GREATER Western Sydney is hopeful that a difficult trip to Geelong this week can provide the mindset shift required to snap them out of their recent rut.

Premiership favourites just a month ago, the Giants have lost their way in recent encounters, dropping four of their last five games and struggling to find their famous defensive surge and forward-half pressure that has served them so well since Adam Kingsley took charge.

Saturday's away clash against the Cats however will be almost a year to the day that they travelled to Geelong and recorded an unexpected victory that provided the platform for the club to win 11 of their next 14 games, en route to the Preliminary Final.

Off the back of Saturday's poor showing against the Western Bulldogs, assistant coach Brett Montgomery said the Giants "need to get their hunger levels back" and is hopeful a daunting trip to GMHBA Stadium can be the necessary circuit breaker.

"It certainly won't hurt. That challenge will be something that we'll certainly tap into but there's things in our game that we need to fix, and fix in a hurry," he said.

"It was around this time last year that we put the foot down, we made some adjustments and we got some of that nasty, high level hunt back in our game and I think we're at the point in our season where that needs to return very quickly.

"There’s a real flatness in our performances at the moment and I think that's reflected in our inability to score at the same impressive rate in the first five or six rounds and I think that transfers to other parts of the game."

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The Giants have been bullish from the start of pre-season that their goal this year is simply to win the flag. And while the quest from this week is simply to rediscover their appetite for the contest, there'll be no adjusting on that overarching premiership goal.

"'Kingers' (coach Adam Kingsley) nailed it after the game saying we need to attack ourselves to what it is that makes us play well," Montgomery said.

"He's a coach that he does have the answers. At this point last year, we were struggling for system and I think we're there again. We worked through that quite well last year and he led the way with that and you saw what happened in the second half of last year."

06:18

Highlights: GWS v Western Bulldogs

The Giants and Bulldogs clash in round 10

Published on May 18, 2024

There have been clear struggles adjusting to wet weather footy for the Giants as shown in the losses to the Swans and the Bulldogs, while the targeting by the opposition of defensive dashers like Lachie Whitfield and the overall Orange Tsunami run-and-gun game has impacted them.

"When you come up against the number one scoring team in the comp you've got to be on your A-game in defence. We've come up against some teams who have been well and truly prepared for the Orange Tsunami if you like and tested us for a Plan B," Montgomery said.

One of the Giants' speed merchants in Darcy Jones will be sidelined for several weeks with a hamstring injury that forced him off early in the Bulldogs defeat, continuing a poor run with injury so early in his exciting career.

"I wouldn’t expect to see him in the next two to three (weeks). He hasn't had a lot of luck in first year and a half at the club. He's certainly a player that we think will take us to the next level so it's disappointing," Montgomery said.

00:29

Luckless young Giant subbed out with hammy

GWS suffers a cruel injury blow with exciting youngster Darcy Jones forced out of the match with a hurt hamstring

Published on May 18, 2024

A standout performance of 25 disposals and three goals from midfielder James Peatling in the VFL will mean he's a strong consideration for an senior recall this week, especially in the Giants' search for extra pressure around the ball.

Back-to-back goalless games from Aaron Cadman and just one goal in three weeks from Jake Riccardi places the key forward duo under pressure to hold their spots.

With that in mind, an AFL debut for developing tall forward Max Gruzewski is a definite possibility following a strong run of form in the VFL.