Source :- PERTH NOW NEWS
GWS youngster Josaia Delana jokes he only needed to fly just a few friends and family out of Fiji for his AFL debut against Sydney.
Given two days’ notice to rally the troops, Western Sydney teenager Delana had a support crew of 80 to watch his first senior game in the Giants’ 14-point derby loss in front of a near-capacity SCG.
Among those who made the four-hour flight across the South Pacific Ocean were Delana’s grandmothers.
The 18-year-old had jested in the lead-up to the derby about bringing all of Fiji to the Sydney venue, with his family asking for at least 150 tickets to the in-demand clash.
“Yeah, got a couple of tickets for the family,” Delana told AAP.
“I found out on Friday at 3 o’clock. It was pretty chaotic from letting my family know and then friends and extended friends and etcetera – plenty of phone calls and messages.
“I was very fortunate. A lot of my family were already in Sydney and I only needed to fly a couple of friends out of the country.
“It was really good to go out there and represent myself, my community and my family.”
Small forward Delana was limited to three touches as the Swans defence kept proven stars Jesse Hogan and Darcy Jones to one major apiece, and Toby Greene goalless.
Jake Stringer, who started the game as a substitute, kicked three goals.
Delana showed glimpses of his pressure game from his rugby league background, laying five tackles to accompany star GWS onballer Finn Callaghan’s equal-game-leading eight.
“Dad put me in league growing up and just tackling the big boys, it’s pretty easy when it’s just (Isaac) Heeney and all that,” Delana said.
“I’m like, ‘Oh, these boys are nothing compared to when I was younger’.
“I just love the hunt and the drive to go and tackle.
“I wasn’t too focused on the other team, but just the adrenaline running out with the boys and seeing 40,000 out there.
“I was just screaming.”
The eighth-placed Giants (4-4) will look to stop their slide down the ladder when they take on Geelong (5-3) at GMHBA Stadium on Sunday.
“We’ll just to continue to focus on ourselves and work towards next week,” Delana said.
“We had this same patch last season. Not that I was a part of it, but I’m familiar with it.
“It’s very early in the season, and we will turn it around.”
