IT MAY have only been a pre-season game, but Greater Western Sydney still took enormous confidence from routing St Kilda in their NAB Challenge match in Wagga Wagga.
Wins have been hard to come by for the third-year club, picking up just three AFL victories over its opening two seasons in the competition.
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So a commanding 68-point thrashing of the Saints at Robertson Oval will do wonders as the team attempts to make a sizeable step forward in 2014.
"No doubt," coach Leon Cameron said after the impressive win. "When we preach everything through November, December, January about what we're trying to achieve, and then you actually see that come off in a game, it's a great boost for us.
"We understand we're a developing side, we know where we're at, but we were rapt with the way we went about it against Sydney (last week) and obviously today is another performance in the right direction.
"But now we focus in on Adelaide as our final hitout before we play the Swans in round one."
The signs are there already that the maturity of their youngsters, along with the addition of some seasoned veterans, has brought a better balance to the GWS line-up.
The likes of Curtly Hampton, Adam Kennedy and Nick Haynes shone in the backline against the Saints, while Tom Bugg and Dylan Shiel led a midfield group that was well on top for most of the match.
Shane Mumford also offers a huge presence around the ground and Cameron said the veterans were having the desired effect.
"Heath Shaw and Josh Hunt have really helped the defenders out," he said.
"Curtly and Adam Kennedy are third-year players and we expect them to make some sort of impact this year.
"You can see they're starting to fulfil their potential and still have a way to go, but Heath and Josh have no doubt helped them immensely.
"And you know what you're going to get from Shane (Mumford). He's a big, aggressive bull, which is what we needed, especially around our young mids, and his follow-up work is terrific."
The Giants also used the NAB Challenge's supergoal rule to their advantage, helping them to blow the game open in the second term, when they registered five of the nine-pointers.
Granted some of them came courtesy of some lucky bounces through empty goal squares but Cameron insisted they hadn't been practicing such kicks at training.
"No, we were sitting in the box just thinking it was one of those unique things," he said with a grin.
"To have seven supergoals was pretty unique and I think Dylan Shiel's had three, so good luck to his local club and the $1500 worth of footies they’re getting.
"But it definitely wasn't a plan."
