After a strong opening half, the GIANTS – with nine AFL listed players - were overrun by Essendon in round 20 of the VFL.

Ryan Hebron (14 disposals, 10 marks), Cooper Hamilton (19 disposals), Xavier O’Halloran (19 disposals, one goal), Zach Sproule (12 disposals, 2 goals) and Jake Stein (2 goals) impressed for the GIANTS, but it wasn't enough as the GIANTS fell to a 10.9 (69) to 15.9 (99) defeat at GIANTS Stadium. 

“I was really pleased with our first half on the back of some really exciting ball movement and good defensive pressure,” said GIANTS VFL coach Damian Truslove.

“Essendon’s talented list got on top of us in the second half, but I was proud of the group for continuing to fight the game out.”  

Truslove shared his assessments of the AFL and VFL listed players who played in the match.

AFL Listed Players:

18 Conor Stone

10 disposals, 3 marks

It was fantastic to have him back after a long rehab period. He got involved playing limited minutes on the wing and used the ball well.

28 Zach Sproule

12 disposals, 2 goals

Worked really hard in our front half. He had strong leading patterns and managed to hit the scoreboard.

29 Cameron Fleeton

14 disposals, 3 marks

Had the task of matching-up on Alec Waterman, he had a lot of critical spoils and fought hard.

33 Xavier O’Halloran

16 disposals, 1 goal 

Played in the midfield and ran hard between each contest. He was hard and tough at the stoppages.

35 Will Shaw 

5 disposals, 1 goal

Played up forward and was lively in the first half. He was sore in the second half so didn’t have much of an impact.

42 Jake Stein

11 disposals, 2 goals

Played a new role across half forward and worked hard up and down the ground. He provided a great option for us and got rewarded on the scoreboard.

43 Cooper Hamilton

19 disposals, 3 tackles

He played in the midfield this week and his running patterns to support our defence were outstanding.

45 Wade Derksen

13 disposals, 4 marks

Played across half forward and as our second ruck. He was hard and tough around the contest and flew for a lot of contested marks.

46 Callum Brown

16 disposals, 4 marks

Defended really well. He played a really disciplined role and gave us great rebound off half back.

VFL Listed and Academy Players: 

48 Harry Grintell

Played across half back, used the ball well and continues to learn his defensive craft.

49 Sam Frost  

13 disposals, 4 marks

Another solid performance across half-back. He won or halved most of his contests and tried hard for the entire game. 

50 Billy Clark  

13 disposals, 1 goal

Played on the wing, gave us good outside shape, and provided a great option out of the back half. 

51 Ryan Hebron

14 disposals, 10 marks

Another fantastic game from Ryan. He was voted our best player on the back of his excellent defensive positioning, and he used the ball really well by foot.

52 Brodie Romensky 

10 disposals, 3 tackles

Played both forward and in the midfield. He played a more defensive role this week and has a great team first attitude. 

55 Jacob Conlan

7 disposals, 1 goal

Led at the ball really well and when he won the ball he used it well.

56 Noah Casalini

8 disposals, 1 goal

Played deep forward and presented well at the ball. Had some excellent defensive efforts. 

57 Sebastian Quirk

10 disposals, 3 tackles 

Played forward, ran hard to support the backline, and used the ball well by foot.

59 Mackinley Miller

8 disposals, 1 mark 

Played as a key back on Michael Hurley and won or halved several contests against him. It was a great learning experience for him. 

60 Leyton Chisholm

10 disposals, 5 tackles

Played both midfield and forward this week. He hunted the ball and opposition with aggression and fought the game out well.

63 Riley Bice

15 disposals, 6 marks

Was really good with his loose ball gets and used the ball well with his silky left foot kick.

64 Ethan Grace

7 disposals, 2 marks

Played half forward and half back. Always uses the ball well and is working hard to improve his contested craft. 

66 Luke Fellows

10 disposals, 1 mark

Ran hard up and down the wing, gave our backline great support and gave us good balance on the outside.

70 Nick Madden

2 disposals, 7 hit-outs

It was Nick’s first game for the club out of the GIANTS Academy. It was a great learning experience for him.