Essendon coach Brad Scott has labelled GWS ‘desperate for relevance’ after the Giants levelled a brutal insult at the Bombers just before their match on Saturday.
Giants players had run through a banner that poked fun at the Bombers’ finals drought and involvement in ‘whiteboardgate’ before nailing a 14-point comeback win at ENGIE Stadium.
The banner mimicked a whiteboard with two columns for ‘strengths’ and ‘weaknesses’, listing none for the former and ‘7916 days’ for the latter.
Essendon last claimed a post-season match 7916 days ago, beating Melbourne in a 2004 elimination final.
The gimmick also referred to a leaked photo of Brisbane’s whiteboard, which categorised Essendon’s strengths and weaknesses – including former Lion Jaxon Prior’s strength as his long-time girlfriend.
Scott initially brushed off the matter as ‘interesting for (other) people’, before taking a measured swipe at GWS.
Pictured: The GWS banner accusing the Bombers of having no strengths before the teams’ clash on Saturday
Angry Essendon coach Brad Scott (pictured centre) lashed out at the Giants’ choice of banner in the wake of his team’s defeat
‘I did catch it out of the corner of my eye,’ Scott said.
‘I mean, the Giants are pretty desperate for some relevance in the competition, to try and build their fan base.’
On Sunday, GWS hit back with a pointed post on X.
The team ran a clip of Scott’s comments about the banner followed by a montage of Giants players celebrating after scoring against the Bombers on Saturday
The argument over relevancy comes as GWS wrestle with existential questions amid a change in leadership.
Inaugural chief executive Dave Matthews will step down at the end of the season, with the club weighing up a name change.
Despite surpassing a record 30,000 members this year, the club believes the ‘Greater Western Sydney’ name still lacks recognition in the area after 15 seasons.
The club unofficially dropped ‘Greater Western Sydney’ in 2018 and is branded as the ‘GIANTS’, though they are still listed as GWS Giants by the AFL.
The loss continues a long run of shocking form for the Bombers, who hadn’t won a finals match for 7916 days when the game kicked off – a fact the Giants delighted in pointing out on the banner at the centre of the furore
Scott had a dig at GWS over the club’s failure to make a larger impact in Sydney’s west
The viability of the AFL club in western Sydney – a region boasting an estimated population of nearly three million – has already been questioned this year.
AFL great Gerard Healy, in April, wrote in an SEN article that only 97 boys from the 14 clubs in the region had signed up for 13-and-under football so far this season.
Scott tied up his criticism with a neat bow.
‘I’m just such a strong proponent of building our game in the northern states, in western Sydney and on the Gold Coast,’ Scott said.
‘That’s really important for the AFL – I’m reluctant to sort of comment on other clubs, but yeah, they make their decisions, we’ll make ours.’
Essendon will return home to host a red-hot Fremantle side out to equal a club-record run of nine wins.
The Bombers will be without standout draftee Dyson Sharp, who injured his shoulder in the third quarter against the Giants.
Scott wasn’t sure on Sharp’s return timeline, with a potential four-to-six week stint on the cards or surgery.
‘Well, he thinks he’ll play next week. I don’t think that’s right, but that’s just the way he is,’ Scott joked.
