Where and When: Saturday 9 April, 7.25pm

Last time they met: 

It’s been a long, long time. The GIANTS last played the Saints in round one of the 2021 season, losing by eight points on a wet day at GIANTS Stadium. It was a very winnable game against a side missing several key players and playing four debutants, but the Saints hung in their longest. They forced their way to the lead during the third term, with the GIANTS grabbing a two-goal lead back during the final quarter only to miss some crucial chances and concede two late goals. Jack Billings, Hunter Clark and Jade Gresham were among the busiest Saints, with Tim Membrey kicking three of their 13 goals. Harry Himmelberg was the GIANTS’ best goalkicker, also scoring three, with Toby Greene, Harry Perryman Tim Taranto and Jacob Hopper among the best. The game was the first AFL match for Matt Flynn and Tanner Bruhn.

Broadcast 

Friday’s match will be shown live on 7mate in NSW and the ACT from 7:30pm and Fox Footy and Kayo nationally.

The match will also be shown via the AFL Live app with a subscription purchase.  
 
The match can also be heard on the following radio stations in Sydney this week: SEN’s AFL Nation. For the latest television and radio broadcast guide, click here. 

What it means for the GIANTS: 

It’s time to get going. With just one win from the first five games, the top half of the ladder is starting to look a long way away. These GIANTS have fought their way out of some inconsistent form many times before, and will need to do so again if the season is to get going. This will be the club’s first match at Canberra in a very long time, and the start of a home-game run, with five of the next six games to be played at the GIANTS’ grounds. As coach Leon Cameron said after last week’s loss to Melbourne, the next month will say a lot about this team and where its season is headed.

Where’s the opposition at?

The Saints are in super form, recovering from their round one loss to Collingwood to post four strong wins in a row. Max King, in his fourth season, has hit his strides as the Saints’ No. 1 forward and kicked 16 goals for the season so far. Jack Steele has been leading the way in the midfield with help from Brad Crouch and Seb Ross, and they are getting plenty from their crew of smalls: Jack Higgins, Jack Sinclair and Gresham, back from last year’s Achilles injury. 

Player watch: 

Finn Callaghan looked comfortable in his first AFL game last week, debuting against the reigning premier. The 192cm winger was clean at ground level and showed good composure with ball in hand, winning 13 possessions and kicking a classy goal in the final quarter.
 
In the mix: 

Isaac Cumming will be out of covid lockdown, and ready to take his place in the backline. Braydon Preuss will also be available again, having served his one-week suspension. Could he partner up with Flynn, who fought hard against Max Gawn and Luke Jackson last week? Plenty of players have put their hands up during the VFL side’s unbeaten start to the season, with the likes of Jarrod Brander, Leek Aleer, Cam Fleeton, Cooper Hamilton, Jacob Wehr, Ryan Angwin, Josh Fahey, Kieran Briggs and Will Shaw all doing their bit over recent weeks, and you might remember this guy called Toby Greene. His six-week suspension for umpire contact ended last weekend. He’ll be right back where he belongs in the forward line.