By James Dampney AFL.com

THE first real shots were fired in the AFL battle that is about to commence in Sydney on Friday, with the established Swans keen to protect their home turf from the incoming Giants.

Greater Western Sydney coach Kevin Sheedy and big-name recruit Israel Folau were joined by Swans mentor John Longmire and co-captain Adam Goodes at a press conference in Homebush to mark 50 days until the two clubs meet in round one of the AFL season.

The March 24 contest is a stand-alone game as the AFL makes another big step into expanding its market share in the city.

The Swans haven't always had an easy time in Sydney, a place renowned for its fickle sporting allegiances, and there are plenty of question marks over the Giants' chances of building a solid fan base.

But GWS is confident the plans are in place for the AFL's newest franchise to become a success and they are ready to tackle the Swans head-on.

While there was some light-hearted banter during Friday's joint press conference, there was also a clear feeling that the Swans are determined to remain the No.1 AFL ticket in town.

"We've been here for 30 years and we feel as though we're an important part of the fabric of this city and this state and we're going to fight fiercely for it," Longmire said.

"I'm sure we'll work together on a lot of things, but the reality is it's a competitive market up here; it's competitive in a whole heap of sports, but now it's just got a little bit more competitive.

"It's exciting, we see it as an opportunity, and we want as many supporters as we can to hold off Greater Western Sydney.

"That's the reality of it. It's now become a lot more competitive and we're going to do our best in terms of media, the general market place and, most importantly, starting March 24 on the paddock."

Sheedy said his fledgling club was trying to learn some lessons from when the Swans relocated from South Melbourne to Sydney in 1982.

While they are entrenched in the city now and helped to firmly win over the public with their drought-breaking 2005 premiership, there were plenty of teething problems in the formative years.

"When I look back at the history, the team was training in Melbourne and up here, they hadn't all shifted at the one time, and it was a very, very difficult period," Sheedy reflected.

"They were more or less forced to come.

"This has been a better structured plan by the AFL and with a better structured listing that has given this club an opportunity to have reasonably good success as soon as we possibly can.

"We're learning as fast as we can and no one knows how we're going to go, that's the exciting part. That's a positive.

"In the last 15 or 20 years we've seen a great club in Hawthorn win six or seven premierships and go broke and nearly lose their club.
That can happen.

"We need to build a great club that is sustainable and loved by the people of the west and the people in Sydney in general."