FORGED from more than a decade of nailbiting finishes, individual brilliance and occasional spite, the Sydney Derby is defined by a bruising, uncompromising brand of football.

Yet, at a children's footy camp in Sydney's east on Tuesday, two of the game's biggest stars share a laugh, briefly casting aside the fanfare and friction of the clash just three days away. 

Whether there is genuine hate between Sydney and Greater Western Sydney depends on who you ask, but on Tuesday morning, the co-founders of 5th Quarter Camps — Giants captain Toby Greene and Swans star Isaac Heeney — are simply close mates and business partners running drills for the next generation.

SYDNEY DERBY Get your seats to Swans v Giants

Despite their clubs' fierce on-field animosity, the pair's bond illustrates how the sporting landscape of Sydney can bridge the crosstown divide off the field, even as the rivalry threatens to reach boiling point on it.

Speaking to AFL.com.au, Greene described the state-based rivalry as one of the "strongest in the game".

But he said crossing paths with players from the Giants' arch rivals was simply part of being a long-term Sydneysider – even if that friendliness vanishes the moment they run out under the SCG lights on Friday night.

"It's good fun to be a part of, but after the game, I know a lot of the guys who've been in Sydney a long time. I'm obviously good friends with 'Heens' (Heeney) and a lot of the coaches at the Swans," he said.

"I know a lot of people there, but during the game, it's certainly heated, and it's good fun."

Heeney echoed those sentiments, while acknowledging that the physical stakes of the Sydney Derby are equally clear.

"On the footy field, we'll go as hard as we can, and if we can smack each other, we'll do that, but it's a great friendship outside," he said.

"These games are always emotionally driven. So, anything can happen. Both teams will want to be throwing the first punch."

He then added with a mischievous smile: "Not literally, obviously. Toby might! But no… we just know it's going to be on. It's always generally a cracking game that comes down to the wire."

During their last encounter, the atmosphere reached a fever pitch, particularly throughout a fiery opening half.

Greene and his firestarter counterpart at the Swans, Tom Papley, engaged in a fiery exchange following a goal – a confrontation that culminated in a televised half-time interview where Greene famously made a quip about Papley's fitness.

While Greene escaped sanction for the remark, he was hit with a one-match ban for striking his mate, Heeney, earlier in the match.

"I was probably too heated," Greene said with a grin when asked to recall the encounter.

"I got myself in trouble and did some silly things. So, I won't be trying to do that this year, you'd hope."

Despite the early volatility, the Giants channelled that energy into a clinical comeback. After trailing by 35 points in the second quarter, they unleashed a devastating third-term blitz, booting nine goals to one and never looking back.

"That's why he's their captain," Heeney said of Greene's influence on the turnaround.

"He got them going and got himself going in the second half, and whether it was a massive emotional drive, it got them over the line by a long way. They absolutely smacked us in the second half."

Despite that history, Greene insists he isn't looking for a scrap this time around.

Downplaying his reputation as a provocateur, he suggests that while the Sydney Derby naturally carries more feeling than a standard match, he no longer enters the arena with a plan to start fires.

"No, it's not something I go into a game anticipating or thinking about, and it's probably rarer these days for me," he said. 

"There's more feeling in these games than just your general game. But it's a good thing – it's good for footy. That's why people like watching these games and why we get a Friday night slot, which is great.

"Playing in the midfield now, as well, you're thinking about the footy more and trying to run and blow. So, it's more about getting that job done."

Asked if he had already scripted his next jab at Papley, Greene was quick to dismiss the notion, simply stating: "It's not something I'll think about".

Beyond the rivalry, both Greene and Heeney are aligned on a much bigger goal: growing the game of Australian football in the harbour city.

Addressing the long-term challenge of expanding the AFL's footprint, Greene was realistic about the hurdles, particularly in the diverse heartland of Western Sydney.

"Some of the points are valid, but there's a lot of work being done. COVID-19 certainly hurt the effort to grow the game in Western Sydney, but there has been a lot of work put in over the last couple of years. It's just going to take time," he said.

"It's not a quick fix, and today's a good start. I know we're not in Western Sydney today, but we certainly have been in the past, and we will be going forward. But it's just a long-term plan.

"It has to become ingrained. You start with kids, and when those kids become adults, they grow up with the game and share it with their own kids. It's a generational thing."

For Greene, initiatives like Opening Round are essential tools in that battle, despite pushback from critics.

"I want Aussie rules to be the biggest game in the country," he insisted.

"But you've got to nail that market. We haven't yet, but it's certainly a work in progress, and everyone's doing a lot of good things in NSW."

Growing up in the rugby league heartland of Newcastle, Heeney remembers a landscape where Australian football was so scarce that his childhood club could not field a team. After being forced to forfeit, he moved to a different club just to keep playing.

"That's why we're doing this – it's why we love doing it," he said of the 5th Quarter Camps.

"There are so many kids coming through from different cultures. To bring everyone together and show them how exciting the game is, is why we're here. It's a participation camp, and we see so many kids at different levels loving the game. We get a lot of good responses from it and want to continue to grow the game here because it is exciting, and we get a lot out of it as well.

"So many people want to play. They just need an opportunity to do it, and if we can give them that, it's pretty special."