016 and what that means for the Giants as they look to exorcise their demons in Saturday night’s knockout final.
“It’s weird, because afterwards, that took me the longest to get over that loss,” Shaw tells The Daily Telegraph.
“But to be honest, that wasn’t driving me the next year, and it’s not driving me this year. It’s a part of history and that’s built up the rivalry with the Bulldogs, which is a good thing.
“We get to — not relive that prelim final — but relive that rivalry at the same place, in an elimination final, which prelim finals are elimination finals as well. That’s exciting for us but the two teams are actually different and our journeys the last two years to get back to this point has been different. That history is always going to be there.”
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Shaw declared on the eve of his 300th match that if the Giants win the premiership this year, he will retire.
Last week when Stephen Coniglio signed his landmark deal to stay at GWS for life, Shaw broke the news to teammates by pretending to announce his own retirement.
If Shaw, 33, does decide to hang up the boots this year, he knows he will be received like the boy who cried wolf, and therefore, he may well play on.
“I don’t think anyone would believe me anyway. I might have to actually have the forms written down and signed and sealed that I’m retiring for people to actually believe me,” he says.
“In terms of body wise, I could easily play for another one or two years. I was a bit hesitant on how I was going to come back after my knee (a couple of years ago) but that’s been the least of my worries.
“I’ve played every game and I play fairly high minutes. It’s just a matter of sitting down with Leon (coach, Cameron) and seeing where he sees it and where I see it and we’ll make a decision.
“If he wants me to play and I want to keep playing, then so be it. If he doesn’t … then it’s a pretty easy decision to make as well.”