VFL GWS VFL 2025 - Wildcard Final vs Richmond, Sat 23 August

[Giant Strides]

VFL confirms 15 practice matches ahead of 2025 season

A block of pre-season matches spanning more than a month have been revealed.

www.zerohanger.com

Seems a lot of matches for us, in comparison to other teams!

Sydney

GWS GIANTS

21/2/2025

~12pm

Tramway Oval

GWS GIANTS

Southport

1/3/2025

11:15

Tom Wills Oval

Sydney

GWS

8/3/2025

10:00

Tramway Oval

GWS

Sydney

16/3/2025

10:00

Tom Wills Oval

 

[captainMyCaptain]

Would love to see this as step towards getting Albury back in our zone but more likely a case of wishful thinking.

 

[Colonial]

To be honest kinda of over the Riverina and our attempts to take it over, think it harms us and gives us an easy out instead of concentrating on WS.

 

[kickthething]

Giants should establish a Melbourne hub…..it may well build an insurance against go home factor if any players get elevated.

 

[Giant Strides]

2025 Smithy's VFL list update: January edition

All the list changes for every club ahead of the 2025 Smithy's VFL season

www.afl.com.au

(I've removed the AFL players, whom the article listed.)

COACH: Wayne Cripps (third season)

STAYING: VFL: Billy McGee-Galimberti;

ARRIVING: VFL: Mitch Szybkowski (Casey Demons);

DEPARTING: VFL: Cooper Bell (Gold Coast Suns), James Creighton (Brisbane Lions VFL), Nic Quigg (Essendon VFL), Joel Rush (Peel Thunder), Josh Smith (North Adelaide), Giorgio Varagiannis (Northern Bullants), Ethan Williams (Sandringham);

TO BE CONFIRMED: Mackenzie Allen, Jackson Bowne, Ned Byrne, William Clark, Kale Gabila, Daniel Gauci, Ethan Grace, Riley Hamilton, Jensen Hargreaves, Matthew Harms, Ryan Hebron, Coby Hilton, Sam House, Izaac Hughes, Lochlan Jenkins, Tom McCaffrey, Charlie McCormack, Harper Montgomery, Taine Moraschi, Nathan Richards, Will Shaw, Marc Sheather, Oliver Withers.

 

[Colonial]

 

[Colonial]

Hmmmmm

The GIANTS will also soon announce several signings from the club’s new VFL hub in Albury

 

[Wetdog]

2025 Smithy's VFL list update: January edition

All the list changes for every club ahead of the 2025 Smithy's VFL season

www.afl.com.au

(I've removed the AFL players, whom the article listed.)

COACH: Wayne Cripps (third season)

STAYING: VFL: Billy McGee-Galimberti;

ARRIVING: VFL: Mitch Szybkowski (Casey Demons);

DEPARTING: VFL: Cooper Bell (Gold Coast Suns), James Creighton (Brisbane Lions VFL), Nic Quigg (Essendon VFL), Joel Rush (Peel Thunder), Josh Smith (North Adelaide), Giorgio Varagiannis (Northern Bullants), Ethan Williams (Sandringham);

TO BE CONFIRMED: Mackenzie Allen, Jackson Bowne, Ned Byrne, William Clark, Kale Gabila, Daniel Gauci, Ethan Grace, Riley Hamilton, Jensen Hargreaves, Matthew Harms, Ryan Hebron, Coby Hilton, Sam House, Izaac Hughes, Lochlan Jenkins, Tom McCaffrey, Charlie McCormack, Harper Montgomery, Taine Moraschi, Nathan Richards, Will Shaw, Marc Sheather, Oliver Withers.

Sheather, McGee Galimberti and Szybkowski trained in the AFL programme over the pre-season as “train on” players.

 

[Brave New World]

Hmmmmm

The GIANTS will also soon announce several signings from the club’s new VFL hub in Albury

This was posted by the Giants on their Website:

“The GIANTS are excited to announce six more new additions to their VFL side for 2025, with half a dozen newcomers joining the club from its new Albury VFL hub.

Established for the 2025 season, the GIANTS are continuing their focus on connecting with regional communities with the creation of its new hub in Albury which is aimed to provide pathways for talented players in the region to train, develop, and potentially play for the GIANTS’ VFL side.

The club is excited to announce it has currently signed six players for the hub, with Noah Bradshaw, Nick Irvine, Ben Coghill, Jaiden Butson, Liam McCarthy, and Jace McQuade signed to kickstart the initiative.

Bradshaw, the son of former Lion and Swan Daniel Bradshaw, joins the club’s VFL program following two seasons of senior football for Wodonga in the Ovens and Murray Football League, where the 22-year-old was named the Bulldogs’ Most Consistent Player in 2024.

Prior to that Bradshaw played some VFL football for Collingwood in 2022 while also dominating in the midfield in the Coates Talent League where he averaged 25 touches per game for the Murray Bushrangers.

Also a former Murray Bushranger – having played for the side in 2019 alongside GIANTS defender Lachie Ash – Irvine joins the GIANTS’ VFL side following two seasons with Yarrawonga in the Ovens and Murray Football League, with the competitive and well-balanced defender one of the Pigeons’ best in their 2023 premiership win.

Joining him at the GIANTS from the Pigeons this season is Coghill, a young key forward hailing from Rennie, NSW.

Only 21 years old, Coghill is an exciting tall prospect who last year played a full season of senior football for the Pigeons where he received the club’s Rising Star Award.

Also onboard the GIANTS’ expanded VFL program for 2025 is Butson, a young midfielder who originally made the move from Cairns this year to play at Corowa-Rutherglen in the Ovens and Murray competition.

Having previously done a pre-season with Collingwood’s VFL side, Butson is a calm and composed 21-year-old onballer who makes good decisions.

The most experienced player added to the club’s Albury VFL hub, McCarthy is a 26-year-old utility who was the runner-up in the 2024 Crathern Medal awarded to AFL Cairns’ best player.

An elite kick and possessing a strong footy IQ, McCarthy played over 100 games for Colac in the Geelong Football League and also played for Geelong’s VFL side in 2022.

Having spent the last two years playing for South Cairns, McCarthy also made the move down south this year to play for Corowa-Rutherglen.

The final addition to the club’s Albury hub, McQuade joins the GIANTS fresh off a key role in the Wangaratta Rovers’ upset grand final win in the Ovens and Murray league last year.

A rangy key defender who has come through the Rovers program since a young age, McQuade has previously done a pre-season with Carlton’s VFL side and over the last couple of years has starred while restricting some of the best key forwards in the Ovens and Murray competition”. ....

I was hoping Charlie McCormack might have been amongst the names if he was still playing in southern NSW. Does anyone know why he did not make our VFL squad?

 

[Giant Strides]

2025 VFL fixture released

The VFL fixture is here!

www.zerohanger.com

A total of nine matches will be held over the opening weekend, with Frankston, Gold Coast and GWS scheduled Round 1 byes.

A break will fall between Rounds 3 and 4 due to Gather Round, which will see a VFL representative side face a SANFL opponent in South Australia on April 12.

The full VFL fixture for 2025 can be found here.

 

[Giant Strides]

 

[Giant Strides]

AFL-Listed GIANTS Shine In VFL Win Over Southport

Several AFL-listed GIANTS put in strong performances in a VFL practice match on Saturday.

www.gwsgiants.com.au

AFL-Listed GIANTS Shine In VFL Win Over Southport​

Several AFL-listed GIANTS put in strong performances in a VFL practice match on Saturday.

Plenty of AFL talent impressed in the club’s VFL practice match win over Southport at GIANTS HQ on Saturday, with several players putting their name in contention for AFL selection for next week’s Opening Round clash with Collingwood.

Featuring 15 AFL-listed GIANTS, the club’s VFL side impressed in searing conditions to record a 112-86 win at Tom Wills Oval.

A host of the club’s promising youngsters put in strong performances in the win, with Cody Angove continuing his hot summer alongside good showings from Jake Riccardi, Harvey Thomas, Harry Rowston, and Josaia Delana.

Following up from last week’s starring performance in the practice match against the Swans, Angove was again a standout on the wing as he pushes his case for an early season AFL debut.

Taking several strong marks and involved in numerous scoring chains, Riccardi was the GIANTS’ best ahead of the footy against the Sharks as he looks to return to his best in 2025 after missing the latter part of the 2024 season with a finger injury.

AFL-listed midfield duo Rowston and Toby McMullin also had strong moments through the VFL hit out as they both look to become more permanent fixtures in the club’s AFL side this season.

Likewise Thomas was also impressive against the Sharks, with his class and pressure on full display as he looks to build on last year’s brilliant debut AFL season.

Delana was another who stood out in Saturday’s clash, with the Category B Rookie kicking two opening term goals and playing a hand in a host of others to continue his impressive maiden summer at the club as he too looks to break through for an AFL debut this season.

Fellow draftee Harry Oliver also showed good signs against the Sharks and was also able to hit the scoreboard with a first-quarter goal.

Others to impress were Wade Derksen who was strong in the air down back and used the ball well as usual, emerging ruckman Nick Madden who moved across the ground well after a huge summer building his tank, and Leek Aleer who spoiled well and provided some nice dash out of defence.

Untried Category B Rookie Nathan Wardius also performed well, with the mid-sized forward showing off some of his tricks with a nice cameo performance across half forward.

Dashing defender Joe Fonti had his moments throughout the day as he looks to add to his five AFL games from last season.

 

[Colonial]

 

[Giant Strides]

Should have saved the 7-goal haul for the real thing!

 

[MelbourneGWS]

AFL’s preview of the VFL season. They are predicting that we will again not make the VFL finals, although unlike the standalone clubs that is not our primary aim for our VFL side.

Summary: Where to put this team? They’ve been stuck in just outside the top 10 for most of their time in the VFL, with the ability to beat just about anyone and lose to just about anyone. They need to win their home games to take the next step into the finals, a task which is definitely not beyond them. The big unknown is how much they will use their Ovens and Murray recruits, and what impact they can have on the next level. They are either top-liners or set to be so in one of the strongest country leagues in Australia, but VFL is another level altogether. A lot is again set to fall on captain Ryan Hebron, and he will need Marc Sheather and Harper Montgomery to stay fit. Swans recruit James Lugsdin showed some strong signs last year as well.

Prediction: 13th

2025 Smithy's VFL season preview

A club-by-club preview ahead of the 2025 Smithy's VFL season

www.afl.com.au

 

[MelbourneGWS]

Caruso happy with our VFL top-up hub in Albury

In January the GIANTS established a new hub for VFL top-up players in Albury, with the club aiming to provide a pathway for talented players in the region to train, develop, and potentially play for the GIANTS' VFL team

GIANTS Albury VFL Hub Kicking Goals

The GIANTS are encouraged by the start of their new Albury VFL Hub.

www.gwsgiants.com.au

 

[Colonial]

 

[Giant Strides]

First round results (GWS having a bye, among 3 such teams):

 

[Giant Strides]

2025 Smithy's VFL playing lists

The final lists for every team for the 2025 Smithy's VFL season

www.afl.com.au

COACH: Wayne Cripps (third season)

STAYING:

VFL: Mackenzie Allen, Riley Hamilton, Matthew Harms, Ryan Hebron, Izaac Hughes, Tom McCaffrey, Billy McGee-Galimberti, Harper Montgomery, Taine Moraschi, Will Shaw, Marc Sheather.

AFL: expect to see primarily Leek Aleer, Ryan Angwin, Josaia Delana (drafted: East Coast/GWS Giants Academy), Wade Derksen, Josh Fahey, Joe Fonti, Phoenix Gothard, Max Gruzewski, Lachie Keeffe, James Leake, Nick Madden, Toby McMullin, Jake Riccardi, Harry Rowston, Logan Smith (drafted: Queanbeyan/GWS Giants Academy), Nathan Wardius.

ARRIVING:

VFL: Hugo Birks (Sydney Swans VFL), Mitchell Blow (Pennant Hills), Noah Bradshaw (Wodonga), Jaiden Butson (Centrals Trinity Beach), Ben Coghill (Yarrawonga), Declan Fitzgerald (North Shore NSW), Khy Gibbs (South-West Sydney/Swans Academy), Nick Irvine (Yarrawonga), Perry Lewis-Smith (Yarrawonga), James Lugsdin (Sydney Swans VFL), Liam McCarthy (South Cairns), Sam McMeeken (Manly-Warringah), Jace McQuade (Wangaratta Rovers), Louie Montgomery (North Adelaide/Port Adelaide SANFL), Hunter Pickett (North Adelaide), Luke Skrivanic (Pennant Hills), Mitch Szybkowski (Casey Demons).

AFL: expect to see primarily Cody Angove (Scarborough/Claremont), Oliver Hannaford (Sandhurst/GWV Rebels), Harrison Oliver (St Bedes-Mentone/Sandringham Dragons), Jack Ough (Wentworth District/GWV Rebels).

DEPARTING:

VFL: Cooper Bell (Gold Coast Suns), Jackson Bowne (Montmorency), Ned Byrne, Billy Clark (Eastlake), James Creighton (Brisbane Lions VFL), Kale Gabila, Daniel Gauci (Norwood SANFL), Ethan Grace, Jensen Hargreaves (Yarrawonga), Coby Hilton, Sam House, Lochlan Jenkins, Charlie McCormack, Nic Quigg (Essendon VFL), Nathan Richards (Corowa-Rutherglen), Joel Rush (Peel Thunder), Josh Smith (North Adelaide), Giorgio Varagiannis (Northern Bullants), Ethan Williams (Sandringham), Oliver Withers.

28/32 list spots filled

 

[Wetdog]

GIANTS 2025 VFL Season Preview
https://www.gwsgiants.com.au/news/1740652

The GIANTS will kickstart their 2025 Smithy’s VFL season this weekend as they host Williamstown in Blacktown on Saturday morning.

After having the bye in last weekend’s opening round, the GIANTS will now begin their 2025 campaign as they host the Seagulls at Blacktown International Sportspark.


Ahead of his side’s season-opener, we sat down with GIANTS VFL head coach Wayne Cripps to get his thoughts on the upcoming campaign.

VFL PROGRAM FOCUS FOR 2025:

“Nothing changes for us in terms of our focus is trying to get our players AFL-ready,” Cripps said.

“We’ve invested heavily in the [AFL] Draft again and so it’s about getting those first-year players up to speed with the system and their role and then those second, third and fourth-year players are at the stage now where we want to get them AFL-ready.

“Not only do we want to develop players in their primary position, but we want to develop them in secondary roles which give them every opportunity of playing [AFL footy].”

THOUGHTS ON THE VFL LIST:

“We kept some really important players and ones we really wanted to keep, in [Marc] Sheather, [Harper] Montgomery, [Billy McGee] Galimberti and [Ryan] Hebron. They’re going to be four key pillars for us this year and they’ve all had really strong pre-seasons.

“They’ll be even better off this year, especially Sheather, Montgomery, and Galimberti as it’s now their second year in the system so they’re going to be much better off.

“Then obviously with the Albury VFL Hub we’ve been lucky enough to find some real talent there and they’re guys who play in a really strong league and they’re good young players who are really driven to play VFL footy.

“In terms of depth, in my time here, this is the most depth we’ve had on our VFL list.”

PRACTICE MATCH TAKEAWAYS:

“For us, we’ve got AFL train-ons, our Sydney VFL-listed, and our Albury VFL-listed players, so it’s been about trying to build that connection between those players and we’ve been able to get some really good game time into most of our list.

“All the Albury-listed players have played and only a couple of our Sydney VFL-listed players haven’t played, so the majority have had heaps of exposure to our system, and it was at a really high level.

“We won three of the four games so it shows we are playing to a really good standard, but there’s still a lot of work to be done.”

A FUN ENVIRONMENT AND THE ADDITION OF A NEW COACH:

“We are fortunate enough that we have such a young group with our AFL group and our VFL group that everyone is pretty much a sponge and just wants to learn and get better.

“When you’re surrounded by those people it’s always good fun which makes it a really easy job to do.

“I think the addition of Trent Dennis-Lane into the AFL program [as a development coach and VFL line coach] has really strengthened the VFL program even more. He’s a really strong coach that has built really strong connections with players and staff straight away.

“He’s got a great footy brain and he’s going to be a great resource for us.”

AFL-LISTED PLAYER TO WATCH: JOSAIA DELANA

“Obviously he’s come thought the [GIANTS] Academy, we saw him a bit in the VFL last year where he was sort of running around with not a lot of idea about our system, but it’s been a huge benefit for him having a whole AFL pre-season and now knowing our system.

“He’s got some extremely sharp hands and has some great traits.

“There’s some guys that have already had some [AFL] exposure in Ollie Hannaford and Cody Angove, and they’re going to be really good players, but I think young Joey is going to be a player that’s really going to close the gap on the other draftees pretty quickly.

“He’s a great talent, he’s a hard worker, and more than anything he’s just a great kid and he has a really infectious personality.”

VFL-LISTED PLAYER TO WATCH: LOUIS MONTGOMERY

“Obviously, he’s Harper’s brother and he’s still relatively new to our system but coming from Port Adelaide, he’s already had exposure with training at the AFL level.

“He’s been through the pathway system so he’s got a lot of talent, and he’s got a great understanding of the game.

“I think once he starts to feel really comfortable with our system that we are going to see a really good VFL player.”

SEASON OPENER V WILLIAMSTOWN ON SATURDAY:

“I’m looking forward to it.

‘’Plappy’ [Williamstown coach Justin Plapp] is a great coach and he obviously values contest and defence and you always know what you’re going to get with one of his sides.

“They’re coming off a loss last week so they’re going to come out firing and I have no doubt our boys are going to come ready to play and hopefully get the four points.

“We’ve just got to try and match them in the contest and play with speed. They’ll probably come into the game knowing we’re going to want to play with speed and they’ll try and take that away from us. So, if we can try and play with speed as much as we can, but we can match them in the contest, then things should go our way.”

GIANTS 2025 VFL LIST:

1. Ryan Hebron (captain)
2. Marc Sheather
3. Billy McGee Galimberti
4. Harper Montgomery
5. Mitchell Szybkowski
6. Louie Montgomery
7. James Lugsdin
8. Izaac Hughes
9. Hugo Birks
10. Matt Harms
11. Will Shaw
12. Tom McCaffrey
13. Mackenzie Allen
14. Riley Hamilton
15. Perry Lewis-Smith
16. Sam McMeeken
17. Hunter Pickett
18. Declan Fitzgerald
19. Luke Skrivanic
20. Taine Moraschi
21. Khy Gibbs
22. Mitchell Blow

Liam McCarthy (Albury Hub)

Nick Irvine (Albury Hub)

Noah Bradshaw (Albury Hub)

Jaiden Butson (Albury Hub)

Ben Coghill (Albury Hub)

Jace McQuade (Albury Hub)

The GIANTS will get their 2025 campaign under way against Williamstown at 11am on Saturday at Blacktown International Sportspark.

 

[Giant Strides]

GIANTS’ VFL Side Littered With AFL Talent For Season Opener

The GIANTS have named a strong VFL side for their season opener against Williamstown on Saturday.

www.gwsgiants.com.au

The GIANTS have named a strong VFL side for their season opener against Williamstown on Saturday.

The GIANTS’ VFL side will be littered with AFL talent for its season opener against Williamstown this weekend.

After having a bye in last weekend’s opening round, the GIANTS’ VFL squad will get its chance to shine on Saturday as they take on the Seagulls at Blacktown International Sportspark. 15 AFL-listed GIANTS will feature on Saturday, with Leek Aleer, Max Gruzewski and Callum Brown headlining a side also boasting several exciting youngsters.

Recent draftees Cody Angove, Harry Oliver, Jack Ough, and Josaia Delana will all take on the Seagulls, as will the more experienced quartet of Jake Riccardi, Toby McMullin, Harvey Thomas, and Joe Fonti who will play their first games of the season. Tough onballer Harry Rowston, intercept defender Wade Derksen, crafty forward Nathan Wardius, and emerging ruck Nick Madden will also get their seasons underway on Saturday.

Newcomer Louie Montgomery – the brother of teammate Harper Montgomery – will make his VFL debut on Saturday for the GIANTS, as will Jaiden Butson who the club recently signed from its Albury VFL hub. Skipper Ryan Hebron will lead the side on Saturday as the GIANTS look to kickstart their VFL campaign with a strong showing against the Seagulls.

Saturday’s VFL clash will get under way at 11am in Blacktown.

VFL Round 2

GIANTS v Williamstown
Saturday, March 29 at 11am
Blacktown International Sportspark | Darug Country

FB: Leek Aleer, Wade Derksen, Harper Montgomery
HB: Joe Fonti, Louie Montgomery, Harry Oliver
C: Cody Angove, Toby McMullin, Harry Rowston
HF: Callum Brown, Marc Sheather, Jake Riccardi
FF: Josaia Delana, Harvey Thomas, Nathan Wardius
RR: Nick Madden, Jack Ough, Max Gruzewski

Interchange: Ryan Hebron, Izaac Hughes, Perry Lewis-Smith, Jaiden Butson, Billy McGee Galimberti

In: Harry Oliver, Cody Angove, Jack Ough, Jaiden Butson, Louie Montgomery

 

[Giant Pete]

Looking forward to watching this.

 

[Colonial]

 

[Drummond]

Like what I see from Angove.

 

[Drummond]

I’ve seen enough, get Fonti in.