Greater Western Sydney believe they’re a step closer to becoming a powerhouse club in Australian sport after an historic Super Saturday.
All three Giants teams – AFL, AFLW and Super Netball – played on the same day for the first time.
Around 4000 people attended each of the three fixtures and It was a momentous day for both the AFL Women’s and netball teams.
At Blacktown in western Sydney, the Giants fought out a thrilling 43-43 draw with Fremantle in the first AFLW match played in NSW.
A few hours later, Giants Netball played in the first match of the inaugural Super competition, scoring a five-goal derby win over NSW Swifts at Sydney Olympic Park Sports Centre.
Sandwiched between the women’s games, the Giants’ AFL men’s side beat West Coast by 33 points in a pre-season game in Narrandera in country NSW.
“It was momentous, it really was a historic day,” GWS Giants chief executive officer David Matthews told AAP on Sunday.
“For the netball team to be playing their first ever (Super) game and to have a win in a derby is just an outstanding start to their history.
“The (AFL) Women’s game, I was overwhelmed by the atmosphere.
“We went so close to our first win in the women’s AFL competition, but the draw was probably a fitting result in the end. That’s a bit of history in itself, the first draw in the AFLW competition. .
“To play West Coast and beat them in front of a parochial Giants crowd was great as well.
“It’s incredibly exciting when you think almost 12,000 people across three different venues were watching three different varieties of Giants sport.
“But just really overall it was a Super Saturday.”
The youngest AFL club has always had big ambitions.
“We’ve always aspired to be a club like no other, ” Matthews said.
“That’s part of our purpose is to continue to provide family entertainment for the people in western Sydney and Canberra.
“It’s just such a natural thing to have two platforms for women’s sport as well now..
“We’re hopefully over time going to become a genuinely big sporting club and to be represented in three competitions is fantastic..
“I think the future is very bright. In amongst our 15,000 members there’s almost a couple of thousand just of the AFLW team.
“i know that Giants Netball would have been delighted to have sold that game out yesterday. As a starting point, that sets the benchmark for them going forward.”
.Matthews said the three Giants three teams already spent time together and there was plans for that interaction to increase.
“There is a fair bit of integration between the three teams. We’ll increasingly do social things together,” he said.
“But they also do a lot of work in terms of sharing the various strategies or training needs.”
Republican
Guest
.....sort of like 'Super Schools'......more is not necessarily better.
mds1970
Roar Guru
What's the capacity at Narranderra? I've never been to that ground, but it didn't look too bad on telly. I don't know where you'd have got another 6,000 in.
Perry Bridge
Guest
It would help having 2 'major clubs'. Not many Eagles travellers???
Mike
Guest
The crowd at Narrandera was disappointing. I used to live in the Riverina and that ground used to get 10,000 for AFL preseason games.
Cat
Roar Guru
Because the grandstand is the only place people were watching from ... /eyeroll
Casper
Guest
Seems like the hatred of the Giants from the anti-AFL crowd is now extending to the women's team. Better than being irrelevant I guess.
clipper
Guest
I think your position is quite clear. If the crowd was low, it would've been used to show that there is no interest, if the crowd was respectable, it just proved that the figures were fudged. I'd say there was no way GWS was going to win on this one.
Perry Bridge
Guest
It's an encouraging sign. It's a good move in displaying a greater 'community' presence. Hopefully it works in the long term. Hmmm....mebbe one day it's be the GWS Giants-Wanderers-Thunder (that'd be the GWSGWT) community sporting club???
Floreat Pica
Guest
The cynical side of me assumed that Colligwood and GWS were using Netball as the marketing 'stick' to ensure they would be granted the 'carrot' of AFLW licences (or see us invest our entire, considerable womens' budget in promoting a rival sport!). The slightly less cynical side of me thinks it is a (very) long term investment in the 'father/mother-son/daughter' rule. If you cant get them out breed them out.. ;p
Mat
Guest
The grandstand holds 1600 when full. Creative accounting I'd say.
mds1970
Roar Guru
It's not uncommon in the country for footy and netball teams to be run under the umbrella of one club. But GWS Giants and Collingwood have done something different by doing it at the elite level. It was a big day for the club yesterday with all three teams playing - and a successful one with two wins and a draw. There's opportunities for the teams to cross-promote, and there were plenty of Giants AFL jumpers in the crowd at the netball last night (including me). We're an ever-growing happy sporting family. Here Come The Giants!!
mds1970
Roar Guru
I was on the hill (and have the sunburn to prove it lol); but the grandstand was jam-packed. And it wasn't a bad crowd on the hill.
Mark O'Sullivan
Roar Guru
I was there and it was 4000. The grandstand was standing room only.
Mat
Guest
4000 at Blacktown yesterday? I watched a bit of it and thought it would be closer to 400.
Norad
Guest
Good idea but listening to the sports news this morning on the radio reporting on the Giants results i lost track of which sport they were talking about!