GWS Giants star Toby Greene set to return for grand final after enduring ‘crazy finish’ on sidelines
A relieved Toby Greene will be keeping his hands away from opposition faces but won’tbe tempering his aggression in Saturday’s AFL grand final.
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A relieved Toby Greene will be keeping his hands away from opposition faces but won’t be tempering his aggression in Saturday’s AFL grand final.
Suspended for the Giants’ thrilling preliminary final win over Collingwood, Greene admits it was hard to watch but is coming into the decider against Richmond feeling fresh and eager.
“I probably won’t be going near anyone’s face but I’ll be playing how I usually play,” Greene said as GWS begin their preparationsfor their first grand final appearance.
“It’s simple you have to play your role, I’m looking forward to it, looking forward to running out with 21 of my best mates.”
When asked how he feels about 90,000 Richmond fans booing him at the MCG, Greene was unphased.
“It’s no different to the last couple of weeks and years so it is what it is,” he said.
GWS go into the big dance as the underdogs, a tag Greene is also not bothered by.
“We have been a reasonably good side for the last few years.
“Making a grand final brings prominence, we have always had that belief and we are looking forward to showing what we can do this weekend.
“We have had a lot of support from non Giants supporters so there will be plenty out there.”
Greene has declared he is ready for the biggest game of his life, with as many as three star inclusions potentially looming for the Giants.
The suspended forward watched Saturday night’s heart-stopping victory from the coaches’ box before moving to the players’ race for an emotional last five minutes with fellow sidelined players including Stephen Coniglio and Brett Deledio.
Greene, 25, missed the game after he was hit with a one-match ban after an exhaustive appeal process that culminated in two midweek trips to Melbourne and a late final blow at the AFL Appeals Board on Thursday night.
It was a long week, Greene admitted.
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“But it’s a good week now,” he said.
“What’s happened happened, so I’m looking forward to playing this weekend. Definitely (I’m ready).”
His suspension for unnecessary or unreasonable contact to the eye region of Brisbane’s Lachie Neale seemed a world away for the firebrand forward as he celebrated with teammates and club officials in an emotional GWS rooms.
“I came down to the race in the last five minutes. It was a crazy finish,” Greene said.
“I was just hoping the boys won, really. That’s it. That was all.”
The nerves in the race, the elation of the GIANTS family - what a night to remember! #NeverSurrender pic.twitter.com/Bh6HW0Li4X
— GWS GIANTS (@GWSGIANTS) September 22, 2019
And he might not be the only Giant to return for the decider, with Lachie Whitfield a genuine chance to play after emergency appendix surgery last Tuesday.
“If he’s not fit or healthy enough to play 100 minutes then we won’t pick him, but all signs are heading in the right direction,” Giants coach Leon Cameron said.
“He’s up and about, and clearly he’s an integral part of our team.”
Coniglio is a longer shot, having had knee surgery after the team’s Round 17 clash with Richmond, but the vice-captain was holding out hope on Saturday night and said he would do everything he could to play, while Deledio would need a minor miracle to return from a calf strain to take on his former side.
Greene was visibly emotional in the rooms post-game, wiping his eyes as his teammates sang the team song.
He said he had played in a number of junior grand finals — “not proper ones” — and would draw on teammates with Grand Final experience like Heath Shaw and Matt de Boer, and assistant coaches, in an effort to brace for the blockbuster.
“A lot of the coaches have been here and done that,” he said.
“We’ll just wait and see.”
Originally published as GWS Giants star Toby Greene set to return for grand final after enduring ‘crazy finish’ on sidelines
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