GIANTS ready for the Battle of the Bridge

By James Matthey

Sydney AFL fans will be licking their lips in anticipation of the Battle of the Bridge, which was officially launched in front of Sydney’s Anzac Bridge yesterday.

The tag, given to promote the cross-town derby between the Sydney Swans and the GWS GIANTS, will be contested on March 30 at ANZ stadium.

Speaking at the launch, GIANTS coach Kevin Sheedy wasn’t shy when outlining his ambition for the concept.

“We want this to be a big event for the people of Sydney and there is no bigger event in sport than a local derby.

“We think this will become one of the great rivalries in Australian sport.”

GIANTS vice-captain Tom Scully said the clash with the reigning premiers would be a good test to see how far the western Sydney club has come since its debut year.

“It’s going to be a great challenge, obviously we’ve got full respect for the Swans and what they’ve done in the past so it’s going to be a great challenge for us first up.

“It’s going to be a good test to see how far we’ve come over 12 months and we’re certainly looking forward to it.”

Scully also said his side would look to play a more expansive style of football as they look to build on their two wins in 2012.

“We want to take the game on a bit more this year.

“Last year we played pretty defensively and probably tried to stem the flow a bit against a lot of the sides, so this year we’ll be trying to play with a bit more flair and take the game on a bit more.”

Swans’ utility Lewis Roberts-Thomson said the defending premiers would not be caught short in this battle like they were in their Round One Nab Cup loss to the GIANTS.

“We saw them first hand in the Nab Cup and they had a strong side on the park and they played exceptionally well, they certainly caught us off guard.

“As a team we respect every opposition we come up against, and round one against the GIANTS is no different, we fully respect the GIANTS and we’re looking forward to the game.”

Scully was optimistic about the upcoming season, praising the work of new assistant coach Leon Cameron in giving the club a sense of direction.

“I think he’s come in with a new energy and new ideas, and certainly over the pre-season guys have been trying to get their head around that and embrace what he’s trying to implement.

“He’s had a really positive effect on the group and I suppose knowing now that he’s going to take over from Kevin after this year he’s got a real clear plan of where the club’s going.

“It’s great to know where the club’s going and that we’ve got a direction moving forward.”

The two sides will be playing for the White Ribbon trophy, which aims to stamp out violence against women, while the player deemed best-on-ground will be awarded the Brett Kirk medal in honour of the former Sydney captain.