SPORT lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll l l ntnews.com.au Giant strides urgently needed on experience front

GREATER Western Sydney’s and vowed to be a major gan, it entrenches the Giants Giants to have played 100 In addition to O’hAilpin football Graeme Allan said. demand for hardened recruits player at the trade table. as the league’s youngest club AFL games, further under- and Thornton, Gerald Ugle, Allan confirmed Cornes has grown even more The exits of former Carlton — in every sense. lining the need for the club to Josh Growden and rookie- and Brogan would stay on as with yesterday’s delisting players O’hAilpin and Defender Stephen Gilham, recruit actively next month. listed Joe Redfern were also assistant coaches. of Setanta O’hAilpin and Thornton, who managed 29, and 25-year-old ruckman GWS have been linked to cut by the Giants. ‘‘Chad and Dean have hel- Bret Thornton. seven and one AFL games res- Jon Giles are the only players Hawthorn superstar Lance ‘‘I want to thank all these ped guide our young players GWS’s lack of experience pectively in 2013, were not on GWS’s list over the age Franklin, but Essendon pair players for their contribution through their first two years was laid bare in their second completely unexpected. of 24. Stewart Crameri and Tom to the club and wish them all in the AFL and we look for- season, in which the expan- And with the retirements of Co-captain Bellchambers are also being the very best for the future,’’ ward to their ongoing contrib- sion club tallied one victory and Dean Bro- and Gilham are the only mooted as big-bodied options. GWS general manager of ution to the club,’’ he said. Dockers can feel at home on road

By MATT WINDLEY

TAGGER Ryan Crowley says Fremantle’s elimin-

PUB: ation final win over Geelong 12 months ago will count for little on Saturday, except for

TNEWS NT one thing. The Dockers now know they can win a final away from home. ‘‘It was a long time ago and both teams have changed a lot since then,’’

DATE: Crowley said. ‘‘But I think it’s good to know that we can travel interstate and win a final. ‘‘That was the first time in 5-SEP-2013 the club’s history that we’ve done that. ‘‘So I suppose you take a little bit of confidence out of that rather than beating Geelong itself, but this week is a whole new game and, as

PAGE: (coach) Ross (Lyon) says, week-to-week it doesn’t mat- ter how you played the week before it’s all about turning

38 up and doing it again.’’ Crowley was one of the few senior players to actu- COLOR: ally play against St Kilda at Jaeger O’Meara poses with the trophy after being named the 2013 AFL Rising Star yesterday Picture: GETTY IMAGES Etihad Stadium last week, but denied the mass- restings would put a dent in the on-field momentum the club had built to that point. C The 29-year-old said he

M was looking forward to tak- ing on the Cats, particularly

Y O’Meara’s star on rise in light of recent tussles

K between the two sides. AFL was named the AFL NAB came along and footy. These things (award) Geelong defeated Freman- By DARYL TIMMS Rising Star. The raging people ask me about the com- VOTES are just little bonuses in tle in the 2010 semi-finals be- favourite, O’Meara was parisons, and they are very 2013 AFL RISING STAR footy and footy is a team fore the Dockers got their re- HE’S named after a soapie awarded the maximum five similar — and all I can say is 44: Jaeger O’Meara (Gold Coast) 44 sport, and I’m more about the venge at the MCG last year. 31: () 31 character, his coach reckons votes by all nine All- Judd did it for a long period 26: Oliver Wines (Port Adelaide) 26 team than winning individ- It’s two each in their past he’s another Chris Judd, his Australian selection panel of time,’’ he said. 11: (North ), ual accolades.’’ four regular season games. captain says he’ll succeed members, except former Ade- ‘‘You look at the impact Tom Mitchell () O’Meara joked during his ‘‘Even when Geelong him one day as the club’s new laide captain Juddy had early in his ca- 7: (Richmond) acceptance speech that his were up and going we had 3: (GWS) skipper and a former AFL who gave second placegetter, reer, and Jaeger has only 1: (Collingwood), Sam parents Wayne and Naomi some really good clashes great says he has the poten- Crow Brad Crouch, five votes done it for one season, but he Mayes () must have been drunk when with them in home and tial to become the greatest and O’Meara four. is of the equal and I have no they came up with names for away games, then obviously midfielder the game has seen. Gold Coast coach Guy Mc- doubt he will back it up.’’ groin surgery. Asked about him and sisters Tori, Shaeli now the three finals,’’ Crow- And he’s only played one Kenna said the 19-year-old O’Meara, who is of Irish AFL great Tim Watson say- and Jahni. Dad Wayne said ley said. ‘‘We’ve got a bit of season of football. had come into the club with heritage, was not eligible ing he could the greatest mid- his wife, who doesn’t usually history. They got away from Gold Coast teenager Jaeger the will to become the best to play for the senior Suns fielder to play the game, watch soapies, had come up us a bit earlier in the year, O’Meara yesterday took and had exceeded what the until this year but played in O’Meara said: ‘‘It’s humbling with O’Meara’s name after but we had a few key players the first step to living up to club had expected of him. their reserve team in the to hear things like that but watching a soapie while out. Hopefully, we can get some of those raps when he ‘‘I was at West Coast when NEAFL last season but had it’s only my first year of AFL doing the housework. over there and get a win.’’

Cusack again at Redtails’ helm FOOTROT FLATS

NTFL McAdam will be his assistant. SHAUN Cusack will coach Former Syd- the Central Australia ney and St Kilda Redtails for a second con- follower Fred secutive year. Campbell, and Cusack, a former Southern Cusack Pioneer grand Districts, Wanderers and final coach Steven Hayes will South Alice Springs player, be skills coaches. was officially re-appointed The Redtails will play an following a committee meet- eight-game trial this season, ing on Tuesday night. beginning with Waratahs at Former St Kilda wingman in Alice and Centralian star Greg Springs on October 5.

38 NT NEWS. Thursday, September 5, 2013. www.ntnews.com.au