The AFL wants to ‘grow the game’ in Sydney. But is it walking the walk?

April 14, 2026 — 3:30pm

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AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon rolled into Sydney last month with a 10-metre tall Sherrin in tow, plonked on the grounds of Rosehill Public School, ready to spread the gospel to the non-believers.

Regular parishioners (read Victorians) cannot stand the idea of Opening Round, and how it mangles the AFL fixture, but Dillon was in town to explain why putting on big games in Sydney and Brisbane was so important to the mission of growing the game in the northern states.

“The focus on NSW and Queensland is really helpful for awareness and getting off to a fast start with the momentum,” he told SEN.

But what’s the point of generating momentum – and going to all the trouble of setting up Opening Round, and copping all the brickbats from the traditionalists south of the border – if the AFL is just going to let it run out?

On Friday night, the Swans will host the Giants in the 32nd edition of the Sydney derby, a rivalry that has developed genuine intensity and animosity in the past few years. It rarely fails to deliver: the last one involved a sledge from Toby Greene to Tom Papley about his........

© The Sydney Morning Herald