Why Steve Johnson and the GWS Giants are a perfect fit
THE GWS list is chock full of young stars but signing 32-year-old Steve Johnson could prove the masterstroke that leads to a breakthrough premiership, writes Jonathan Brown.
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I RAN into Stevie Johnson in a Bridge Rd coffee shop six weeks before the end of last season.
The writing was on the wall at Geelong after 14 seasons and he told me he was keen to play on.
We knew each other a bit — we had the same manager, we’d played against each other and together for the Big V and enjoyed a few nights on the drink, but we certainly weren’t close and he asked me to keep an eye on his form in his final few games in the hoops.
“Stevie J” truly believed he had plenty of good footy left him and he spent those last six weeks of 2015 proving to everyone — most importantly himself — that he was still capable at AFL level.
My only advice was that if the Cats didn’t want him and the fire was still burning it made sense to go on, or as the legendary NRL coach Wayne Bennett would say: “Don’t die with the music still in you”.
You’re a long time retired.
I found out later he’d asked a few other footy people for some honest feedback, just to make sure he wasn’t kidding himself.
The next time I saw him was in another coffee shop nine months later.
It was three or four hours before this year’s Round 5 clash against St Kilda at Etihad Stadium and I knew right away that both he and Greater Western Sydney had made the right move.
Stevie had five or six of the Giants’ young blokes with him including Jeremy Cameron, Toby Greene, Rory Lobb and Josh Kelly.
You could just see them hanging off him.
The boys have flocked to him since he got up there and on game day when they’re on the road he always has a coffee with a few of the young blokes.
GWS has been a perfect fit for Johnson, and at less than $300,000-a-season — half what he earned at the Cats — he is an absolute steal.
The feeling at the Giants was that their forward line was the one area of the ground where they lacked veteran leadership and swagger.
They had Heath Shaw down back, Shane Mumford and Callan Ward in the middle and they really wanted Stevie to complete the puzzle.
He was really impressed when he first toured the Giants’ facilities and obviously their list didn’t need talking up — the whole footy world knew how good they could be.
I think Stevie will probably pull the pin at the end of this year but his last campaign could yet be his proudest.
These days he ensconced in Sydney’s trendy inner-western suburbs with his wife Erin and the kids and enjoys dropping a line in Sydney Harbour.
They love him up there and from what I hear, GWS reckon they’ve got more than they’d hoped for.
Kids like Cameron, Greene and Jon Patton are walking around with a bit of their own swagger now this year.
He’s given them belief.
Greene is a bit of a rogue, but Stevie has been able to provide some good leadership to him and channel his aggression in the right direction.
They all walk a bit taller in that forward line with Stevie J around.
He’s very vocal out on the field and is always setting them up in the right positions and, of course, he’s still got that brilliance and finals-like presence. He’s bagged 35 goals in 18 games and is still as cunning as a fox.
Would Geelong regret moving him on?
I’m sure most Cats fans would still love to see him in Geelong colours, but it’s been a win-win.
It’s given Stevie a new lease of life and probably helped Geelong clear a bit of cap space to sign Patrick Dangerfield.
It’s also opened his eyes to a new environment, new coaches and a new system which can only help him as a future coach, which he really wants to be.
He’s a ripping bloke and good fun to be around and that personality during stressful times in September will be invaluable for an inexperienced team.
Guys like him release the pressure valve.
I think Stevie will probably pull the pin at the end of this year but his last campaign could yet be his proudest.
He’s in the best five Geelong players I’ve ever seen. He was great in big games and had the X-factor ability to change a game in five minutes, which few others can do, and he did it consistently.
His legacy as a Geelong player was never be in doubt, no matter how this year unfolded, but a premiership for an AFL expansion club yet could crown his career.
There’s a few later model Lamborghini’s in Leon Cameron’s garage, but the addition of a classic performer like Johnson could prove the masterstroke of the season.
Originally published as Why Steve Johnson and the GWS Giants are a perfect fit
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