Before training the GIANTS muster together inside the club’s gymnasium at the WestConnex Centre to preview their session.
They stand together as one on an AstroTurfed surface that they use for skill drills and tackle practice.
An assistant coach will preview the training session, explaining what drills will be taking place and Head Coach Leon Cameron will speak to reinforce a few focus points.
Every so often he’ll deliver some life-changing news and the players will celebrate as one of their mates becomes the newest AFL GIANT.
On Thursday, that happened to Zach Sproule with the Albury product being told he’d make his AFL debut in the GIANTS’ clash with the Bulldogs on Sunday at GIANTS Stadium.
The reaction from the playing group was enormous.
Many of the footballing staff – some who have been involved at the top level for decades – said it was the loudest and best reaction to a debutant announcement they’d ever seen.
“The reaction obviously speaks for itself, he’s a very popular guy at the footy club,” GIANT and close friend Isaac Cumming explained.
“Obviously it’s long-awaited. He’s in the same year as me, the third year, and it’s his first game this week.
“He’s been working very hard and all the boys know it so that’s why we’re up and about.”
Sproule, the last of the GIANTS’ 2016 draft crop still on the list to make his AFL debut, couldn’t cope.
He burst into tears.
“When he (Leon Cameron) said it, I couldn’t believe it and then when they all got around me,” Sproule recounted.
“I’ve created so many mates here and that sort of reaction means I must be a pretty popular figure.
“I get along with a lot of blokes here and to see that hit home, everyone does care about you and everyone is happy for you.
“When Daws hugged me the tears sort of started to flow, there were some nice words from him and being a country boy means a lot.
“I tried to compose myself which was hard, really hard, but I was pretty cooked when I came to train but I tried to train well and prepare well for the weekend.”
Sproule has literally given his blood, sweat and tears to making his debut.
Joining the GIANTS as a Category B Rookie at the end of 2016, Sproule was an Academy selection, meaning he’d been overlooked by all AFL clubs in two consecutive drafts.
Sproule was viewed as a long-term project after displaying positive signs with the AFL Academy and NSW/ACT Rams in his 18’s year.
Housemate and long-time teammate Cumming recalls what Sproule was like when they first met in the GIANTS Academy.
“I would have met ‘Cowboy’ in the under 14s GIANTS Academy, so since we were 13 years old. He was kind of like a newly-born giraffe,” Cumming said with a laugh.
“He was the same kid he is now; he was tall, had a lot of energy and everyone loved to have a chat with him.”
When it came to his footballing ability there was no doubt he had some talent, but it would take a lot of hard work for Sproule to achieve his dream.
Although not going as far as comparing the debutant to an animal usually found loping around Africa, GIANTS Academy Coach Jason Saddington recalls his first meeting with an ungainly, happy-go-lucky kid from Albury.
“When I first met Zach Sproule he was probably a 14- or 15-year-old kid that had long legs who wasn’t probably overly co-ordinated at the time,” he recalled.
“He probably wasn’t the fittest kid either, but he was super athletic, and it was exciting to see him cover the ground.
“He wasn’t the most skillful player, but you thought if he gets a bit more co-ordinated, he might become a good player.
“Once it all came together for him, he came along really quickly.
“In under 16s, he made the state team and then the AFL Academy, but then the next year-and-a-half after that, he probably struggled a bit with his footy, but he did enough to get on the rookie list here at the GIANTS.
“He’s worked hard, it’s been great to see him get that game.”
Sproule is humble and honest when it comes to his footballing abilities. He knows better than the rest how hard he’s had to work to get to the big stage.
“When I first came to the GIANTS, I was tall, skinny and uncoordinated like Saddo said,” Sproule admits.
“I didn’t know much forward craft, but over the last few years I’ve worked hard with Millsy (forwards coach Brad Miller). I owe a lot to him and Schnides (NEAFL coach Adam Schneider) as well.
“My leading patterns and stuff like that I had to work on and my body had to physically be ready to play AFL, which I probably wasn’t when I first got here.
“It’s been an absolute rollercoaster. All the extra stuff I’ve had to do, the extra recovery sessions by myself and the extra touch sessions have paid off.”
Sproule has played 46 NEAFL games in his time at the club, kicking 85 goals.
His form last season had him on the fringes of selection and again this season Sproule was in fine form in the NEAFL before disaster struck.
The 21-year-old was playing against Brisbane when he went down with a knee injury, scans later revealed he’d torn his MCL and would miss eight weeks.
“Last year I thought I might have played one game, that was my goal and to have that not happen I think at the end of the year I said I’m going to play next year,” he said.
“I actually had up on my wall that I was going to play by round 15, then I got injured and tore my MCL and I thought far out, maybe my season’s done.
“I attacked my rehab hard and thought it’s not over yet I’m going to give it one last crack to hopefully break into the side.
“That was a bit of the factor of being emotional as well, having the knee injury I didn’t think it was going to happen this year. It’s been a really, really long wait so it’s awesome.”
Cumming said that while Sproule had grown both on and off the field during his three seasons at the GIANTS, the injury had also fast tracked his development.
“I think anyone who gets injured always comes out a better person at the end of it because they appreciate the game a lot more and they’re so eager to get back playing,” he said.
“I think as he was injured guys were debuting, his mates were debuting, and he just couldn’t because he was injured.
“He’s got his shot now and I’m sure he’s counting down the minutes for it.”
Be there on Sunday as Zach Sproule debuts against the Western Bulldogs. Tickets from Ticketmaster.
