They'll think of the Giants: GWS plot Sydney takeover

Sydney Swans watch out – Greater Western Sydney will be painting the town orange.

Sick of playing second fiddle to the Swans, the Giants plan on stealing the show when Broadway comes to the harbour city in March for the opening round.

Their cross-town rivals may have the honour of kicking off the new season against interstate rivals Melbourne, but Adam Kingsley’s charges are planning to be more than just an encore.

When they take on reigning premiers Collingwood on March 9, GWS have a real chance to upstage Sydney and claim the biggest scalp of the competition.

Asked if he thought the Giants could dethrone the Swans as the city’s top team, star forward Toby Bedford could not hide his grin.

“We’d like to think so,” Bedford said on Friday.

“Last year we went to every game with a mentality that we could beat anyone, and a lot of other teams wanted that.

“So if they think of Sydney, they’ll think of the Giants.”

Written off at the start of last season and opening with a sluggish 3-7 win-loss record, Bedford expects the league to avoid making the same mistake this season.

The Giants made it further in September than the Swans, before their fairytale season under first-year coach Adam Kingsley was brought to an end in a one-point preliminary final loss to the Magpies.

Toby Bedford (right) says the Giants can become the AFL’s top Sydney-based team. (Brendon Thorne/AAP PHOTOS)

“Last year, especially the back half of the year, we gained a lot of respect,” Bedford said.

“We said in our four walls that we were the team that you didn’t want to play come finals.

“We definitely believed that, and the comp thought that as well.

“It was a taste of something unreal – we were just short, and we all want to come back and go a couple of wins better.”

GWS will get a taste of their competition when they play Sydney in their first match simulation on February 22.

“It’s a match sim and we all know that, but whenever we get the chance to face the Swans, there’s always a little extra in it,” Bedford said.

“We love that battle with them (and) we want to go there and win.”