The Geelong West Giants were born out of a merger of the Geelong West St Peters Football Club (the Roosters, also known as "Red West") and Geelong West Sporting Club (the Cheetahs, also known as "Blue West") in 2016. At the time, both clubs were struggling with periods of minimal on-field success.[3]
Initially, the "Giants" name was to be used as part of a rebrand by the Roosters to align with Australian Football League (AFL) club Greater Western Sydney Giants, given the similarities between the Roosters' abbreviation, "GWSP", and the AFL Giants' abbreviation, GWS. Officials from the Roosters met with officials from GWS in July 2016 to facilitate the move, with the potential to incorporate the Cheetahs into the new club should it be agreed upon by all parties.[4]
Later that month, members of the Roosters voted unanimously to rebrand the club under the new moniker and to continue fielding teams in their current respective leagues, the GFNL and GDFNL. Two weeks, the merger became a formality as an "overwhelming majority" of Cheetahs members voted to join forces with the Roosters.[2]
^Nash, Ollie (20 May 2022). "Geelong West faces a tough month ahead in the GDFL". Geelong Advertiser. Archived from the original on 4 August 2024. Retrieved 4 August 2024. Geelong West co-captain Josh Viney says the club is excited by its 6-0 start to the GDFL season but admits the next three rounds will show the side where it's at.
^Tigani, Alex (23 February 2018). "TOP 50 MOMENTS OF THE GDFL H&A SEASON (FULL LIST)". Geelong & District Football Netball League. Archived from the original on 14 March 2018. Retrieved 4 August 2024. Geelong West captain Scott Jervies was also an omission due to a flu (he passed on the captaincy to interleague defender Paddy Dwyer).
^van Oorschot, Vinnie (3 June 2023). "Giants personnel on brink of return". Times News Group. Archived from the original on 4 August 2024. Retrieved 4 August 2024. Despite being a natural backman, Giants captain Justin Carey has taken on the scoring load for Geelong West the past few weeks.