The Greater Western Sydney Giants have appointed midfielder Stephen Coniglio as captain for the 2020 AFL season.
It marks the first time that the club have appointed a stand-alone captain during their brief history, with the 25-year-old taking over from co-captains Phil Davis and Callan Ward.
The pair believed that it was the right time to issue in a change in leadership in order to take the club to the next level.
"This is something both Cal and I have thought a great deal about,” Davis said via the club's website.
“We believe the time is right for a new leader to take our club into the next phase.
“I’m incredibly proud to have been an inaugural captain of this club, an organisation we’ve helped build from the ground up.
“I’ve learnt so much and grown incredibly with this title and I’m so thankful to have been given the opportunity," Ward added.
“I’m so excited by what Stephen can offer as captain and look forward to running out beside him in 2020 and beyond.”
An historic day for the club with the unveiling of a new captain, Stephen Coniglio! #NeverSurrender
— GWS GIANTS (@GWSGIANTS) December 3, 2019
Coniglio felt honoured about the appointment, becoming the fourth player in club history to be named captain after Davis, Ward and inaugural co-captain Luke Power.
“It’s a huge honour to be named captain of this great club,” Coniglio said.
“This club is my home and the people here are my family.
“I’ve learnt so much from Cal, Phil and the entire leadership group and will no doubt continue to lean on them for support and guidance as we move forward.
“I’m just so excited by what we’re doing here and where we can build to both as a team and a club and I look forward to leading us into that future.”
Coniglio arrived at the club in 2011 via pick 2 in their inaugural AFL draft, with the Swan Districts junior signing a seven-year extension with the Giants in August.