Media Watch
Reid making most of his second AFL chance
Herald Sun, Eliza Sewell
April 27
It took retirement for born-again Giant Sam Reid to see football clearly.
The 27-year-old is enjoying a renaissance in an AFL career he thought was over when he was delisted by GWS coach Leon Cameron at the end of 2013.
That decision, with one year to run on his contract, came as a shock.
“They just said, with the injuries I’d had, they said we’d like to put you on as this coach,” Reid said this week.
“Honestly, I wanted to turn around and tell him to get stuffed. But I went away and thought about it and thought it was a good opportunity really to be involved with such a young club and go into the development side of things.”
Nick Haynes out for 10 weeks with hamstring injury
The Sydney Morning Herald, James Buckley
April, 30
Giants defender Nick Haynes is set to miss most of the season with a hamstring injury suffered in Friday's heart-stopping two-point win over the Western Bulldogs in Canberra.
Haynes landed awkwardly late in the game and was taken from the field with what has since been diagnosed as a torn hamstring tendon.
The intercepting blonde-haired backman will likely avoid surgery, but still leaves a gaping hole in the GWS back six after a stellar start to season 2017.
"We'll now map out the right program for him to ensure he returns to the field in peak condition later in the year," Giants head of athletic performance David Joyce said.
Kane Cornes believes Greene suffered trial by media
The Advertiser, Kane Cornes
May 1
On Friday night Toby Greene suffered the modern-day trial by media – by social media.
In an age where everyone can have their say in 120 characters or less the GWS forward was assailed for a mistimed spoil on Western Bulldogs midfielder Caleb Daniel.
The keyboard warriors labelled it an act of thuggery, but he was making a genuine attempt to spoil, albeit a clumsy one. A 50m penalty warranted, but it was not a hanging offence and not worth a two-week suspension.
The modern game moves so quickly the difference between spoiling the ball and collecting the chin is a matter of centimetres.
The reaction following the event on Twitter was savage.
Medical Report
Sam Reid (hamstring) test
Shane Mumford (ankle) test
Brett Deledio (calf) indefinite
Tendai Mzungu (hamstring) 6-8 weeks
Ryan Griffen (ankle) 6-8 weeks
Nick Haynes (hamstring) 10 weeks
Star
In a midfield brimming with emerging superstars – Dylan Shiel, Tom Scully, Stephen Coniglio and Lachie Whitfield – and established stars in Callan Ward and Ryan Griffen, Josh Kelly is the name that continues to attract the most attention. A reported nine-year $9 million dollar offer from North Melbourne has sparked even more attention recently, but his form across the first six rounds has done the work for him. In the early stages of his fourth season at the Giants, the former No. 2 pick is averaging 26.7 possessions (10.8 contested), 5.3 tackles, 4.7 inside 50s and 4.3 clearances.
Fresh face
Tim Taranto, the man the Giants chose with the second pick in last November’s National Draft, has played all but one game so far in his debut season and is coming off his strongest performance yet las Friday night. The St Kevin’s College product collected a career-high 20 disposals and seven tackle against the Western Bulldogs in Canberra as he continues his emergence on the scene inside one of the deepest engine rooms in the competition.
Stats that matter
Greater Western Sydney is ranked No. 1 for clearances differential (+10.8) and hitouts to advantage differential (+10.2) and No. 2 for hitouts differential (+20.7). The man behind these numbers is Shane Mumford, who in the absence of the injured Mac Gawn, has assumed the status of the No. 1 ruckman in the game. After six rounds, Mumford is averaging 45.3 hitouts per game (No. 2) and 15.8 hitouts to advantage (No. 1).
Team
B: Z. Williams, A. Corr, H. Shaw
HB: A. Kennedy, P. Davis, T. Taranto
C: N. Wilson, C. Ward, T. Scully
HF: S. Johnson, R. Lobb, M. Kennedy
F: D. Smith, J. Patton, J. Cameron
R: S. Mumford, J. Kelly, D. Shiel
Interchange: S. Coniglio, H. Himmelberg, A. Tomlinson, J. Hopper
Emergencies: H. Perryman, M. de Boer, D. Simpson
IN: S. Coniglio, P. Davis, H. Himmelberg
OUT: T. Greene (suspended), N. Haynes (hamstring), S. Reid (hamstring)
