Certain rivalries in professional sports are fabricated, but others are undeniably authentic, and it appears that GWS Giants’ emerging rivalry with Collingwood firmly falls into the latter category.
While the youthful GWS team maintains a strong rivalry with the nearby Swans and occasionally with the Western Bulldogs, there is genuine animosity brewing when it comes to Collingwood.
Giants chief executive Dave Matthews left little room for doubt regarding his sentiments when he declared, “We despise Collingwood almost as intensely as we despise the Swans” during the pre-season.
The intensity of the rivalry was fueled by Collingwood’s narrow one-point victory in last year’s preliminary final, as the Pies went on to win the championship while the Giants dealt with the aftermath and prepared for their opening-round home game.
Additionally, the Giants caused an upset by defeating Collingwood by four points in a preliminary final back in 2019.
It didn’t take long for both teams to exchange verbal jabs in the lead-up to Saturday night’s season-opening showdown.
There’s quite a bit of significance to delve into here.
Let’s start with Mason Cox’s comment referring to the GWS home ground at Sydney Olympic Park as “a showground for livestock.”
In response, the Giants decided to have some fun and constructed an actual petting zoo in the stadium for the game, complete with sheep and a cardboard cutout of Mason Cox. It was all in good spirits, really.
Cox then made his way into a pre-match warm-up for GWS and participated in a ball-up with former Giants ruckman Shane Mumford, who didn’t seem particularly amused.
It was a bold move considering Mumford, nicknamed “Mummy,” is known for his aggressive style on the football field, even in retirement.
Team banners are often an easy target for banter, and the GWS media department, known for their wit and creativity, easily capitalized on this opportunity for a win.
The Collingwood banner was originally intended to read, on one side, “Roses are red, Giants seem blue, they ‘hate’ us, but we don’t mind you,” signed off with a kiss.
However, there was a problem as the Y from the word “they” had fallen off, which the Giants media team seized upon with a playful caption, highlighting the missing letter.
