TASMANIA CEO Brendon Gale has hit back at outgoing Greater Western Sydney boss Dave Matthews, labelling the former Giants CEO "the prince of Balmoral" who has never lived in western Sydney.
Over the weekend, Matthews said the Devils will need to pay significant sums of money to attract players to the state, sharing his belief that the new club is not a "super attractive proposition" for players.
As the Devils unveiled Ken Hinkley as their inaugural coach on Monday, Gale dismissed Matthews' claims and clipped the Giants boss for residing in Sydney's east and not the area his club serves.
"It's a bit rich of Dave to lean in given he's never lived here," Gale said.
"In fact, he's never lived in west Sydney either. The prince of Balmoral, Dave Matthews.
"I'll leave it at that. I love Dave and I think he's done a great job. No offence taken.
"I think this is a wonderful place to live, incredible lifestyle and a place where you can get the balance right. It's got all of the attractions of a cosmopolitan capital city, but it's a place where you can be really focused on your profession and also do what you need to do to focus on the whole person.
"I've got absolutely no doubt that athletes and their families will thrive down here.”
Hinkley labelled Matthews' comments "uneducated" and said he believes Hobart's community feel can be a major selling point for the Devils, similar to how Geelong has sold the more relaxed lifestyle at the Cats compared to life in a bigger city.
"What was Dave doing? Is he unemployed?," Hinkley quipped.
"If you're uneducated, you don't know. That's really important, you've got to know what you're talking about when it comes to the lifestyle.
"We've seen Geelong do pretty well as a community football club and this is very much a Geelong-type feel about it. It's got a community feel. There's a great opportunity for people to grow their families.
"It's not just a football place, it's a family place. There's a lot of people who will love the lifestyle of Tasmania.”
On Saturday, Matthews said the Devils will struggle to attract top talent early in their life in the competition due to the location and delays to the club's new high-performance centre and stadium.
"I think Tasmania looms large just because of the sheer size of the offers that you hear they are going to make," Matthews said on 3AW.
"And to be honest, my view is they need to make those. I don't think it's a super attractive proposition to go and play at Tasmania. My own view is that it is a nice place to visit, but I don't think it's an unbelievable place to have a career and live.
"I think some of the hold ups in relation to the infrastructure, I know Brendon Gale probably wouldn't like me saying this, but we are in a competition. By the time they get a stadium in place, it is probably three years into their tenure, and by that stage, a player like Tom Green is 31 or 32.
"The money is one thing but the opportunity, again, if you listen closely to what Tom Green talked about, he wants to be a premiership player, and I also think at some point you will see him captain the Giants."
The Devils have been granted a host of generous draft concessions to ensure they will be competitive from the get-go when they enter the competition in 2028.
They can also sign up to 18 uncontracted players from rival clubs across 2027-28, with a maximum of one player per club.
