'It's what's best': GWS Giants' Tom Green backs AFL's COVID-19 vaccination mandate

The AFL introduced a COVID vaccine mandate for players and staff ahead of 2022, with only two players so far affected, Carlton's Liam Jones and Adelaide Crows' Deni Varnhagen.

Green has thrown his support behind the move.

"We're all pretty keen to just get the vaccine, to be honest. I don't want to speak for everyone because I'm not gonna put words in people's mouths, but I personally am all for the jab. I have been fully vaxxed for a while now," he said.

"It's what's best for me personally and, I think, overall as a community. It's probably best for us to help stop spreading the virus and putting high-risk people in potentially life-threatening situations."

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The 20-year-old came into the AFL during the beginning of COVID, and the midfielder has known no different. However, as borders reopen and Australia reaches its vaccine milestones, the Canberran was looking forward to getting back to Manuka Oval.

"I'm hoping that we can spend most of the year in Sydney and then ... actually get to have three games at Manuka," he said.

"I love playing at Manuka and getting to play in front of a home crowd. Unfortunately, this year we lost both of our games there. So we'll be certainly looking to redeem ourselves."

It was not the fairytale finals series for Green this year. The Giants triumphed over the Sydney Swans in Launceston by one point but his season was over.

He fractured his radius and required a plate in his arm during his first final, and in his first game back after a hamstring injury.

"It's still got a bit of muscle-wasting and stuff to build back up in that forearm. Overall, the plate, the arm and the broken bone itself is healing up really well. I'm just continuing to sort of build strength back up and it should be right to go, hopefully, in round one," he said.

"I made great strides my first two years but there's also still plenty of things that I'd love to improve on and I think that I can certainly improve in so many ways. You don't want to be at 100 per cent of your ability in year two. So that's good that there's still lessons to improve on."

Staring down the barrel of his third AFL season, the youngster hoped the Giants would push into another finals campaign in 2022 - after they were knocked out by Geelong in the semi-final this year - and that he could build up his game time.

"It was good to return the finals in 2021. In my first season in 2020 we missed finals for the first time in a little while and that was disappointing. So it's good to get back into finals and despite breaking my arm ... it was nice to play in that game and win a final, it is what we pay football for," he said.

"We'd like to go further in the finals. And obviously, any team that is playing finals has got their eyes on the premiership. So I think it'd be remiss to think that we're not aiming that high. And personally, injuries aside ... I'd like to play every single game and hopefully, a continuing growing role in the team, as I think I still have plenty to give.

"I certainly got a lot fitter over the off-season, which I'd like to do again. And then, having played more games, being able to feel more comfortable to be able to achieve a bit more and just sort of settling into the AFL level a bit better."

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