A fiery clash between the GIANTS and the Dees in the Alice awaits.
AFL - Round 12
Demons v GIANTS
Sunday, May 31 at 3:15pm
TIO Traeger Park Oval | Arrernte Country
What It Means for the GIANTS
After an inconsistent season to date the GIANTS put the footy world on notice last Sunday with a record-breaking 78-point win over the Brisbane Lions.
The emphatic win was headlined by a quarter that shocked the Lions and the footy world as the GIANTS piled on an incredible 14 unanswered goals to outscore Brisbane 14.2 (86) to 0.3 (3) in the premiership quarter alone.
The remarkable performance saw the GIANTS create history with the highest-scoring third quarter in AFL/VFL history as well as the fourth-highest scoring quarter of all time.
The side also broke a club record, recording their highest-ever score with the monster 26.10 (166) total.
Toby Greene also etched his name into the history books in the win, with his five majors seeing him overtake Jeremy Cameron as the GIANTS’ all-time leading goalkicker with 430 majors and counting.
After showing the league exactly what they’re capable of, the goal for the GIANTS now is to show that consistently across multiple weeks, with the side yet to win consecutive games this season.
Hanging around the outskirts of the top 10 for most of the season to date, a GIANTS win on Sunday would be a huge step towards building some momentum leading into next week’s bye.
While the GIANTS will be without Jack Buckley (hamstring) for the coming weeks, they could be bolstered by a huge inclusion against the Demons, with star All-Australian defender Sam Taylor a strong chance to return from a high-grade hamstring injury for his first game of the season if he can get through Friday’s main training.
The Opposition
One of the stories of the season so far, the Dees have quickly become one of the competition’s most exciting teams under first-year head coach Steven King.
Finishing 14th last season with just seven wins, the much-improved Dees have already equalled last year’s win tally after just 11 games to sit in sixth spot on the table at 7-4.
Despite their stellar start to the season, the Dees will be hoping to bounce back to their winning ways in Alice Springs after suffering a tough three-point loss to the Bulldogs.
Down by as much as 33 points in the second term, the Demons fought their way back and twice hit the lead in a thrilling final term before Joel Freijah gave the Dogs an epic win with a match-winning goal with four minutes remaining.
Melbourne has had a host of strong performers throughout the season who will be looking to guide their side to victory on Sunday, with the likes of Kysaiah Pickett and Max Gawn both having All-Australian calibre campaigns, while the likes of Tom Sparrow, Harvey Langford and Kade Chandler are some of the league’s most improved players in 2026.
Recent History
If recent encounters are anything to go by then strap yourself in for a nail-biter on Sunday, with the past three games between the sides decided by a grand total of just seven points – with the GIANTS winning all three in dramatic fashion.
The most recent of the epics came in round one last year where Lachlan Keeffe kicked the match winner with less than a minute to go to give the GIANTS a thrilling three-point come-from-behind win.
The sides have also met once before in Alice Springs, with the GIANTS winning that by two points in another thriller thanks to a longe-range bomb from Josh Kelly back in 2023.
Key Match Up: Clarry Faces his Demons
After 10 years, a premiership, four club champion awards, three All-Australian blazers, and two AFLCA Champion Player of the Year awards in red and blue, Clayton Oliver will face his former Demons in different colours for the first time on Sunday.
After his much-publicised move to the GIANTS, the man they call Clarry has wasted no time in showing the footy world just what a force he can still be following a brilliant front half of his maiden season as a GIANT.
The star midfielder is posting close to career-best numbers across his first 11 games as a GIANT, sitting number one in the AFL for total clearances, total contested possessions, total ground ball gets, and third in total disposals.
The 28-year-old, who sits inside the top 10 of the AFLCA Player of the Year leaderboard, will enter Sunday’s game in red-hot form after picking up eight coaches votes for a brilliant outing against the Lions which saw him tally 37 disposals [23 contested], 11 clearances, and eight tackles.
While he says it’s just another game, we're sure there’ll be plenty of fire in the belly for Clarry as he looks to torch his former side.
GIANTS Player to Watch: Phoenix Gothard
He waited a long time to make his AFL debut but Phoenix Gothard is certainly wasting no time in showing what a special talent he is.
Taken with pick 12 in the 2023 draft, injuries curtailed the start to Gothard’s career before a brilliant summer on the track saw him earn his AFL debut in this year’s Opening Round – a mere 838 days after being drafted.
Following a strong debut, the Albury product has never looked back, kicking goals in nine out of his 11 games – including multiple goals in five of those.
On Sunday Gothard produced his best effort yet, registering 29 disposals, 10 tackles, eight score involvements, and two goals in a brilliant display in just his 11th AFL game.
No doubt growing in confidence, the 20-year-old is certainly one to watch on Sunday as he looks to continue his red-hot form while dancing around Dees defenders.
In The Mix:
As well as the potential return of Taylor this week, there were a host of strong performers in the VFL last week should they be called upon.
Leading the way are the likes of James Leake, Joey Delana, and untried midfielder Jack Ough.
Team Selection:
The GIANTS will name their squad to take on the Demons on Thursday at 6:20pm and then their final team on Friday at 5pm at gwsgiants.com.au.
Rehab Report:
Get a full injury update ahead of Sunday’s match here.
