'We'll be a powerhouse': Giants boss on possible name change, big list calls and CEO hunt

GREATER Western Sydney chair Tim Reed says the Giants are aiming to defy gravity like perennial challengers Geelong, saying he is certain his club will become a "powerhouse".

The Giants have had a mixed start to this season, with a 3-5 record coming after a spate of injuries to key players.

This season already shapes as a year of change, with chief executive Dave Matthews announcing last month that 2026 would be his last at the helm.

In a rare interview, Reed, who took over as the club's second-ever president ahead of the 2024 season, told AFL.com.au the Giants are past their "start-up" beginnings and after playing finals in eight of the past 10 years, are aiming to move into their next evolution in their 15th year in the competition.

"We have been through a period of what I'll call a start-up phase. My hat's off to Dave, to Tony Shepherd, who was our inaugural chair and who drove through a lot of that period. And to everyone who was there, because the effort to get a boat out of the water is greater than it is to continue to either maintain pace or to add velocity," Reed told AFL.com.au.

"They've done that heavy lifting and they always deserve to be recognised for that. But what I'd really like to see from here is now a program of just continual renewal and continued upgrade right across the club. Because if you look at clubs like Geelong, that's how you have continued success.

"It's how you continue to defy gravity and make the finals year after year after year, through that process of continued renewal."

Although Reed said the Giants' imprint in their region would take decades, he is bullish on the future of the club as one of the AFL's leaders.

"There's four NRL teams and there's two A-League teams in our region, but we definitively have the best product in the biggest market and we will be a powerhouse club," he said.

"My responsibility, that of the board and leaders within the club at the moment, is just to make sure that we continue to progress towards that. (Former AFL CEO) Andrew Demetriou said in the press recently that starting the Giants was always going to be a multi-decade, multi-generational project and it will be. But 100 per cent, we will be a powerhouse club."

In an expansive discussion with AFL.com.au, Reed spoke about the Giants' CEO search, his views on Opening Round, the club's list and the future of it's name.

CEO SEARCH UNDERWAY

The Giants will be engaging a recruitment firm to help in their search of Matthews' replacement to steer the club into the future.

Matthews has been involved in early discussions in helping to find his successor after 14 years, with Reed saying landing the right person would be his board's biggest decision.

"Dave is the longest serving CEO of any of the club CEOs. He knows the AFL backwards. He would bleed orange if you cut him open, he is a Giant at heart. It's going to be a huge decision for the board and a big change for the club," he said.

"We will be thorough. We will leave no stone unturned, but we'll get moving immediately such that a) we can a give ourselves the maximum amount of time, but b) to make sure there is good time for transition while Dave's still in place."

Giants football boss Jason McCartney is viewed as a potential contender, having been linked as a possible future chief executive and targeted through other clubs' processes, while former GWS executive James Avery has also been linked.

Reed said it isn't paramount that a 'football person' is given the job, and he has an expectation that there will be a "phenomenal field" of candidates.

"I think having no idea about the product, having no idea about football, would be a challenge to see how that person is going to fit in. But that doesn't mean that they have to be, in inverted commas, a football person. We're going to search broadly," he said.

He added internal candidates would be considered.

"Jase is a phenomenal part of our leadership team. He's worked really closely with Dave over a good number of years. But the decision for him is going to be a broader one as to where he would like his career to go. It's certainly a conversation that I'd love to have," Reed said.

The Giants operate on a rolling three-year plan at the end of every year, focusing on their financials, list, membership and consumer lens with the same timeframe, meaning the next CEO will not be asked to "start from scratch" and set out a long-term vision.

'WE'RE NOT A FEEDER CLUB'

This year is a critical juncture for the club's list. Three of its veterans – Toby Greene, Jesse Hogan and Stephen Coniglio – are out of contract. Lachie Whitfield's mega deal expires at the end of next year, while Josh Kelly is being paid close to $2 million this season as part of the shaping of his contract that has seen the Giants back-end some of his deal.

Next year, Tom Green and Lachie Ash will hit free agency and be sought-after around the competition, with the likes of Aaron Cadman and Finn Callaghan spearheading their next wave alongside Phoenix Gothard, Harvey Thomas, Joe Fonti and more youth to emerge.

The Giants have traditionally built through the draft and picked off bargain buys from rival clubs, including last off-season with Melbourne midfielder Clayton Oliver joining the club.

Reed, who has been on the board since 2015 and is formerly the President of the Business Council of Australia, said the club is "happy with where the list is at" and that the previous struggle of being a preferred destination for players weighing up their future is changing.

"That has been a challenge. But I also think that the narrative on that is starting to change a bit. When you talk to the players that have been in other clubs and come to our club, the general comment is, 'I wish I'd done it sooner'," he said.

"That is a tribute to the playing group. They're a very tight playing group and a really cohesive one. We need to continue to amplify that message that we actually are a destination club.

"We're not a feeder club and we're not just in the middle ranks."

SLOW STARTS AWAY FROM HOME

In three of Adam Kingsley's four seasons as coach, the Giants have started the season slowly. This year, after beating Hawthorn in Opening Round at Engie Stadium, they have recorded only two more wins – against Richmond and North Melbourne.

Long-term injuries to key players such as Green, Kelly, Sam Taylor, Darcy Jones and more have hurt.

And because of a lack of access to their home ground due to the Easter Show, they have already played at six venues this season, including Canberra in round seven against North Melbourne and People First Stadium in Sunday night's loss to Gold Coast. This Saturday's clash against Essendon will see the Giants return to their home ground for the first time since round two.

Reed admits the disruption isn't ideal, but says the club has reduced it as best as possible.

"We have worked with the stadium management to reduce the amount of time that we're out. It's a couple of weeks less than it used to be a few years ago, which is good," he said.

"It's an opportunity for us to play in Canberra and we love playing in Canberra. We love our home games down there.

"There's not a lot else that we can do. It does put a travel load on the team. But Adam Kingsley's view is that we love playing footy and we'll play anywhere, anytime. We take an attitude in that we're going to win in all of those circumstances. We've just got to deal with it."

BRANDING CHANGE UP?

Is Greater Western Sydney's name here to stay?

The club has previously considered whether it should be solely known as the Giants or a different name due to a lack of recognition of the 'Greater Western Sydney' area.

Reed said changing or shortening their official name was something that would again be on their radar, but that their best branding asset will be on the field.

"It's something that we might contemplate in time," he said.

"The most important part of a brand is what it stands for. And whether we're known as the Giants, whether we're known as GWS, whatever the word is, I think the most important thing is what it represents and that's the brand of footy we play. It's the club that we are. It's how we embrace our members and really create a spirit of something that is bigger and greater than the individual parts.

"No one who you ask who lives in Sydney says 'I live in Greater Western Sydney'. It's not a term that people naturally identify with, so it brings no benefit to the club in terms of a brand.

"But equally the more important thing to me is that we're known for playing exciting footy. We're the team other fans like to watch if they're going to watch a second game on the weekend because they know that fast moving tsunami that we bring. That's more important to me than what the acronym is."

OPENING ROUND COMPROMISE

Whilst other clubs slammed Opening Round, Greater Western Sydney were fans. It will not be in next year's fixture, with the AFL set to return to all teams playing in the first round of the season.

But Reed said having a focus on the northern markets to kick off the year is significant for the four clubs, and that instead of Opening Round the Giants are hopeful of "early strong fixturing" for the start of next year as a compromise.

"The benefit of Opening Round to clubs like ours shouldn't be underestimated. It put the spotlight of the football world on the northern states and these are the states of growth," Reed said.

"They're the states where momentum probably matters more. We get our members renewing at the start of the year. We get lots of people into Engie Stadium, and there's still lots of the season left for them to come back and to really enjoy the footy.

"I won't speak on behalf of the other northern clubs, but in talking to their presidents, that's something that is a shared perspective for those of us that are really trying to drive growth.

"If we're not going to do Opening Round in the way that it was originally conceived, then the need for strong fixturing remains. Those are the conversations for us to have with the AFL. If we want to drive growth, then we've got to be creative and we've got to invest in growth."

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