SUMMARY

The youngest rivalry in the AFL is also one of the fiercest and the two clubs have done little to quell the ill-feeling in recent years.

The off-field byplay is one thing, but the most recent on-field battles have been in Sydney's favour; the Swans have won five of the past six Sydney derbies, with the only loss a memorable late comeback from the Giants at the SCG last year.

In finals, though, little brother has the edge, holding a 3-0 record, including a one-point elimination final victory three years ago.

Sydney v Greater Western Sydney at the SCG, 3.20pm AEST

NO LATE CHANGES

SUBSTITUTES
Sydney: Braeden Campbell
Greater Western Sydney: Xavier O'Halloran

Toby Bedford (calf) will miss for Greater Western Sydney, while Brent Daniels is back for the Giants after being a late withdrawal in the final round with a back complaint. Lachie Keeffe has been retained in the Ginats' side as a back-up ruck option, despite Jake Riccardi being available.

Sydney has omitted Taylor Adams, with Tom Papley, Isaac Heeney and Justin McInerney all back for the Swans.

Where and when: SCG, Saturday September 7, 3.20pm AEST

WHAT HAPPENED THIS YEAR? 

Round 8: Sydney 14.14 (98) defeated Greater Western Sydney 10.9 (69) at the SCG
Round 15: Sydney 15.12 (102) defeated Greater Western Sydney 11.9 (75) at Engie Stadium

On a wet and wild day at the SCG in round eight, Sydney's 29-point victory was dominated early on by Callum Brown's hit on Tom McCartin and an ankle injury to star Giant Tom Green. But the Swans never looked seriously troubled as Will Hayward (three crucial goals) and star pair Errol Gulden and Chad Warner dominated proceedings. In round 15, the Swans produced a stunning 10-goal blitz after quarter-time to storm to a comfortable win, with Gulden again the star along with James Rowbottom and Brodie Grundy. The Swans led by as much as 10 goals in the third term, with only a late Giants fightback adding some respectability to the scoreboard.

THE STATS THAT MATTER

Sydney
Sydney's forward line has come in for criticism this season, but the reality is the Swans have hit the scoreboard more than any other team. John Longmire's side has averaged 97.5 points per game (ranked No.1), with more than half of those (55.9) coming from turnover, which is also the best in the competition. Their spread of goals has also led the League; they average 8.1 goalkickers per game (ranked No.1) and have had seven players kick 25 goals or more – Joel Amartey, Will Hayward, Logan McDonald, Chad Warner, Tom Papley, Isaac Heeney and Hayden McLean.

Greater Western Sydney
The impact of the famed Orange Tsunami can be illustrated by the Giants' handball game. GWS has completed 99 more handballs than any other side this year and their average handball metres gained is 480.2m, which is the best in the competition. Incredibly, they average nearly 285 more handball metres than their opponent each week, another League best.

IT'S A BIG WEEK FOR… 

Sydney
It's no coincidence that Sydney's dip in form late in the season mirrored that of ruck Brodie Grundy. The recruit had helped transform the Swans' midfield in the first part of the year with his tap work, physicality at the contest and ability to win the ball. The 30-year-old had the better of Kieren Briggs twice this season and picked up six coaches' votes in the round 15 win where he had 28 disposals and essentially acted as an extra midfielder. But Grundy's impact dropped off late in the year and the Swans will be hoping the week off has allowed him to reset for a big September campaign. If Grundy can recapture his best form on Saturday, the Swans will be hard to stop.

Greater Western Sydney
There's just something about Toby Greene and Sydney derbies. From 2016-2023, the Giants skipper kicked multiple goals in 10 of his 13 games against the Swans, including eight majors in three finals and a famous match-winner as part of a bag of four at the SCG last year. But 2024 has been a different story. The 30-year-old has managed just a single goal in two matches and been blanketed out of the game by Dane Rampe, particularly in the round nine clash at the SCG, and it's a match-up the Swans will likely look to again on Saturday. Since the round 15 loss to the Swans, Greene has kicked 22 goals in nine games, with only Brisbane's Brandon Starcevich able to shut down the dynamic forward like Rampe has done. How Greene performs on Saturday, and for the rest of September, will have a major say in the Giants' chances of success.

PREDICTION

You could play this game 10 times over and come up with five wins each, so tight are the margins between the two sides. Recent Sydney derby history might just tip it in the Swans' favour, although their two comprehensive wins earlier this year came at the peak of their 2024 form. If the Swans can at least break even at the contest, which would allow their dynamic ball movement to thrive and limit GWS's impact going forward, they'll be hard to stop. Swans by 10 points in a contest to remember.

A JOEL Amartey goal with less than two minutes on the clock has completed a stunning comeback from Sydney as it trumped Greater Western Sydney by six points in an epic qualifying final on Saturday afternoon.

Trailing at every change, the minor premier looked destined for defeat before Isaac Heeney launched from the centre square to level the scores. Amartey then kicked the match-winner to claim the gritty 13.10 (88) to 12.10 (82) victory at the SCG.

SWANS v GIANTS Full match coverage and stats

John Longmire's men will host a preliminary final in a fortnight, while the Giants face a semi-final against the winner of the Brisbane and Carlton elimination final on Saturday night.

It is the first time the Swans have defeated their local rivals in September.

The ever-reliable Heeney was the hero for Sydney, kicking three goals, collecting 30 disposals and clocking up seven clearances. He also took an absolute screamer that could have been a Virgin Australia Mark of the Year contender had not been in a final.

Defender Jake Lloyd (one goal, 32 touches), Chad Warner (27 disposals, seven clearances) and Errol Gulden (23, five) also came to life in the final term.

Tom Papley, playing his first match since sustaining a medial ankle ligament injury in round 19, booted two goals for the Swans.

Coleman Medal winner Jesse Hogan had the Giants on-song early with two goals in the opening term, before a desperate James Rowbottom made it seven points the difference at the first change.

After a quiet build-up to the match, tensions finally boiled over in an all-in melee when Giants skipper Toby Greene was too slow to give the ball over to Papley for an after-the-siren free kick on quarter-time.

Papley then hit the scoreboard in the second term, but the Giants broke out to a 21-point lead after kicking three unanswered goals.

The popular Swans forward could come under fire after making contact with Giants head of football Jason McCartney at half-time.

Spurred on by a determined Heeney, Sydney began to regroup in the third term.

After claiming a spectacular mark on the back of Giants defender Jack Buckley, Heeney kicked his second of the match in a bid to lift his team.

But another Hogan goal kept the Swans at bay.

The home side's woes continued when defender Tom McCartin dropped in on Lewis Melican as the latter attempted to mark the ball, with Aaron Cadman easily sweeping up the dropped Sherrin for his third goal as Sydney coach Longmire watched on in frustration.

The Swans opened the final term with three successive goals, before Heeney levelled the scores.

Hogan was sensational for the Giants, terrorising the Swans defenders all game to kick three goals and take eight marks.

Tom Green (32 disposals, 10 clearances) and Josh Kelly (27, six) did the heavy lifting through the middle for Greater Western Sydney, while young gun Cadman (three) was also electrifying up forward.

Jesse picks up where he left off
Recently crowned Coleman Medallist Jesse Hogan wasted no time in asserting himself in the game. The reborn forward kicked the opening goal of the match with a long-range bomb from just outside the centre square, and followed up for the Giants' second goal with a brilliant crumbing kick from a pack in the goalsquare minutes later. Hogan's hot start was key to the Giants' early dominance, with the spearhead finishing with an equal game-high three goals.

No love lost between local rivals
It's always a little spicy when these two sides meet, and this game was no different. Tensions were high throughout a fiery opening term and they finally spilled over on the quarter-time siren when Tom Papley earned a free kick after Toby Greene collected him high. Papley took his kick - which fell well short of the goals - before an all-in melee erupted between the sides, with Greene and Papley in the thick of it.

Heeney hits new heights
Isaac Heeney hit new heights in more ways than one as he single-handedly tried to drag his side into the game. He's one-handed pluck and subsequent goal in the second term was special, but the fan-favourite followed that up with a grab that would rival the Goal of the Year finalists. But it wasn't just his high-flying antics that lifted the side, with Heeney key in the Swans' superb final-quarter comeback. The ball magnet finished with  an equal game-high three goals along with 30 disposals (18 contested) and seven clearances.

SYDNEY                                      1.4    4.5    7.6     13.10 (88)
GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY     2.5    7.8    10.9    12.10 (82)

GOALS
Sydney: Heeney 3, Hayward 2, Papley 2, Amartey, Campbell, Lloyd, McDonald, Rampe, Rowbottom
Greater Western Sydney: Cadman 3, Hogan 3, Ward 2, Jones, Keeffe, McMullin, Peatling

BEST
Sydney: Heeney, Lloyd, Warner, Rowbottom, Papley, Cunningham
Greater Western Sydney: Green, Peatling, Hogan, Ward, Whitfield, Cadman

INJURIES
Sydney: Nil
Greater Western Sydney: Nil

SUBSTITUTES
Sydney: Braeden Campbell (replaced Justin McInerney in the third quarter)
Greater Western Sydney: Xavier O'Halloran (replaced Toby McMullin at three-quarter time)

Crowd: 43,189 at the SCG