AFL: In-demand GWS Giants midfielder Tim Taranto ‘still loving Sydney’ but yet to decide on future

Tim Taranto is the best Giants player without a deal beyond this season and he has Victorian club suitors as he weighs up his next move.

GWS midfielder Tim Taranto is out of contract at season’s end. Picture: Phil Hillyard

In-demand Giants midfielder Tim Taranto is no closer to deciding his next playing move but insists he is “really happy” in Sydney.

A back injury grounded Greater Western Sydney’s 2019 club champion for more than a month but he returned to AFL level last week after one VFL game to get up to speed.

The two-year contract extension Taranto signed midway through his best and fairest season expires this year and he is a player of interest for Victorian clubs, with Geelong keen to bolster its on-ball brigade.

St Kilda has also previously shown strong interest in the 24-year-old.

Taranto, the No.2 pick in the 2016 draft, is two years from being eligible for free agency, so that could be a factor.

Younger teammate and fellow first-round draft pick Tanner Bruhn is also weighing up his future, with interim coach Mark McVeigh saying the Giants would like to retain both him and Taranto if possible.

Tanner Bruhn is weighing up whether to stay in Sydney or return to Victoria. Picture: Michael Klein

Taranto said there was no timeline on him making a decision but that conversations would likely ramp up in the next fortnight.

“We kind of paused talks when I hurt my back and, to be honest, for the last six weeks, that’s all I’ve been doing and I’m still trying to get match fitness back,” he said.

“So I haven’t really talked too much about it, but we’re in a good spot. I’m really happy (and) still loving Sydney. Nothing’s changed.

“We’re just working through a few things now that I’m getting back to playing footy but the first focus is just to get back to my best footy.”

McVeigh has kept out of list management matters as he prepares to make a pitch to win the GWS coaching job on an ongoing basis but said Taranto’s off-field impact on the playing group was “second-to-none”.

“Tim has been embedded in here for a long period of time ... he’s one of those people you’ve just got to have in your footy club and we need to find a way,” McVeigh said.

Tim Taranto returned to the Giants’ senior side last week against Collingwood. Picture: Getty Images

“Whether that’s doable or not, I can’t answer that. But what I do know is those players (Taranto and Bruhn) are invested emotionally and that’s what we’re after.

“They care about the club, they care about the jumper and they want to play for us (but) the way the lists are set up and salary cap and all that, it makes it difficult and those conversations are ongoing.”

McVeigh was also glowing about 20-year-old Bruhn, describing him as a “down-to-earth, fine young man” who had “a big decision to make”.

“That’s a family decision and we respect that,” he said.

“But if you asked me, ‘What do you want?’, well, Tanner Bruhn, I’d love him to stay. But there’s challenging things around all parts of list (management) all over the AFL at the moment.

“Retention, for us, is very important and he’s certainly a player we want to retain.”

Originally published as AFL: In-demand GWS Giants midfielder Tim Taranto ‘still loving Sydney’ but yet to decide on future