News Giants in the Media

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Shepherd did though.
Last year though, nothing new in this article. Though for someone who has been involved in Sydney at the highest levels for years, he really is either amazingly inept at reading western Sydney or he doesn't care because all his mates are east (or north) of the bridge.
 
Last year though, nothing new in this article. Though for someone who has been involved in Sydney at the highest levels for years, he really is either amazingly inept at reading western Sydney or he doesn't care because all his mates are east (or north) of the bridge.
Probably both of these things. He's also on the board for venues NSW right?...so surely there's a weird conflict of interest.
If Giants stadium was full or 80% at Giants games it would be rocking.
And....that's only double what we get to games now. It's not as big of a build as people think.
If we start winning again. It'll come.
The media cycle just has everyone stressing constantly. It's painful.
Giants will prevail. Will we always be the clippers to the Lakers? I really hope not.
We don't actually need 80,000 at a game.
We need 26k
The whole Canberra thing is dumb.. love it as a second home but....it's legit at capacity now.
It's quiet. It won't become the HOME of a team.
The Giants have done a great job of getting a following there...but if people think 12 games a year at Manuka is a good idea they are bonkers. Tasmania is a heritage play for the AFL. We aren't. We are growth. Growth takes time.
 

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We just need to accept that AFL appeals to a certain demographic in Sydney.

People who feel connected to Australian culture, who don't see themselves reflected in the Pasifika-dominated NRL, and want something "better" in life.

The Swans figured out how to talk to these people, but not all of them identify with the eastern suburbs. Those are the people we're looking for. There's enough of them to make us viable.
 
We just need to accept that AFL appeals to a certain demographic in Sydney.

People who feel connected to Australian culture, who don't see themselves reflected in the Pasifika-dominated NRL, and want something "better" in life.

The Swans figured out how to talk to these people, but not all of them identify with the eastern suburbs. Those are the people we're looking for. There's enough of them to make us viable.
There are more than enough fans of the sport in WS.
Problem is they already have a club.
As I’ve said previously I think the part time and other minor things may of hurt them jumping on board.
 
The second part sounds right.
No doubt, though I do give him credit because his presence got us in more doors and taken more seriously around town since Day 1 - sponsors and corporates are more likely to pony up when it means they could get in a room with Tony Shepherd. I'll put up with occasional stupidity for that.
 
No doubt, though I do give him credit because his presence got us in more doors and taken more seriously around town since Day 1 - sponsors and corporates are more likely to pony up when it means they could get in a room with Tony Shepherd. I'll put up with occasional stupidity for that.
Yeah, but the stupid ideas are pretty stupid and easy to get right.
 
Some excerpts from that article posted by bossman111:

Sydney president Andrew Pridham has urged the competition to use some of the profits reaped from South Australia’s Gather Round to fund a major review into football in NSW, saying: “One-third of Australia’s population lives here and yet we’ve seen our marketing budget cut. Not even a fraction of the effort being put into Tasmania is being put here. The game as a whole is going backwards in NSW. Victoria has its form of Gather Round every week. It has the grand final, it has Anzac Day. Queensland and Western Australia have hosted grand finals and now South Australia has Gather Round for three more years, which we support. But the biggest market in Australia hasn’t had anything comparable.”

So concerned is the AFL about the fading impact of the Giants that it has not ruled out moving all Sydney derbies to the SCG in future.

Matthews and Harley agreed there had been little if any special AFL-funded promotion for the SCG derby with Matthews saying of the Swans: “They make the grand final last year and their season opener is fixtured away against Gold Coast. And their first home game is Sunday lunchtime against Hawthorn.”

Harley pointed out that: “Since COVID when you look at marketing infrastructure we’ve had the hubs in south-east Queensland, grand finals at the Gabba and in Perth and now Gather Round. We’ve seen no bespoke activation into our market in that time and it’s no coincidence we are the only market which hasn’t seen growth."

Matthews pointed out that the AFL’s boss in NSW no longer sat on Gillon McLachlan’s executive team, as had been the case in the case before the Giants were formed. And he, too, lamented the fixturing. “We need the big clubs here in the right slots. I would like to play Collingwood at Giants Stadium five years in a row in the same slot.” While AFL bosses have privately conceded the fixturing of the Sydney clubs has long demanded more imagination, Pridham said the Sydney problem required “a more fulsome review involving the two club CEOs, the state league bosses and should include the Riverina and the ACT."
 
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Nice write-up on Jesse Hogan:

 
Sydney president Andrew Pridham has urged the competition to use some of the profits reaped from South Australia’s Gather Round to fund a major review into football in NSW, saying: “One-third of Australia’s population lives here and yet we’ve seen our marketing budget cut. Not even a fraction of the effort being put into Tasmania is being put here. The game as a whole is going backwards in NSW. Victoria has its form of Gather Round every week. It has the grand final, it has Anzac Day. Queensland and Western Australia have hosted grand finals and now South Australia has Gather Round for three more years, which we support. But the biggest market in Australia hasn’t had anything comparable.”

So concerned is the AFL about the fading impact of the Giants that it has not ruled out moving all Sydney derbies to the SCG in future.

Matthews and Harley agreed there had been little if any special AFL-funded promotion for the SCG derby with Matthews saying of the Swans: “They make the grand final last year and their season opener is fixtured away against Gold Coast. And their first home game is Sunday lunchtime against Hawthorn.”

Harley pointed out that: “Since COVID when you look at marketing infrastructure we’ve had the hubs in south-east Queensland, grand finals at the Gabba and in Perth and now Gather Round. We’ve seen no bespoke activation into our market in that time and it’s no coincidence we are the only market which hasn’t seen growth."

Matthews pointed out that the AFL’s boss in NSW no longer sat on Gillon McLachlan’s executive team, as had been the case in the case before the Giants were formed. And he, too, lamented the fixturing. “We need the big clubs here in the right slots. I would like to play Collingwood at Giants Stadium five years in a row in the same slot.” While AFL bosses have privately conceded the fixturing of the Sydney clubs has long demanded more imagination, Pridham said the Sydney problem required “a more fulsome review involving the two club CEOs, the state league bosses and should include the Riverina and the ACT."
Ahh the good old lets rely on Collingwood and the other big Vic clubs to solve all our problems.
 

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Sydney president Andrew Pridham has urged the competition to use some of the profits reaped from South Australia’s Gather Round to fund a major review into football in NSW, saying: “One-third of Australia’s population lives here and yet we’ve seen our marketing budget cut. Not even a fraction of the effort being put into Tasmania is being put here. The game as a whole is going backwards in NSW. Victoria has its form of Gather Round every week. It has the grand final, it has Anzac Day. Queensland and Western Australia have hosted grand finals and now South Australia has Gather Round for three more years, which we support. But the biggest market in Australia hasn’t had anything comparable.”

So concerned is the AFL about the fading impact of the Giants that it has not ruled out moving all Sydney derbies to the SCG in future.

Matthews and Harley agreed there had been little if any special AFL-funded promotion for the SCG derby with Matthews saying of the Swans: “They make the grand final last year and their season opener is fixtured away against Gold Coast. And their first home game is Sunday lunchtime against Hawthorn.”

Harley pointed out that: “Since COVID when you look at marketing infrastructure we’ve had the hubs in south-east Queensland, grand finals at the Gabba and in Perth and now Gather Round. We’ve seen no bespoke activation into our market in that time and it’s no coincidence we are the only market which hasn’t seen growth."

Matthews pointed out that the AFL’s boss in NSW no longer sat on Gillon McLachlan’s executive team, as had been the case in the case before the Giants were formed. And he, too, lamented the fixturing. “We need the big clubs here in the right slots. I would like to play Collingwood at Giants Stadium five years in a row in the same slot.” While AFL bosses have privately conceded the fixturing of the Sydney clubs has long demanded more imagination, Pridham said the Sydney problem required “a more fulsome review involving the two club CEOs, the state league bosses and should include the Riverina and the ACT."
Lol speaking of stupid ideas….
All derbies at the SCG?
Relying on big Vic clubs?

As I said early, there may only be a limited amount of stupid ideas but they are pretty stupid.
 
This para attributed to the AFL is rubbish - if that’s the case then the Western Sydney experiment has failed. There’s no benefit for us trying to be “Sydney Swans lite” and playing in SCG.

“”So concerned is the AFL about the fading impact of the Giants that it has not ruled out moving all Sydney derbies to the SCG in future.”
 
Lol speaking of stupid ideas….
All derbies at the SCG?
Relying on big Vic clubs?

As I said early, there may only be a limited amount of stupid ideas but they are pretty stupid.

Let’s be honest. None of these guys that are making comments and decisions actually understand the whole of Sydney let alone Western Sydney. Sheppard, Matthews, Pridham and Harley they are all expat Melbournians.

We need at least one of the CEO or Chair to be an organic Western Sydney product. The fact that Dave Matthews talks about how it took him 15 years to understand that WS is a collection of different markets - anyone that grew up here could tell you that.

This club has been set up as a satellite of the Melbourne / VFL bubble and it shows
 
We just need to accept that AFL appeals to a certain demographic in Sydney.

People who feel connected to Australian culture, who don't see themselves reflected in the Pasifika-dominated NRL, and want something "better" in life.

The Swans figured out how to talk to these people, but not all of them identify with the eastern suburbs. Those are the people we're looking for. There's enough of them to make us viable.
Those people are the ex Vic SA, Wa people who have moved to Sydney for work. There are alot of such people. Unfortunately they don't seem to support GWS that much ( they complain the initial draft concessions and academy are too generous)
At least, this is what some of them complain about, they also have strong loyalty to their original clubs.
 
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Those people are the ex Vic SA, Wa people who have moved to Sydney for work. There are alot of such people. Unfortunately thry don't seem to support GWS that much ( they complain the initial draft concessions and academy are too generous)
At least, this is what some of them complain about, they also have strong loyalty to their original clubs.

But if Matthews had any clue, in the covid years where Vic clubs were playing against other Vic clubs and getting decent crowds at giants stadium, wouldn't you have collected the details of all those patrons that love their footy and have easy access to giants stadium to sell the product to them?

That forms the core base of support for a new club in a non heartland state, they are the potential rusted on's that you need, to then add more locals to the cause on top of that.

I did mention this in an email to Matthews, amongst other good ideas, he did reply, but whether or not he actually took in the content or not is another thing.
 
Let’s be honest. None of these guys that are making comments and decisions actually understand the whole of Sydney let alone Western Sydney. Sheppard, Matthews, Pridham and Harley they are all expat Melbournians.

We need at least one of the CEO or Chair to be an organic Western Sydney product. The fact that Dave Matthews talks about how it took him 15 years to understand that WS is a collection of different markets - anyone that grew up here could tell you that.

This club has been set up as a satellite of the Melbourne / VFL bubble and it shows
They are probably fine with the Melbourne model where they all play in two stadiums- MCG and Marvel, with the big games in MCG. This won’t work in Sydney. I fear the move to the generic GIANTS branding, instead of GWS, some years ago was the start of this push to become a bland Sydney GIANTS club.
 
They are probably fine with the Melbourne model where they all play in two stadiums- MCG and Marvel, with the big games in MCG. This won’t work in Sydney. I fear the move to the generic GIANTS branding, instead of GWS, some years ago was the start of this push to become a bland Sydney GIANTS club.
Rember the podcast where they said they didn’t even want the GWS name.
 
There are more than enough fans of the sport in WS.
Problem is they already have a club.
As I’ve said previously I think the part time and other minor things may of hurt them jumping on board.
That is it.
A lot of west Sydney sports fan stuck with the swans.
The next generation of western Sydney Sport fan is likely to choose the Giants as their team.
11 years feels like a long time, but it really isn't. Those kids who started playing when we came in are mostly under 20 still.
 
That is it.
A lot of west Sydney sports fan stuck with the swans.
The next generation of western Sydney Sport fan is likely to choose the Giants as their team.
11 years feels like a long time, but it really isn't. Those kids who started playing when we came in are mostly under 20 still.
Possibly they will but I’ve always been of the opinion that being part time hurts the club in WS.
I know there are plenty who think otherwise.
 
I think a whole NSW campaign based around "make GWS your second team" has merit.
You follow NRL/Union/soccer sure...make the Giants your 2nd team.
It's different, non-threatening and allows for many open-minded sport fans to consider the possibility.
Deal with the reality and speed up the generational support.
 
I think a whole NSW campaign based around "make GWS your second team" has merit.
You follow NRL/Union/soccer sure...make the Giants your 2nd team.
It's different, non-threatening and allows for many open-minded sport fans to consider the possibility.
Deal with the reality and speed up the generational support.
A lot of my mates do exactly that.
Buy a membership , have a jersey , call themselves fans, watch the game if convenient and get to a game once or twice a year.
Building that base is the key, they'll still support their NRL team and whatever, but are also casual Giants fans.
 
The new CEO maybe more understanding of our needs than Gill?

*We have worked closely together in the AFL for over 20 years, including 10 years on the AFL Executive together, and during that time we collaborated on the list establishment rules for the Suns and the GIANTS and worked closely with inaugural GIANTS CEO Dale Holmes on some of the building blocks for Team GWS, that later became the GIANTS.

“Andrew has a great understanding of our club, the community game and ultimately the opportunity for the game more broadly in New South Wales and the ACT. He is a great listener and collaborator and our club is looking forward to his leadership.*
 

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