As one of the AFLW’s inaugural clubs the GIANTS will celebrate their 10th season in the groundbreaking competition this upcoming 2025 AFLW season. To mark the special occasion, we are shining a spotlight on some of the key moments in the incredible journey so far.

One – The License

When bids to own one of eight inaugural AFLW licenses opened for tender, the GIANTS intended to be the first hand in the air.

The opportunity to be front of mind for the next generation of footballers - and to be the sole AFLW team representing New South Wales - presented as too exciting a prospect for GIANTS Chief Executive Officer, David Matthews to let slip.

“The first time it was flagged that an AFLW competition was on the horizon it was just excitement,” Matthews says.

Matthews, whose former role included national oversight of game development for the AFL, saw the growing appetite for more pathways for young girls and women to play the game in Western Sydney, as early as 2015 – just three years after the club’s first AFL match.

“My former role with the AFL was in game development and I saw the natural growth in girls' participation in Auskick, and we recognised at that time the need to try and build a pathway beyond it,” he says.

“We knew at some point the aspiration to have a national elite competition was something we should strive for, so when the opportunity came to bid for a license, we wanted to be almost the first ones to put our hands up.”

In 2016, when the conversation around a national, professional women’s competition moved from AFL House and into the 18 club boardrooms across the country, there were advocates from all over GIANTS HQ.

“A women’s team was something we were very passionate about straight away,” Matthews says.

“Richard Griffiths [former GIANTS COO] was here, who had been CEO of AFL Queensland, and had a big emphasis on the participation of women and girls.

"One of the most significant influences was Katie Page from Harvey Norman who has across many sports, been such a huge influence on the development of women’s participation.

“Gab Trainor AO was very involved in our board in the inaugural years of the GIANTS, Katie, Tony Shepherd AO, our former Chairman, everyone from the top down was very supportive.”

The GIANTS’ hunger to be at the forefront of development for the league and the intent to grow the game in Western Sydney shone through the license bid, which was delivered with backing from commercial partner Harvey Norman.

“Harvey Norman have been a keen supporter from the outset and pretty quickly we found that the corporate community wanted to connect not just with Western Sydney but with our AFLW program, so that’s been really successful,” Matthews says of the partnership.

It was a natural progression for the AFL’s upstarts, as they continued to carve out an identity both in the community and broader Australian Rules landscape.

Success, for both Matthews and the club, is as much focused on football as it is the club’s impact in communities that they service and providing opportunity for young people to play and see a future in the sport.

“I think the fact that we’re not a 150-year-old club that was bolting on a women’s program, the fact that we were a young club, only three or four years old in the men’s program, it felt the natural thing to do.

“Having an AFLW team in Western Sydney completes the opportunities that we’re providing.”

It’s an intention that Matthews has seen have a direct impact over nine AFLW seasons, starting with the club’s first ever match against the Crows on February, 3 in 2017.

“The first game was in Adelaide, I was hoping it would be in Sydney, I remember that,” Matthews recalls.

“As is often the case in Adelaide it was a fierce, parochial local crowd, I think there were about 10,000 people at Thebarton Oval.

“There was a big difference in the skills and experience in both sides but just to make history, to run out, it didn’t feel dissimilar to when the men played their first game in 2012.

“We knew we were up against it, but we were making history, and we were getting started, that was the important thing.”

Amanda Farrugia, the inaugural GIANTS AFLW captain was the flagbearer for Western Sydney in the game, herself a product of the area.

“It was a real ambition of ours to get more talent out of Western Sydney, Canberra and Southern NSW,” Matthews says.

“You can see not just the aspiration that's provided by our players when we’re playing AFLW games, but the role our players play in the community, promoting participation.

“From there it’s about ‘can we identify some talent through the Academy pathways?’”

Eight seasons later, the western zone of AFL Sydney has become a hotbed for talent, with the GIANTS being both instigator and beneficiary.

Georgia Garnett, Haneen Zreika, Brodee Mowbray and 2025 recruits Caitlin Fletcher and Sophie Kavanagh now all represent the region in GIANTS colours.

It’s a legacy the GIANTS look to continue building past season 10, as the game continues to grow and increase in popularity and quality.

“For the GIANTS with AFLW there’s an opportunity to build our audience, to create pathways for women and girls here,” Matthews says.

“It’s helped to stimulate the local competition. The pathways locally have certainly been stimulated, and our membership base has responded really well.

“I think the crowds will continue to build and as they continue to build the season will continue to expand. I can see the opportunity for our club in AFLW to be unbelievable.”

The GIANTS historic 10th season of AFLW is kicking off this August, and we don’t want you to miss a moment!

This year, we're turning up the value with ‘10 Seasons, 10 Perks’ - featuring 10 new member exclusive benefits that deliver real value and elevate your season.

The first benefit is the opportunity for a lucky member to be the winner of a once in a lifetime opportunity to attend the GIANTS’ AFLW pre-season camp thanks to Reflections Holidays. It's the opportunity of a lifetime. The winner will receive two nights' accommodation at the beautiful Bermagui Holiday Park with the AFLW team and exclusive inner sanctum experiences throughout the camp. 

Sign up before 11:59pm on Sunday, June 22 to be in for your chance to win!