GWS Giants gun recruit Shane Mumford has been announced as the ambassador for the Penrith Swans junior club.
It is part of a program to provide a link to each area within western Sydney.
“It’s there for us to get out and promote the game of AFL out in the western suburbs, and try and grow the game in this rugby heartland,” Mumford said.
“The more kids we can attract to jump on board the Giants, the more loyal fans we’ll have for many more years to come.”
He is looking forward to helping the local juniors develop.
“I’m looking forward to meeting some new people in a club that I haven’t been to yet,” he said.
“The more I can help out and try and guide the young kids towards maybe an AFL career down the track, the better.”
Mumford moved across from the Sydney Swans at the end of last season.
“I’m definitely enjoying my time here at the Giants,” he said.
“Especially now that we’re in the new facilities – they are state-of-the-art compared to what they had the last few years,” he said.
“Something I’ve had to work on this year was going from being a middle-aged player at the Swans to now being one of the old guys.
“A new challenge for me personally now is being in the leadership group.
“It is going to force me to become more of a leader and be a lot more outspoken than I have been in the past.
“You can see the excitement around the club building, we’re doing a lot of things right and hopefully we’ll be able to build over the next few years into a big force in the AFL.”