Life’s good if you’re at Greater Western Sydney.
The AFL expansion club moved into the top four – above cross-town rivals Sydney – following Sunday’s 79-point thrashing of hapless Brisbane at the Gabba.
That victory was the Giants’ 11th of a breakthrough campaign, all but ensuring GWS will play in an inaugural finals campaign this year.
Doubly pleasing for coach Leon Cameron was his team’s response to a defeat to Collingwood the week prior – a result he labelled disappointing.
But the Giants’ coach says the Lions’ win is just the start of a season-defining stretch of four games for his team.
GWS face Port Adelaide on the road next weekend before a clash with Richmond at Canberra’s Manuka Oval and then a trip to Gold Coast.
“We’ve had a good year so far, let ourselves down last week,” Cameron said.
“We’ve got four weeks on the road, this is the first one.
“Huge game next Sunday against Port Adelaide.
“This next month is probably going to sort us out to see where we are going to finish.”
Making the eight will be a huge step forward for the Giants, but with a midfield packed with talent and a forward line boasting weapons such as Jeremy Cameron and Jonathan Patton it’s clear Cameron expects more from his team.
He’s also full of praise for Josh Kelly, who kicked three goals and took six marks in an all-action display against the Lions.
“We went and got him three years ago and he’s everything we could possibly ask for,” Cameron said.
“His preparation is absolutely first class … for a third year player to do what he’s doing week after week – I thought it was just another game today that confirmed he’s heading in the right direction in terms of becoming a top liner.”