By James Dampney
GIANTS coach Kevin Sheedy has begun the mammoth task of preparing his side for the arrival of the West Coast juggernaut on Sunday – and he has started by suggesting the Eagles might be too tall.
Sheedy and the rest of the Greater Western Sydney coaching staff have a near impossible job readying their fledgling side, which is coming off a 129-point loss to North Melbourne, to take on heavyweights West Coast.
Even for veteran coach Sheedy and his deep bag of tricks it looms as mission impossible, with some bookmakers refusing to even list head-to-head odds on the seemingly one-sided clash.
But Sheedy has found some positives - firstly the fact the game will be played truly in Sydney's west for the first time at Blacktown International Sports Park.
Secondly, and extremely optimistically, he is hoping to exploit the height of the West Coast outfit.
The Eagles are led by 200cm-plus ruck duo Dean Cox and Nic Naitanui and last week had seven other players 191cm or taller in their 108-point mauling of Melbourne, including Will Schofield, Eric McKenzie (both 196cm) and Josh Kennedy (194cm).
"That's for us as coaches and a group of people who have been in the game a long time – myself (and assistant coaches) Alan McConnell, Brett Hand, Stuart Edge and Mark Williams," Sheedy told AFL.com.au when asked how he could lift the Giants' spirits.
"We've been working with them, bringing these players through and building them up.
"We know what's coming, so we just let them know that how you handle the Sydney Swans (in round one) is the way you look at this game.
"Whilst they are a very, very tall side, we have to make sure we understand how we work around the positives of a team being too tall, rather than a team like last week in North Melbourne, which was a running side."
Since the start of the NAB Cup, the Giants have travelled an extraordinary path, playing games in Blacktown, Launceston, Albury, Canberra, Homebush and Hobart.
This week, Blacktown will host an AFL match for the first time.
Sheedy is hopeful the 3300km trip from Perth to Sydney could upset the Eagles, but more importantly he is pleased the people of Sydney's west can support the Giants in what is expected to be a sell-out.
"It'll be interesting to see who they bring, and remember it's a fair way from Western Australia," he said.
"We've got a home ground, and we haven't been playing in Sydney much at the moment, and it'll be good to play one in our territory.
"The people of greater western Sydney, Blacktown and from Parramatta right down to Penrith, down to Campbelltown and the Hills area, they should be very proud of the positioning of a first game.
"We played a historical game in Hobart last weekend and we're playing one in greater western Sydney.
"The AFL and its clubs are prepared to move heaven and earth to play in the whole of the nation. Cairns hosted a game last year with Richmond, Darwin, Hobart and now western Sydney is really topping it off."
There is one other element that excites the always-exuberant Sheedy and it is a match-up he has heralded for some time.
That is the meeting of incredible athletes Naitanui and Israel Folau, who he guarantees will meet in the ruck at some stage.
"I have no doubt about it, that will happen," he said.
"It'll make the Pacific Island people living in the area come and have a look at a Fijian and a young man from a Tongan family and feel very proud about their countries.
"That's the sort of area we're moving into. We're playing in an area in Blacktown with 160 or 170 nationalities.
"There's not really an area like that – maybe the west of Melbourne – but not the population we've got here."
2012 TOYOTA AFL Premiership Season ROUND 3
GWS GIANTS v West Coast Eagles
Sunday April 15, 1.10pm
BLACKTOWN INTERNATIONAL SPORTSPARK
Tickets from: www.ticketmaster.com.au
Purchase your ticket to the game and you’ll go into the draw to win a signed, framed GIANTS Guernsey!
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