AFL: GWS Giants star Josh Kelly reflects on Leon Cameron’s departure as coach

Josh Kelly has had to deal with more than he expected in his first season as co-captain but why does he think “things had to change”?

GWS Giants co-captain Josh Kelly is in blistering form despite the club’s struggles this season. Picture: Phil Hillyard

Josh Kelly is at the epicentre of everything the Giants are, or at least are perceived to be.

He’s an early draft pick, ridiculously silky and gifted, and can walk the streets of rugby league heartland in Sydney in a way not possible in Melbourne (although this is changing).

Yet, like a handful of Kelly’s star teammates, he has twice experienced the intense spotlight when he was out of contract.

Greater Western Sydney’s football team is newsworthy in certain quarters only in the right circumstances.

It’s a fascinating dynamic that Kelly’s old coach – and until a matter of weeks ago, his only AFL coach – Leon Cameron, knew all too well.

Cameron, perhaps, escaped the weekly scrutiny his counterparts in traditional football states encountered, but his body of work was often harshly critiqued because of the belief his legacy would be premiership-or-bust.

Josh Kelly was disappointed with how the Giants started the season. Picture: Phil Hillyard

History will show he led the Giants to a historic first grand final appearance in 2019, but the Richmond juggernaut was irrepressible that day.

Interestingly enough, Kelly initially used the “failed” word as well to describe the club’s flag chase before clarifying that their run as perennial finalists and premiership contenders was “quite fulfilling”.

Cameron is gone less than three years later. After his side’s second-straight tardy start to a season, he jumped in mid-May before he would have been pushed.

Kelly, one of three co-captains with endlessly analysed pair Toby Greene and Stephen Coniglio, understandably still struggles to say out loud whether Cameron’s sobering exit was necessary for the club to progress.

Former Cameron assistant Mark McVeigh sits in the hot seat for now.

“You’re right, it’s a tough question. I guess there’s no easy answer to it,” Kelly told News Corp this week.

GWS Giants co-captain Josh Kelly had a strong relationship with former coach Leon Cameron. Picture: Phil Hillyard

“At the end of the day, the club made the decision that’s right, which is what Leon’s messaging at the time was as well. The club and Leon made a decision that was right for the football club going forward.

“And that was a fresh perspective and the ability to change a few things.

“That was really mature from Leon and the club and at the end of the day, the football club must come first.”

Kelly made sure to show his appreciation for Cameron in the immediate days after his departure, and was pleased to see how warmly the ex-Western Bulldogs and Richmond footballer was sent off.

But he also knew it was merely a chapter closing for GWS and quite obviously not the end of the 2022 season, one he still wants to make something of.

“We’re trying to take the game on a little bit more offensively and I think our training intensity has gone up a level,” Kelly said.

Josh Kelly is impressed with what Mark McVeigh has implemented since becoming the Giants’ caretaker coach. Picture: Getty Images

“Things needed to change, because we weren’t performing the way we wanted to perform. It’s not very often at the halfway point of the season you get to reset and re-evaluate things.

“The coaching staff and Mark did a really good job in taking that opportunity to make a few little tweaks here and there ... because by no means do we want this to be a lost season.

“We still have a decent chunk of the year left, and we’re not just playing for the sake of it.”

The Giants might need to win nine of their last 10 games just to sneak into the finals.

That would be a startling development after losing five of their first six and seven of their opening nine, but they did storm home last season.

Kelly prefers to use “continual improvement” as the primary goal at this stage, rather than all out chasing a finals berth that may already be out of reach.

Josh Kelly is confident the Giants will bounce back after a slow start to the year. Picture: Getty Images

Something he is bullish on is the state of the list, pointing to the ideal blend of experience, youth and talent, even if the results this year are lacking.

“It’s not finals or bust from here for us, but we want to be aiming for continual improvement,” he said.

“If that can potentially put us in the hunt in the back half of the year, then absolutely, we’ll be striving for that.

“But we’ve got to be realistic with where we’re at now, put the hard work in and see where that takes us because the first half of the year didn’t pan out the way we wanted it to.”

At 27, Kelly is at the peak of his considerable powers, especially having seemingly shaken the injuries that temporarily stalled his progress after his scintillating 2017 All-Australian season.

He’s a dual club champion and deservedly, and officially, a co-captain after filling in several times last season.

Josh Kelly worked hard in the pre-season to be ready for season 2022. Picture: Phil Hillyard

The numbers suggest Kelly, an obsessive preparer, is having as good a season as he has had since that All-Australian year despite everything that’s happened this year.

He is back as a full-time midfielder after selflessly accepting team-first roles at half-forward and on a wing at times in the past 18 months.

“I feel like I’m in a good position. Touch wood, my health is good and I was able to set myself up over the off-season and pre-season with a really consistent block of training,” Kelly said.

“I’m getting a good consistent run in the midfield and players around me are consistently playing that role as well. That consistency, in terms of building cohesion and rapport between players is always really beneficial.

“I do feel confident about things and that’s exciting for me, looking ahead.”

Originally published as AFL: GWS Giants star Josh Kelly reflects on Leon Cameron’s departure as coach