Sydney Derby (AFL)

The Sydney Derby or also known as "The Battle of the bridge"[1][2][3] is an Australian rules football local derby match between the two Sydney based Australian Football League (AFL) clubs, the Sydney Swans and the Greater Western Sydney Giants. As of 13 August 2020, the head to head is in favour of the Sydney Swans by twelve wins to seven.

This article is about the Australian Football League Sydney Derby. For other uses, see Sydney Derby (disambiguation).

Sydney Derby (AFL)
Pre-game at Sydney Derby I
First meeting24 March 2012
Latest meeting13 August 2020
Next meeting2021
Statistics
Meetings total19
All-time series (AFL only) Sydney Swans 12 wins
GWS Giants 7 wins
Largest victorySydney Swans (129 points; Round 16, 2013)

History
The Sydney Cricket Ground as seen during the 2018 second elimination final (Sydney Derby XVI)

The first Sydney Derby was held on 24 March 2012 and attracted a then-Derby record crowd of 38,203. This game was also the first game of the 2012 AFL season and the first AFL premiership match for the Giants. Fielding a very young and inexperienced team, the Giants only won three games in their first two years in the competition and failed to win any Derby games. This led to declining attendances at Sydney Derbies.

The Giants won their first Derby in the opening clash of 2014. Later in the year The Daily Telegraph noted there was 'genuine dislike off the field' between the clubs.[4] Over the subsequent years they progressively moved up the AFL ladder, getting closer to the Swans - who were premiership contenders during this time. The opening Derby of 2015 attracted a crowd of over 30,000 - the first time this had occurred since the 1st Derby. The 2016 Derbies were both well attended - the Swans home game had the second highest attendance in fixture history. The Giants home game was the 10th Sydney Derby. With both teams vying for a top four spot at the end of the season, the game was described as a blockbuster.[5] In the lead up to the game The Daily Telegraph published an article analysing the rivalry. Though noting that Sydney's surprise recruitment of Lance Franklin created some animosity between the clubs, the article went on to say 'What the rivalry needs is a flash point. ... Something to make it clear that when the Swans and Giants meet there is real feeling. Not the slightly awkward yet mutually respectful détente that currently exists'.[6] After the game, the paper declared that an altercation between Steve Johnson and Lance Franklin 'was the moment of sporting theatre that inspired a rivalry to truly ignite'.[7] It was the first AFL game at Sydney Showground Stadium to be declared a sell-out and was Foxtel's highest rating program of the day, second highest rating twilight match of the season and the second-most watched Sydney Derby - behind only the inaugural clash.[8][9]

The first finals series match between the teams was on 10 September 2016, when the Swans hosted the Giants in the 1st Qualifying Final of the 2016 season. The Giants defeated the Swans by 36 points, an historic victory considering it was the Giants' first win in a finals series match and was played before a derby record crowd of 60,222.[10][11] The two teams met again in a finals match in the 2018 second elimination final; it was the first time the sides met in a knock-out match.[12] The Giants registered their biggest ever victory over the Swans, winning by 49 points in front of a crowd of 40,350 – the largest for a Sydney Derby at the Sydney Cricket Ground.[13]

In August 2020, the two teams contested a Sydney Derby at Optus Stadium in Perth due to concerns over a second wave of coronavirus cases in Sydney.[14]

Venues

The two venues usually used for the Sydney Derby are the Sydney Cricket Ground and Sydney Showground Stadium. The first three Sydney Derbies and the 2016 finals series derby were held at Stadium Australia. Sydney Derby XIX was played at Optus Stadium in Perth.[14]

Results
Year Date Rd Home Team Score Away Team Score Ground Crowd Winner H2H
I 2012 24/03 1 GWS Giants 5.7 (37) Sydney Swans 14.16 (100) Stadium Australia 38,203 Sydney by 63 +1
II 30/06 14 Sydney Swans 19.18 (132) GWS Giants 5.8 (38) Stadium Australia 22,565 Sydney by 94 +2
III 2013 30/03 1 GWS Giants 11.10 (76) Sydney Swans 16.10 (106) Stadium Australia 23,690 Sydney by 30 +3
IV 14/07 16 Sydney Swans 24.27 (171) GWS Giants 5.12 (42) SCG 21,757 Sydney by 129 +4
V 2014 15/03 1 GWS Giants 15.9 (99) Sydney Swans 9.13 (67) Showground 17,102 GWS by 32 +3
VI 28/06 15 Sydney Swans 15.16 (106) GWS Giants 8.12 (60) SCG 27,778 Sydney by 46 +4
VII 2015 18/04 3 Sydney Swans 16.15 (111) GWS Giants 12.18 (90) SCG 31,966 Sydney by 21 +5
VIII 22/08 21 GWS Giants 6.8 (44) Sydney Swans 20.13 (133) Showground 19,507 Sydney by 89 +6
IX 2016 09/04 3 Sydney Swans 14.9 (93) GWS Giants 10.8 (68) SCG 37,045 Sydney by 25 +7
X 12/06 12 GWS Giants 15.15 (105) Sydney Swans 9.9 (63) Showground 21,541 GWS by 42 +6
XI 10/09 QF Sydney Swans 7.13 (55) GWS Giants 12.19 (91) Stadium Australia 60,222 GWS by 36 +5
XII 2017 22/02 5 Sydney Swans 9.9 (63) GWS Giants 15.15 (105) SCG 34,824 GWS by 42 +4
XIII 15/07 17 GWS Giants 12.11 (83) Sydney Swans 14.12 (96) Showground 21,924 Sydney by 13 +5
XIV 2018 07/04 3 Sydney Swans 16.7 (103) GWS Giants 12.15 (87) SCG 34,711 Sydney by 16 +6
XV 18/08 22 GWS Giants 8.12 (60) Sydney Swans 11.14 (80) Showground 21,433 Sydney by 20 +7
XVI 08/09 EF Sydney Swans 4.6 (30) GWS Giants 10.19 (79) SCG 40,350 GWS by 49 +6
XVII 2019 27/04 6 Sydney Swans 12.7 (79) GWS Giants 18.12 (120) SCG 29,780 GWS by 41 +5
XVIII 03/08 20 GWS Giants 12.11 (83) Sydney Swans 12.9 (81) Showground 16,116 GWS by 2 +4
XIX 2020 13/08 12 Sydney Swans 10.6 (66) GWS Giants 3.7 (25) Optus Stadium 6,464 Sydney by 41 +5

Source: Click here

Timeline
SYD
GWS
SYD
GWS
SYD
GWS
SYD
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2012
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2013
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2014
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2015
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2016
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2017
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2018
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2019
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2020
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2021

Brett Kirk Medal
Sydney junior and former Swans captain Kieren Jack holds the record for most Brett Kirk Medals (3).

The Brett Kirk Medal is awarded to the player deemed to be the best player on the ground after the match. It is named after Sydney Swans AFL premiership player Brett Kirk, who was born and raised in country New South Wales and played junior football for North Albury.

Year Match Medalist Team
2012 I Josh Kennedy Sydney Swans
II Kieren Jack Sydney Swans
2013 III Kieren Jack (2) Sydney Swans
IV Nick Malceski Sydney Swans
2014 V Callan Ward GWS Giants
VI Kieren Jack (3) Sydney Swans
2015 VII Dan Hannebery Sydney Swans
VIII Josh Kennedy (2) Sydney Swans
2016 IX Luke Parker Sydney Swans
X Heath Shaw GWS Giants
2017 XII Shane Mumford GWS Giants
XIII Lance Franklin Sydney Swans
Callan Ward (2) GWS Giants
2018 XIV Callum Mills Sydney Swans
XV Lance Franklin (2) Sydney Swans
2019 XVII Tim Taranto GWS Giants
XVIII Jacob Hopper GWS Giants
2020 XIX Luke Parker (2) Sydney Swans

NOTE: No medal was awarded in Sydney Derby XI & Sydney Derby XVI due to both matches being a finals match.

Statistics

Below are listed statistics from the Sydney Derby only.

Highest scores
ClubRoundGoalsBehindsTotal
Sydney Swans 2013, Round 16 24 27 171
Sydney Swans 2015, Round 21 20 13 133
Sydney Swans 2012, Round 14 19 18 132
GWS Giants 2019, Round 6 18 12 120
Sydney Swans 2015, Round 3 16 15 111

Lowest scores
ClubRoundGoalsBehindsTotal
GWS Giants 2020, Round 12 3 7 25
Sydney Swans 2018, Elimination Final 4 6 30
GWS Giants 2012, Round 1 5 7 37
GWS Giants 2012, Round 14 5 8 38
GWS Giants 2013, Round 16 5 12 42

Biggest wins
ClubRoundWinning scoreLosing scoreMargin
Sydney Swans 2013, Round 16 24.27 (171) 5.12 (42) 129
Sydney Swans 2012, Round 14 19.18 (132) 5.8 (38) 94
Sydney Swans 2015, Round 21 20.13 (133) 6.8 (44) 89
Sydney Swans 2012, Round 1 14.16 (100) 5.7 (37) 63
GWS Giants 2018, Elimination Final 10.19 (79) 4.6 (30) 49

Smallest wins
ClubRoundWinning scoreLosing scoreMargin
GWS Giants 2019, Round 20 12.11 (83) 12.9 (81) 2
Sydney Swans 2017, Round 17 14.12 (96) 12.11 (83) 13
Sydney Swans 2018, Round 3 16.7 (103) 12.15 (87) 16
Sydney Swans 2018, Round 22 11.14 (80) 8.12 (60) 20
Sydney Swans 2015, Round 3 16.15 (111) 12.18 (90) 21

Player statistics

Players highlighted in green are still on AFL lists for either Sydney or Greater Western Sydney.

Goals in one game
PlayerClub DateGoalsBehindsTotal
Lance Franklin Sydney Swans 2015, Round 3 5 5 35
Lance Franklin Sydney Swans 2018, Round 22 5 4 34
Lance Franklin Sydney Swans 2014, Round 15 5 3 33
Kurt Tippett Sydney Swans 2015, Round 21 5 3 33
Jeremy Cameron GWS Giants 2016, Qualifying Final 4 4 28
Lance Franklin Sydney Swans 2017, Round 17 4 4 28
Toby Greene GWS Giants 2016, Round 12 4 2 26
Issac Heeney Sydney Swans 2019, Round 20 4 2 26
Lance Franklin Sydney Swans 2016, Round 3 4 1 25
Toby Greene GWS Giants 2017, Round 5 4 1 25
Jeremy Cameron GWS Giants 2014, Round 1 4 0 24
Issac Heeney Sydney Swans 2015, Round 3 4 0 24
Stephen Coniglio GWS Giants 2019, Round 6 4 0 24

Goal total
Lance Franklin has kicked the most goals for Sydney in Sydney Derby history (31).
PlayerClubGoalsBehindsAccuracyGamesGoals/Game
Jeremy Cameron GWS Giants 33 23 58.2% 16 2.13
Lance Franklin Sydney Swans 31 26 54.4% 11 2.81
Toby Greene GWS Giants 22 14 61.1% 14 1.57
Jonathon Patton GWS Giants 16 6 72.7% 11 1.45
Kieren Jack Sydney Swans 16 10 61.5% 16 1.00
Josh Kennedy Sydney Swans 16 11 59.3% 18 0.89
Tom Papley Sydney Swans 14 12 52.9% 10 1.56
Ben McGlynn Sydney Swans 14 4 77.8% 10 1.40
Kurt Tippett Sydney Swans 13 13 50.0% 8 1.63
Stephen Coniglio GWS Giants 13 3 81.3% 14 1.00

Disposals in one game
PlayerClubDateDisposals
Jarrad McVeigh Sydney Swans 2012, Round 14 37
Lachie Whitfield GWS Giants 2015, Round 3 37
Ryan O'Keefe Sydney Swans 2012, Round 14 36
Jarrad McVeigh Sydney Swans 2013, Round 16 35
Dan Hannebery Sydney Swans 2015, Round 3 35
Josh Kennedy Sydney Swans 2015, Round 21 35
Dan Hannebery Sydney Swans 2013, Round 16 34
Adam Treloar GWS Giants 2014, Round 1 34
Toby Greene GWS Giants 2019, Round 20 34
Kieren Jack Sydney Swans 2012, Round 14 33
Devon Smith GWS Giants 2015, Round 3 33
Luke Parker Sydney Swans 2018, Round 22 33
Dylan Shiel GWS Giants 2018, Round 22 33
Jacob Hopper GWS Giants 2019, Round 6 33

Derbies played
Player Club Games
Josh Kennedy Sydney Swans 18
Phil Davis GWS Giants 16
Kieren Jack Sydney Swans 16
Luke Parker Sydney Swans 16
Callan Ward GWS Giants 16
Jeremy Cameron GWS Giants 15
Dan Hannebery Sydney Swans 15
Heath Grundy Sydney Swans 15
Dylan Shiel GWS Giants 15
Lachie Whitfield GWS Giants 15
Toby Greene GWS Giants 14
Jarrad McVeigh Sydney Swans 14
Shane Mumford GWS & Sydney 14
Dane Rampe Sydney Swans 14

Brownlow votes
New South Wales native and AFL Premiership player/coach John Longmire holds the best winning percentage of any coach in Sydney Derby history (68.75%).

Brownlow Votes as of the end of the 2018 AFL season.

Player Club Votes H&A Average
Josh Kennedy Sydney Swans 14 15 0.93
Lance Franklin Sydney Swans 9 9 1.00
Shane Mumford GWS & Sydney 8 11 0.73
Kieren Jack Sydney Swans 7 13 0.54
Callan Ward GWS 6 14 0.43

Coach statistics

Coaches highlighted in green are the current head coach for either Sydney or Greater Western Sydney.

CoachClubYearsTotalWinsLossesPercent
John Longmire Sydney Swans 2012–present 19 12 7 65.83%
Leon Cameron GWS 2014–present 15 7 8 46.66%
Kevin Sheedy GWS 2012-2013 4 0 4 0.00%

Other Sydney Derbies

AFL Pre-Season results

Like both the "Western Derby" and the "Showdown" pre-season matches do not count towards the overall Sydney Derby results and statistics. However, The first ever match between the Greater Western Sydney Giants and the Sydney Swans occurred during the 2011 pre-season. To date three of the six fixtures have been held in either suburban or regional venues, as part of the restructured pre-season competition to see more matches being held in more non-traditional venues.

AFL Women's

In preparation for the 2017 launch of the AFL Women's competition, the AFL held 10 Exhibition Series matches during 2016. The only match held in Sydney featured both a women's side from the Greater Western Sydney Giants & the Sydney Swans, played as a curtain-raiser for the men's Sydney Derby IX.[15]

See also

References
  1. "Buddy Franklin stars as Swans outclass Giants in Sydney derby". theaustralian.com.au. The Australian. 9 April 2016. Retrieved 9 April 2016.
  2. Warren, Adrian. "Swans champ Adam Goodes takes a final bow". The New Daily. Retrieved 9 April 2016.
  3. Wu, Andrew. "Sydney Swans remain a top four team says Greater Western Sydney coach Leon Cameron". The Age. Retrieved 9 April 2016.
  4. Cordy, Neil (27 June 2014). "Just three years old, the Sydney Swans, GWS Giants rivalry is building into a classic". The Daily Telegraph.
  5. Horne, Ben (10 June 2016). "GWS Giants v Sydney Swans: Young players won't rely on talent to succeed". The Daily Telegraph.
  6. Hinds, Richard (9 June 2016). "Swans v GWS rivalry is building but yet to ignite, writes Richard Hinds". The Daily Telegraph.
  7. Horne, Ben (13 June 2016). "Steve Johnson's bump on Lance Franklin showed GWS is no longer everyone's second favourite team". The Daily Telegraph.
  8. Wu, Andrew (9 June 2016). "AFL 2016: Greater Western Sydney Giants want earlier home games for 2017". The Age.
  9. Horne, Ben (15 June 2016). "GWS Giants demand TV prime time exposure on Friday nights". The Daily Telegraph.
  10. "GWS Giants come of age to upset Sydney Swans in first qualifying final". News.com.au. 10 September 2016.
  11. "AFL lands NRL huge blow with bumper crowd for Sydney Swans v GWS Giants qualifying final". The Sydney Morning Herald. 10 September 2016.
  12. Wu, Andrew (26 August 2018). "Giants to meet Swans in finals after devil of a day against Demons". The Age. Retrieved 27 August 2018.
  13. De Silva, Chris (8 September 2018). "GWS Giants humiliate Sydney Swans in elimination final". Wide World of Sports. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
  14. Barrett, Damian (21 July 2020). "Footy every day: Check out the next four rounds of the AFL's fixture". AFL.com.au. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  15. http://www.sydneyswans.com.au/news/2016-04-06/women-to-take-centre-stage-ahead-of-derby
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