Stand-in GWS Giants captain Toby Greene has lifted his side to its first win of the season, a 30-point victory over the Collingwood Magpies at the MCG.
The star forward booted five goals in a match winning display to help the Giants secure the 14.6 (90) to 9.6 (60) upset win.
After a tight start to the match, Jeremy Finlayson drilled a long goal after the quarter time siren to give the Giants a six-point lead at the first break.
The game opened up in the second term as Greene started to impose himself on the contest with three goals in the period giving his side a 10-point lead at half time.
Greene picked up where he left off in the third quarter, kicking another two goals as the Giants opened up a 26-point lead. However, the Magpies hit back late in the term to reduce the margin to 15 points heading into the last quarter.
In a see-sawing start to the last, the Magpies twice got back to within 10 points and threatened a come from behind victory. However, the Giants steadied and two goals each to Finlayson and Josh Kelly in the quarter made sure the Giants got on the board in 2021.
With the Giants under pressure coming into this game and with a long injury list, they needed their experienced players to stand up, and that’s exactly what they did.
Greene was undeniably the star for the Giants with his five goals, but he received plenty of help from their experienced brigade. Callan Ward was enormous with 37 disposals while Tim Taranto had 34 touches and Lachie Ash continued his strong season with 28 possessions. Finlayson was recalled for the first time this season and had a huge impact up forward, booting four goals while Kelly also chipped in with two goals and 22 possessions.
34-year-old Shane Mumford was also playing his first game for the year and did a great job negating Brodie Grundy’s impact in the ruck.
The Giants now head back to Sydney to face the undefeated Swans at the SCG on Saturday afternoon.
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