The orange tsunami is sweeping through the competition, with the Giants looming a massive threat to Collingwood in Friday’s preliminary final.
And while GWS coach Adam Kingsley and captain Toby Greene admit they didn’t expect the side to make the preliminary final this year, star Sam Taylor made an early bold prediction – and it’s come true.
Taylor issued a warning to the competition back in February that his side would be coming home in a rush.
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“Realistically it could be a tough first 10 weeks, but by the last 10 weeks, we could be winning every game,” he warned on SEN WA pre-season.
“Everyone was disappointed (with 2022) … with this consistency and a new coach and what he’s bringing to the club, I think it could be a really good year.
“We got a new strategy, game plan moving forward.
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“Players like Tom Green, he could be a Brownlow Medallist in a few years.
“Finn Callaghan is one of the rising stars – I haven’t seen two people dominate the pre-season like those two. They could be potentially like an (Clayton) Oliver and (Christian) Petracca duo.
“Then you’ve got class players like Toby Greene, Jesse Hogan … once we get things to click, I think we could be a really strong team this year.”
It’s been a remarkable turnaround for a team that finished third last in 2022 – and had many experts predicting another bottom four finish.
Instead, Adam Kingsley’s men have won 11 of their past 13 games to not only make finals – but make a serious impact with back-to-back do-or-die wins.
Taylor has been outstanding once again in defence for GWS, and only fell short of successive All Australian jumpers due to a lack of games played due to injury.
In AFL rankings, the Giants sit second in the competition for intercepts – behind only Melbourne in 2023.
They have the highest uncontested possession and tackle average of any side left in the finals race and are ranked number one in 2023 for tackles inside 50 – averaging almost 13 a game.
“I knew we had really good footy in us … I felt like we could be a very good team (but) did I expect to make a prelim? No, not this year,” Kingsley said after his side’s thrilling semi final win over Port Adelaide last weekend.
Skipper Toby Greene said his side was completely focused on facing the Pies – and hopefully getting the same result they did back in the 2019 preliminary final.
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“I probably didn’t expect to be here, I’ll be honest,” Greene said on Wednesday.
“But now that we’re here and with what we’re doing, we deserve to be here.
“Footy’s funny, it can change a lot in a few months and a few weeks. It probably happened a bit quicker than we thought but we’re here now and out to make the most of it.
“Once you’re in the prelim, you’ve got your eyes on the premiership. That’s what we’re here to do.
“They’re not easy to make (prelim finals). We know what’s at stake and we’re excited. It’s just an awesome position to be in.”
Part of GWS’ remarkable success has been their “anywhere, anytime” mantra that has so far led them to an AFL record 11 wins at 11 different venues in a single season.
“We knew that if we were going to win the premiership, we had to win three games at the MCG, so we embrace that, the boys love it. Footy’s a religion down there and it’s great to be a part of,” Greene said.
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