Out-of-contract Giants defender Isaac Cumming has expressed his intention to extend his tenure as a Giant past 2022 as he continues to take on a more senior role in Leon Cameron's backline.
The 23-year-old is in his sixth season with Greater Western Sydney with 36 games to his name, 24 of which came in a breakout campaign for the Broken Hill product last year.
Having forged a key role in Cameron's system across their last line, Cumming frames as a key re-signing for the Giants, who will also be looking to lock away the services of midfield bull Tim Taranto and second-year player Tanner Bruhn for the future.
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Speaking toย Zero Hanger,ย Cumming revealed plans to stay in Sydney's west for "as long as I can", however the backman has given no attention to accelerating discussions.
"There have been some talks about what our plans are going forward," Cumming said.
"We haven't got to the nitty-gritty of it all but my intention is to be Giant for as long as I can. I don't plan on going anywhere.
"Dave Trotter (Cumming's manager) often asks me where my head is at, and I say I'm really happy here, I don't want to leave. It's as simple as that.
"I'm pretty casual with the whole contract (situation). I'm in no rush to sign and I know that these things can take some time, but regardless of that, I want to be Giant."
Injuries have made a sporadic presence across Cumming's career, with hamstring, calf and quad setbacks all punctuating across the last two years.
The latter ailment saw the flashy defender face five weeks in recovery, with Cumming having to work himself back into full health just weeks out from Round 1.
A strong base level of fitness along with newfound confidence and seniority have ascended Cumming's prospects for the year ahead.
"Towards the back end of pre-season that's when you get a lot of fitness through match play. Thankfully my base was alright and I didn't need to do too much catching up. After the first few games, the body has got through just fine," he said.
"Being able to string a few games together was absolutely huge in confidence at the AFL level. After four years, 10 games I found it hard to be able to find a rhythm and then early last year when I was able to play three or four games in a row I found my comfortability at the level.
"Leon, I feel, has a lot more confidence in me to be part of the team and to stay in the team.
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"I played every game throughout the season, and I was able to sort of play a pretty consistent brand of footy.
"Even though that was sort of games 11 to 34, I was coming into my sixth year so even though the games don't make it look like it, I'm an experienced player now and it's just about being able to be out there each week and build on that."
Cumming has featured across both of the Giants' opening two fixtures this season, with the club still left chasing their first win after defeats to Sydney and Richmond.
The successive losses have placed the club in an uphill battle to support the claims of being a finals contender, with this week's bout against Gold Coast set to be a significant stepping stone in their pursuit for a spot in the September action.
"It hasn't been the start we wanted," Cumming said.
"Defensively as a collective we just need to be better, get a bit better at numbering in the air and on the ground. Hopefully, we can put that to work this Saturday.
"[The Suns] have got a couple of big boys in (Mabior) Chol and (Levi) Casboult who provide really good contest in the air and off the back of that they've got some really good smalls and pressure players in there.
"They've got a really good mix of talent and spark and we're going to need our best game to be able to compete with that. They're a bloody good side at the minute and they're playing as a team, which is going to be really good to play against."
Following Saturday's match with the Suns, Cumming and the Giants will face fellow finals hopefuls Fremantle, Melbourne and St Kilda across the succeeding rounds.
