Dear members,

We are delighted to advise you that the AFL has today announced that the 2020 AFL Premiership season will resume on Thursday, June 11.

This is obviously welcome news for our players, staff and members and while the season will look different to what we are used to, it will ensure we can all again be part of the GIANTS’ pursuit of an AFL Premiership. 

Today’s announcement from the AFL includes the following information:

• Clubs will return to training on Monday, May 18 and the 2020 AFL Premiership season will resume on Thursday, June 11.
• Players and football department officials will return to clubs on Monday, with clubs completing a 3.5 week training block before matches officially restart.
• Strict protocols will be in place to protect players, officials, staff and the wider public with all involved in the game regularly tested ahead of any contact sessions or matches.
• The 2020 AFL Season will consist of 17 Rounds, with one Round having already been played, there are 16 Rounds remaining before Finals.
• Crowds will not be permitted at games due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic however this will be assessed by the relevant Governments throughout the course of the season.
• In order to maintain flexibility and given that some states still have restrictions in place, the AFL will release the remaining 144 games plus finals of 2020 AFL Premiership fixture in blocks of up to 4-6 weeks.
• The first block of games will be released over the next 10 days with games in the early part of the season being scheduled at AFL venues in states that have approved full-contact training and matches, including New South Wales.
• The Return to Play model will see all teams based out of their home state with the exception of the Western Australian teams West Coast Eagles and Fremantle, and South Australian teams Adelaide Crows and Port Adelaide.
• West Coast Eagles and Fremantle will complete the pre-season training block at their home bases before relocating interstate ahead of their first scheduled match while current restrictions in SA will mean that Adelaide Crows and Port Adelaide will need to relocate interstate before May 25 when full contact training will begin for all 18 clubs.
• West Coast Eagles, Fremantle, Adelaide Crows and Port Adelaide will all relocate to the Gold Coast.

While we understand that many of you are missing the connection to your GIANTS family that game day provides, we are committed to remaining very connected with you and we continue to explore a range of options to ensure you can be as close to the action as possible during the Season.

The club would like to acknowledge the AFL for its leadership and ongoing work with the Federal, State and Territory Governments and the relevant health authorities to ensure the 2020 Season returns in the safest possible manner. 

The GIANTS are most grateful for the incredible support provided by our members and our corporate and commercial partners during this period of pause.

Your support has allowed our players and staff to continue to prepare for the remainder of the 2020 Season and with a re-start date now set, our players will be returning to the club on Monday focused on achieving the ultimate success.

The 2020 Premiership will be awarded to the club that handles the adversity and challenges of this season the best and we are confident that our club is very well placed to once again challenge for the GIANTS’ first ever Premiership.

As many of you would be aware, the club recently launched our I Never Surrender campaign which we are delighted to share with our broader GIANTS family below.

This campaign embodies the resilience and strong sense of community the club has built since entering the AFL competition.

There have been challenges and there’s no doubt there will be more to come. At this important stage of our journey we ask that, if you have the capacity to, that you keep supporting the club as a member and display the Never Surrender attitude.

GIANTS access-members will receive further communication on Monday (May 18) regarding the I Never Surrender campaign, how your 2020 membership plays a significant role in this and new arrangements for those members on GIANTS Easy Pay.

On behalf of the club, we thank you for your ongoing support. 

Stay safe and we look forward to communicating further exciting news about the 2020 season as it comes to hand.

Go the GIANTS.

Tony Shepherd AO and David Matthews