By Vince Rugari
The AFL’s Sydney derby has been around long enough now for a pattern to the week’s build-up to have become established.
Typically, someone launches a verbal grenade from the Giants’ Homebush HQ towards Moore Park on the Monday; a teammate of the grenade launcher backs away from said grenade on the Tuesday and says it’s not actually representative of how the Giants feel; somebody in a Swans polo shirt (player, coach or administrator) then provides a churlish non-response about how they’ll do their talking on the field by the time the teams are named on Thursday evening; and, come the final siren, the Swans have the last laugh and everyone goes home happy they’ve done their bit for the code-building mission.
Toby Greene.Credit: via Getty Images
If you haven’t been paying close attention, you may have missed that the red and white half of Sydney (or three-quarters, truthfully) has dominated the fixture of late. The Swans have been victorious in seven of the past eight derbies, and the past five in a row – including last year’s thrilling qualifying final at the SCG, possibly the greatest game of footy ever played in the Harbour City.
When the Giants have won, it hasn’t been by much. Their past four wins over the Swans have come by a combined total of just six points; not since April 2019 have they prevailed by a double-digit margin.
The only time it has been more one-sided than this was back when the Giants entered the competition with a list full of chirpy, pimply-faced teenagers, a sprinkling of interstate veterans trying to squeeze the last remaining drops of effort out of their battle-worn bodies, and Israel Folau.
Mindful of how consequential Friday night’s clash at Engie Stadium will be to their finals fate, perhaps the Giants have learned from prior experience that it isn’t always wise to poke the bear.
Isaac Heeney had the best game of his career against North Melbourne.Credit: for Getty Images
Last year, Toby Greene was cracking social media gags at Isaac Heeney’s expense, prompting a talking down from outgoing Swans chief executive Tom Harley in the manner of a disappointed school principal.
On Monday, his press conference was a sledge-free zone.
“That’s more the media team – that’s their expertise, I’ll leave that to them,” Greene grinned. “But on field, I’m sure it’s always a good contest, and I think it’s just a good rivalry. They’re good games to play, and they’ve got a bit of feeling in them, and the intensity’s always really high, and I don’t think Friday’s going to be any different.”
The best he would offer was that Heeney, who he said was “flying” in his fantasy team, might have to be benched this week – and, in reality, also slapped with a hard tag.
“I’m sure we’ll have a good look at it,” Greene said. “It was a pretty dominant game on the weekend from him, so we’re probably not going to let him run around and do whatever he wants, that’s for sure.”
It was, in fact, the greatest game of Heeney’s career by the numbers; his 30-possession, five-goal game in Sydney’s win over North Melbourne on Saturday was his highest-rated game on record according to the AFL’s player ratings metrics.
There will need to be much more of that from Heeney – and some from his teammates, too – for the Swans to have any hope of breaking into the top eight.
For the sixth-placed Giants, the September equation is a little more straightforward, although by no means simple. Most of the teams above and below them have fairly easy assignments this weekend: Hawthorn (fifth) face Carlton (12th), the Western Bulldogs (ninth) play Essendon (14th), and Fremantle (seventh) have their derby against the bottom-placed West Coast Eagles.
So, simply put, they have to turn the tables against the Swans – just as much as the Swans have to maintain their winning streak over the Giants.
For the first time, the derby has been afforded primetime status with a Friday night timeslot, although it won’t be a standalone match; the Bombers-Bulldogs game is also on that night, starting half an hour earlier.
“It’s a bit of a whack,” Greene said. “It is what it is, it’s up to the AFL … I’m not sure, what is the other game? Dogs will win that, probably. Both teams have got to win, so we don’t have to manufacture too much.”
Does Greene relish the chance to end Sydney’s season?
“I relish the idea of us trying to make top four, so I just want to worry about that,” he said. “If we beat them, their season’s probably done, and we’re a chance for top four. It’s a huge game, and we know the importance of the next two or three games as well.”
All jokes aside – not that there were any – this has all the makings of another classic.
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