We all expected a spicy Sydney derby.
We all anticipated Toby Greene and Tom Papley to be central in any scuffles.
But this cheeky yet blunt dig from Greene at half-time caught Fox Footy commentators off-guard.
FOX FOOTY, available on Kayo Sports, is the only place to watch every match of every round in the 2025 Toyota AFL Premiership Season LIVE in 4K, with no ad-breaks during play. New to Kayo? Get your first month for just $1. Limited-time offer.
With the Swans leading by 28 points, Greene was interviewed by Fox Footy’s Ben Dixon as both teams walked off ENGIE Stadium for the half-time break.
After conceding his Giants were soundly beaten in contest and workrate in the first half, Greene was asked about what Papley was saying to Giants players in the wake of Sydney’s second-quarter run of goals.
“He’s looking overweight, so we’ll see how he goes in the second half,” Greene told Fox Footy before walking away from Dixon.
Post-match, Sydney coach Dean Cox was asked what he made of Greene’s eyebrow-raising comments.
“I wasn’t sure about that,” Cox began. “I don’t really listen to other players during half-time interviews.
“There’s always a bit of cheek between some of our players and their players — that’s always happened — so, I’m not sure what he said.”
Probed specifically on whether he had an issue with Greene’s words, Cox said: “I think people, when they speak in the media, generally are really calculated to opposition players. Some players push the boundaries a little bit — Toby’s probably one of those.”
McLean caught in nasty clash | 00:45
During the broadcast, Fox Footy caller Dwayne Russell could hardly believe what he’d just heard.
“I wouldn’t be going far, huge second half to come … what about Toby Greene?! ‘He’s looking overweight’ — that’ll get back. In fact they’ll be playing that to him, Tom Papley, during the half-time break,” Russell told Fox Footy.
Triple premiership Lion Alastair Lynch reported just before the start of the third quarter that Greene’s comments had been passed on to Papley during the half-time break.
Swans skipper Callum Mills was interviewed shortly afterwards, declaring how much he loved having Papley back in the side.
“How good is he? I think our fans love watching him and we love playing with him. He’s an energy bunny,” Mills told Fox Footy.
It was a thought echoed by Lynch.
“He had the mad eyes going, he was chasing after Toby Greene, looking for Tom Green,” Lynch told Fox Footy.
Greene on a RAMPAGE in opening quarter | 00:41
“He just adds so much energy to this team and outside what he does with the ball, he adds plenty of spice and plenty of passion to this team.”
Fellow analyst Jonathan Brown added: “It’s like a cage match, one on four at WrestleMania. He’s taking them all on, the chief protagonist.”
It came after a spicy first half between the Swans and Giants, with an array of scuffles and incidents.