When people hear the name Toby Greene uttered, some have a visceral reaction, as though what he has done on the football field and the person he is has impacted them personally, and deeply in some way.
Chances are, it hasn’t, and he hasn’t, but in a society where it seems that people make a genuine attempt to be the most offended, most of the time, the reactions to Toby Greene don’t surprise me at all.
On Friday night, the GWS captain was in the middle of it all again. After he decided to introduce a prone Isaac Heeney to his forearm following an attempted tackle that resulted with him being fended off, he walked off the ground at the main break, pointed out that he believed Tom Papley was carrying a little too much weight.
Incredibly, some people, whilst halting their regular pearl-clutching for a moment, have demanded the AFL take action against him.
LO-f’n-L!
That he was correct in his assessment that the second half would be different only makes it funnier, as the Giants ran over the top of the Swans, effectively ending their season.
Papley had just three touches after Greene’s public sledge.
The leader of the Giants spoke his mind, and in an era where we all want characters but hate when characters say something a little out of line, the Helen Lovejoys of the world took offence.
Most normal people, however, didn’t, which was great to see.
They call Greene a thug, a grub, a stain on the industry… as though it is an unspoken competition to see who can come up with the worst moniker for him without stepping over the line, themselves. As we inch toward the twilight of Greene’s AFL career – he is now 31 years old – we find a footballer, and a man, who divides the footy world. In a time before he brushed past an umpire, Greene had seemingly commenced rehabilitating his image. He starred in the Bushfire Relief game and was photographed hanging out with other AFL personalities socially. The PR campaign was in full swing.
But with a slight bit of contact with an umpire, he was back to square one. The AFL’s bad boy was bad news once again, and all seemed right again. He put on the black hat – it fit so well.
And so it goes in 2025…
What is lost in the shock and horror every time he runs afoul of the AFL, or offends someone, is that he is a damn fine footballer. Spectacular at times, and able to see the game unfold slightly faster than everyone else, he looks like he is a step ahead of everyone else on the field. On his day, he can make even the best defender look foolish. Highly respected within the club that drafted him, nurtured him, and now boasts him as their marquee player, the Giants handed the captaincy over to him in recognition of how much he has given, and how much he loves the place. He has stuck fat with this team and remains the heartbeat of the club.
He will likely go down as the greatest Giant to play for the club in their relatively short history, but he’ll take quite a bit to knock him off that mantle.
Whilst there is no question Greene has been well remunerated for his loyalty, it must be remembered that over a period that has seen a truckload of stars leave the Giants, Greene’s commitment to the club has not wavered. Almost out-of-the-blue in 2021, he extended with the club until the end of 2026, even though he was already contracted until 2024.
That is commitment.
There was no testing the waters, no rumours of a possible departure. He was mature, he was unwavering, and he was all-in with the Giants. He is the soul of the club, through good, bad, and at times, brilliant.
In 2022, he had a delayed start to the season after the AFL appealed the decision by its own tribunal (which to me, equates to the boss stepping in and telling you you’re not doing the job they’re paying you for so they’ll have to do it themselves) to suspend him for three weeks. That was not enough for Big Gil and company – they wanted to make a statement, and what better player to use to make that statement than the player that most casual fans hate?
The appeals board did as they were supposed to and the suspension was increased to six weeks, meaning Greene missed the first five weeks of the 2022 year, essentially ruling him out of the running for All-Australian before he even got started.
Upon his return, Greene had an underrated season, held goalless just once en route to 37 goals for the year across 15 games. This included a blistering seven-goal blast against the old enemy, the Western Bulldogs. It was a stark reminder that for all the headlines and all the furore, at the heart of it all there was a magnificent player, capable of turning a game and finishing off an opposition in a matter of moments.
However, no matter how brilliant he is as a player, it seems as though Greene is destined to be remembered more for the aspects of his game that tripped over the line between what is fair and what warrants the attention of the match review officer.
Adding to the negative perception of Greene is an incident from 2014, where Greene was sued after an altercation with a bouncer at Zagames Caulfield restaurant when he was refused service. The victim claimed he was dragged down the stairs by Greene, punched, kicked, and struck with a crutch. He claimed he has experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder as well as a fractured finger, of all things.
Greene’s career is littered with highlights that rival the best the game has seen. He can kick goals from all angles, has flown to take mercurial marks, reads the play as well as anyone in the caper, and can move into the middle to become a difference-maker in the guts.
Irrespective of what you think of him, he is one of the stars of the game. Period.
Most will choose to remember Greene as a player who kicked Luke Dahlhaus in the face, and did something similar, collecting Aliir Aliir in the torso in contests for the footy. Others will point to his actions when he clawed at the face of Bulldogs captain, Marcus Bontempelli and then, did something akin to it a little while later to Lachie Neale, costing him a place in the Preliminary Final in 2019 through suspension.
Others will point to the suspension he received for brushing past umpire, Matt Stevic in 2021 and claim he has no discipline. That is only partially true – you have to have some discipline to play AFL footy – Greene just seems to struggle with absolute discipline. Passion overrides sense at times with him.
He has danced to the beat of his own drum since he entered the AFL and continues to do so on a weekly basis. Those within the GWS organisation speak of him with reverence. To them, he is the spark that has the potential to reignite the flame under the team and his elevation to the captaincy only reinforces the perception of him within the Giants.
Some claim the team has no heart. They say that the Giants are a soulless club without history.
To that, I say that the club has always had heart. They have always had a soul. They found them the moment they drafted Toby Greene.
At the time of writing, we are four games away from the 2025 finals series, and I am looking forward to seeing what Toby Greene can conjure. The Giants demonstrated against the Swans that their best footy is close to THE best footy, and if they get this forward line completely clicking as we tick down to September, this team is ready to contend for the flag.
Premiership captain, Toby Greene – whoever thought we’d see the day?
But has the ship well and truly sailed in terms of Toby Greene. Has the perception become reality for many football viewers? If we get dream ending to the 2025 season, and the Giants storm into the Grand Final, will he start to get the recognition a man of his talents deserves, or has he burnt too many bridges over the journey? One gets the feeling that we may be at the point where Toby Greene could save triplets from a burning building and detractors would criticise him for not running back in to get the cat. However, in the eyes of footy lovers, what he brings to the game is not easily duplicated.
Our game, as most sports are, is enhanced by characters. The sport draws people in – the players keep them coming back. Love him or hate him, Toby Greene is one of the genuine attractions in modern footy, even if you just want to see him to boo him. Every great hero needs a great villain, and Toby Greene has been wearing the black hat for years.
Even after his brief flirtation with popularity in 2020, he seems to once again have accepted the role of AFL villain.
He is a conundrum, an enigma, a flawed genius. But most of all, he Is THE current King of Superstar Villains in the game.
Long may he cause havoc. Long may he reign.
As always, massive thanks to those who support this work. You can see the amount of care that goes into it. I love footy, I love writing about it, and I hope you enjoy reading it. Without you, this whole thing falls over. Sincerely… thank you – HB
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