GWS Giants weighing up selling home game to MCG

A Victorian club could cash in with an extra game at the MCG, with one of the AFL’s interstate teams weighing up a surprise move to sell a game to help boost its hopes of finals success.

Giants CEO David Matthews says the club is exploring selling a home game to the MCG so their players can gain more experience at the home of the grand final.

GWS will only play three home-and-away games in total at the venue across the 2024 and 2025 seasons, and know that to eventually win a premiership, they have to be able to win there on the final Saturday of September.

The club has also regularly discussed the idea of using the SCG as a potential venue, given the nearly two months they have to vacate Sydney Olympic Park due to the Royal Easter Show. However, the emergence of the MCG as an option appears to be purely about creating an environment for success for the club.

The Giants played more finals (two) in 2023 at the MCG than they did home-and-away matches (one). Picture: Phil Hillyard

“The MCG became a discussion point because of how little we play there,” Matthews said. “That’s a little bit different to separating out the Easter show period as an issue for us.

“The MCG is more, when you think about it, we played Melbourne (in round one) and that’s our last home and away game at the MCG. I guess in tennis terms, to win the Australian Open, you’ve got to play on Rod Laver Arena? And so, how can we get our players to get some experience on Rod Laver Arena?

“We’d like to be scheduled at the MCG a bit more. We understand the fixturing constraints. But we also did a bit of an exercise and imagined if you did take a home game there, and what does the break-even look like?

“We had some conversations with Stuart Fox, the CEO of the Melbourne Cricket Club, about the economics. Because if you are going to travel, in my view, travelling to the MCG is preferable to travelling anywhere else, other than our games in Canberra. Canberra is very important to us.”

Their round one win against the Demons was the only game the Giants are scheduled to play at the MCG in 2025. Picture: Mark Stewart

It’s a move generally supported by the Giants’ playing group, who would be eager to build their knowledge of playing at the MCG, given there are so many young players on the roster.

“The more times we play on the MCG, the better for us,” coach Adam Kingsley said.

“That’s where we want to be playing at the end of September, so if we can continually try and build that experience, then that’s a great opportunity.

“But that’s from a football perspective. Financially, I’m not sure of the implications of that. That’s for Dave and Tim (Reed) to sort out.”

It’s unlikely the Giants would want to take one of their big home games from Engie Stadium to Melbourne, such as their clashes against Collingwood in Opening Round or Carlton which regularly draw their biggest home attendances outside of the Sydney Derby.

However, the club could be open to another strong Melbourne club, such as Richmond or Hawthorn, who would be guaranteed to receive a strong attendance if they were to play at the MCG.

The club has already reached out to the Melbourne Cricket Club about the possibility. Picture: Phil Hillyard

“We try to think outside the square as a young club,” Matthews said. “We like to push the envelope on a few ideas.

“I’m always encouraging our staff or our players or Adam to come to me with an idea about where we should be playing and when. That’s where the SCG and MCG get raised, it’s just the options and alternatives when we go dark in Sydney for a bit.”

The MCG appears to be an option more likely than playing at the SCG at this stage, with Matthews confirming that playing at the Sydney Swans’ home ground is not “an option we’re pursuing”.

“I think there are other priorities for us, and we’ve got a great home ground and we’d love to be able to access it more,” Matthews said.

“There are propositions from time to time. Do we open the Easter Show there? So everything’s sort of on the table.”

Originally published as GWS Giants weighing up selling home game to MCG