LEON Cameron believes Greater Western Sydney's pre-season tag as premiership favourites is way off the mark and it's unfair to compare his side to the competition's best.
The Giants mauled Gold Coast by 102 points at Spotless Stadium on Saturday to bounce back from a terrible round one showing against Adelaide, after they went into 2017 as the team to beat in the eyes of most the footy world.
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Cameron acknowledged that his club was widely predicted to win its first ever flag in its sixth season in the league, but said after their massive win over the Suns, that the expectations mean nothing.
"There's no doubt that the external noise that’s been floating around over the last three or four months has been about us, and our ability to take the next step," he said.
"I suppose it's a good thing that people are talking positively about our footy club, but internally we know we're not up to the mark of Sydney, Geelong, Hawthorn, or the West Coast Eagles yet, and I should add the Western Bulldogs in there too.
WATCH Leon Cameron's full media conference
"Every year they back up and find a way to either finish top four or play finals.
"We've had one winning season and won one final.
"When you start to get that credit, and it takes years, then I reckon it's fair that people talk about your footy club as being a really, really good team.
"We're learning and today was a good step, but we've got a long, long way to go."
After being on the receiving end against the Crows, the Giants smashed the Suns in the contested possession count 149 to 113, and Cameron said that’s the level he expects from his players when they head to Tasmania to take on North Melbourne next week.
"If we don’t bring intensity we'll get beaten," he said.
"I think every side is going through that, if you don't bring the intensity and you're not 100 per cent switched on, then most likely you'll get rolled.
"Some of the top line sides that have done it year after year, and we're not there yet, continue to back up every week, but we're still learning that and I think we're heading in the right direction."
Key forward Jonathon Patton is expected to be fit to play against the Kangaroos, after he was a late withdrawal from Saturday's win with a groin/hip issue.
