Steve Johnson was a magician on the AFL field so perhaps it is fitting he has helped conjure a derby final as the only man to have set foot in GWS and Sydney’s coaches boxes.
If not for COVID-19, Johnson would likely be plotting the Giants’ demise in Launceston on Saturday.
Yet GWS were suddenly in the market for an assistant coach because Lenny Hayes and Brad Miller wanted breaks after a taxing 2020, while football-department cuts meant the Swans couldn’t offer the financial certainty of their rivals.
And so, having helped set the platform for a youth-fuelled rebuild at the SCG, Johnson returned to the club he finished an illustrious 293-game playing career with.
In unpacking the Giants’ return to finals it would be simplistic to point to one factor.
But it is clear Johnson’s influence has been immense, even on those outside a potent forward line that was widely tipped to struggle without Jeremy Cameron.
“He’s been huge, so good for us,” GWS games record holder and former captain Callan Ward told AAP.
Shane Mumford, who first came across Johnson’s capacity to not only entertain but educate as the goal-kicking wizard tried to teach tricks while banished to Geelong’s VFL side in early 2007, calls the assistant coach a genius.
Harry Himmelberg dubs Johnson’s approach unique, while Jesse Hogan’s take on the “extremely wise and knowledgeable” mentor will ring true with countless AFL fans.
“If everyone had his footy brain, the game would be pretty exciting to watch,” Hogan said.
Johnson’s body stopped getting through four quarters but the confidence, competitiveness and cheek that infuriated rivals yet bedazzled teammates is still there.
A YouTube video titled ‘Gary Ablett vs Steve Johnson challenge‘ from 2010 shows the icons trading trick shots, trying to outdo each other while finessing a Sherrin around corners and into wheelie bins.
Johnson remains in his element during similar showdowns at GWS; watch enough training and you will likely see a friendly wager and confected challenge.
“He almost acts like a little kid when it comes to games – table tennis, throwing a ball, hitting a target – whatever it is he wants to win,” Ward said.
“Everything he does, you can tell he’s having fun.”
The veteran midfielder cited an example from three-quarter time last Saturday, when the game and Giants’ finals hopes were in the balance.
“He’s very funny. High stakes, high pressure and he just comes up to me and says ‘I would have hit you there!’. I had to turn my mind back to work out what he was talking about,” Ward said.
“At one point I’d been on for a very dangerous kick into the corridor.
“To hit me would have been near impossible but Stevie was certain he could do it.
“Having fun is one of the most important things about footy that people seem to forget.”
It is particularly true in the COVID-19 era, when players have never had more rules to follow.
“That enjoyment factor is very important,” Johnson told AAP.
“That’s one thing I learned probably more than anything in last year’s hub with the Swans.
“We weren’t winning a lot of games but the fun and energy was infectious.’
The 38-year-old’s success obviously extends beyond larrikinism and footy IQ.
Johnson was offered a coaching gig at GWS upon retiring in 2017 but shrewdly turned it down, wanting to learn “from another great club”.
The biggest change Mumford noticed when his former teammate returned from a three-year stint with Sydney was improved communication skills.
“I’m not backward in coming forward with my opinion if we’re doing a training drill and I think someone could do better,” Johnson said.
“I’m learning my craft and getting a better understanding of when to give a player a cuddle or give hard, strong feedback.”
Mumford remains the only player to represent both Sydney and GWS in a derby but Johnson is uniquely positioned to detail the inner workings of both clubs – and coaches Leon Cameron and John Longmire.
“I wouldn’t want to go into too much depth,” the three-time premiership star said, asked to compare Cameron and Longmire.
The 2007 Norm Smith medallist is more forthright when quizzed about Toby Greene and Lance Franklin, among the select few to share his own flair and fierce competitive streak.
Greene’s evolution from the “cocky little inside midfielder” that Johnson first encountered in 2012 has been stark.
“I got to the Giants in 2016 and couldn’t believe the athlete he was … and the work rate, he’s one of the most professional trainers I’ve ever seen,” Johnson said.
“I’ve come back and his leadership has grown. He goes out of his way to help others get better, pass on knowledge, fast track their progress.
“He’ll sit at a computer and go through a young player’s edits with them, speak about different situations. He’ll come to me and say ‘is there anything I can help with?’.”
Franklin was injured for much of Johnson’s time at the Swans but still made a huge impression.
“What makes him such a good player is not too dissimilar to Toby. He’s obviously a physical specimen … and that ultimate competitor,” Johnson said.
AAP
