Tulip
Hall of Famer
- May 3, 2009
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I know that, as a Dees fan, the irony of me posting this is strong - but I'm going to hope that people can just discuss the issue at hand.
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I've just been watching (or trying to watch) the GWS vs West Coast game - but it's a real struggle.
It looks like a crowd of about 6,000 people have come to watch a team be belted to the tune of 80+ yet again. I don't blame the people of Western Sydney, I blame the AFL and the GWS coaching staff for the way they've handed their entrance into the league.
They're barely marketable, they've been dropped into one of the regions of Sydney that didn't jump on the Swans at any point and have been told to become a powerhouse.
After coming out and shocking a few teams last season who saw them as the bye, they've come back in 2013 with second year blues - completely uncompetitive and barely registering their presence.
I'm not sure of it's the loss of Mark Williams, though it's clear as day that Sheedy should have given him the job this year rather than waiting another season for me.
Sheedy's done. His spouting to the media was boring, then comical, then it started raising interest in the game and started getting attention, now it's back to boring.
The Mother's Day crowd of 5k wasn't because of extenuating circumstances, it's because there just aren't enough core GWS supporters to keep watching this team when there are so few reasons for neutral's to get excited.
When you think of GWS and exciting, the only image you really get is Jeremy Cameron - and without Patton his efforts are all the more remarkable - but still not enough.
At least Gold Coast had the Ablett factor, and whilst it would be silly to claim that they weren't going through similar last season, the situations are quite different. The Gold Coast is a very fashionable place, watching the locals jump on board and embracing them this season has been great. The Suns are becoming part of a well-publicised and attractive culture in Queensland. Can you say the same for the Giants?
Sheedy also blames other clubs for not releasing their talent to them, despite his bleating about their picks and all his kids. People probably wouldn't be able to name their first round loot from last season (Whitfield, O'Rourke, Plowman, Corr, Jaksch) because they're just the next selections off a conveyor belt of young draftees.
Attention has already turned to which one of Tom Boyd or James Aish they're more likely to take at this season's draft.
What's more is that they've stunted the competition in the sense that the good sides have remained good for longer, whilst the lesser ones have been down for longer too.
I've got a lot of respect for GWS' core supporters, especially those on here, because they show up to watch a team devoid of culture, history and competitiveness lose again and again.
The chances are, like Gold Coast, GWS will show improvement at some point. But are they marketable? Are they sustainable? Is there any appeal? Feel like Cameron has a big job on his hands, if he turns out to be a flop of a coach like Neeld, the future of the Giants will ride on the AFL's generosity long into the future.
At the moment, watching GWS games is like watching the bye. They just never look in it.
---
I've just been watching (or trying to watch) the GWS vs West Coast game - but it's a real struggle.
It looks like a crowd of about 6,000 people have come to watch a team be belted to the tune of 80+ yet again. I don't blame the people of Western Sydney, I blame the AFL and the GWS coaching staff for the way they've handed their entrance into the league.
They're barely marketable, they've been dropped into one of the regions of Sydney that didn't jump on the Swans at any point and have been told to become a powerhouse.
After coming out and shocking a few teams last season who saw them as the bye, they've come back in 2013 with second year blues - completely uncompetitive and barely registering their presence.
I'm not sure of it's the loss of Mark Williams, though it's clear as day that Sheedy should have given him the job this year rather than waiting another season for me.
Sheedy's done. His spouting to the media was boring, then comical, then it started raising interest in the game and started getting attention, now it's back to boring.
The Mother's Day crowd of 5k wasn't because of extenuating circumstances, it's because there just aren't enough core GWS supporters to keep watching this team when there are so few reasons for neutral's to get excited.
When you think of GWS and exciting, the only image you really get is Jeremy Cameron - and without Patton his efforts are all the more remarkable - but still not enough.
At least Gold Coast had the Ablett factor, and whilst it would be silly to claim that they weren't going through similar last season, the situations are quite different. The Gold Coast is a very fashionable place, watching the locals jump on board and embracing them this season has been great. The Suns are becoming part of a well-publicised and attractive culture in Queensland. Can you say the same for the Giants?
Sheedy also blames other clubs for not releasing their talent to them, despite his bleating about their picks and all his kids. People probably wouldn't be able to name their first round loot from last season (Whitfield, O'Rourke, Plowman, Corr, Jaksch) because they're just the next selections off a conveyor belt of young draftees.
Attention has already turned to which one of Tom Boyd or James Aish they're more likely to take at this season's draft.
What's more is that they've stunted the competition in the sense that the good sides have remained good for longer, whilst the lesser ones have been down for longer too.
I've got a lot of respect for GWS' core supporters, especially those on here, because they show up to watch a team devoid of culture, history and competitiveness lose again and again.
The chances are, like Gold Coast, GWS will show improvement at some point. But are they marketable? Are they sustainable? Is there any appeal? Feel like Cameron has a big job on his hands, if he turns out to be a flop of a coach like Neeld, the future of the Giants will ride on the AFL's generosity long into the future.
At the moment, watching GWS games is like watching the bye. They just never look in it.
