It was fully intended by the footycatsblog to accompany each game played by the Geelong football club with a short dazzling summary of yet another dominating display by the team but it has become evident that both the team and I have lost a little interest.

It’s been hard for us here at the footycatsblog to watch the cats play this year. Both from being time poor and the mind boggling way in which we are playing the game. Time poor in the sense that rather than allocate two hours to watch the cats handball backwards to stationary teammates get swamped by the opposition glimpses of the rot from previous weeks position and turn the ball over. These hours have been redirected into positive avenues that increase rather than decrease the tranquillity that is the temple in which the footycatsblog resides.

I’m like a victim of domestic violence, convinced that this was the last time and buying into the heartfelt apology and the promise of change only to be hurt again next week. The game Friday night against Collingwood was a prime example. The cats were amazing in the first term; it was the football equivalent of a five star restaurant, flowers chocolates and then an evening of dancing. Everything went perfectly and we looked irresistible.

Our best footy is good enough. We showed against the Hawks in the first term, we played it against the Roos. When given the direction and confidence from the coach to go out attack the footy and take the game on its all good, when we are trying to conserve a lead and start chipping the ball short and wide and worst of all backwards we look like a suburban seconds side. There were glimpses of the rot that had set in over the past few weeks. We didn’t score for over forty minutes in the game and let them score multiple goals in a row. But at least the message was getting through. It was the first time that it looked like Scott had instructed his players to take the game on. I know that his message probably hadn’t changed from the start of the year and it was all execution by the players but each deficiency that had been brought to the fore over the first part of the season seemed to be addressed. That is all that can be asked from the coach.

Rhys Stanley was huge in the ruck, Mark Blicavs is the most improved player in the AFL, Mitch Duncan collected his second three votes in a row and provided the foil in the midfield to Selwood who for the most part has been a one man band in the guts and Corey Gregson played his best game in what looks like a long career at the level.

In Wells I trust.

Still.

We have taken a little vindication from the Collingwood game. You are either part of the solution or part of the problem and sitting back a potting the coach of a side that’s players aren’t performing is an easy task. Negativity can creep up on a football team in many ways, shapes and forms and will reveal itself the same way. Kudos to Chris Scott for getting the boys up for a Friday night game at the “g” and giving the fans something to cheer about. Some good old play on and move the ball quickly through the middle football. The commentators were saying it was a throwback to vintage  Cats football taking the game on and executing perfectly.

It was precisely our point. The Cats when switched on and ready to play can compete with any side in the competition. They just needed to all be on the same page.

That is the coach’s main job and that is why we have been critical of Scott’s coaching performance this year.

He was exceptional on Friday night, in all aspects of the role.

The players still went into their shells a bit when the pies got a run on. Harry Taylor who was brilliant all night still fake fumbled a ball out of bounds 70 metres out from the pies goal instead of grabbing it and baulking back to the middle to pick off a hungry cat looking to run through the guts, something the whole team was doing in the first term when they were on point.

Not knowing what was said at three quarter time I can imagine that Scott emphasised what the players themselves had gone away from and the manner in which it was conveyed clearly garnered a response from the players who put the game away by halfway through the last.

Can’t possibly tip against Sydney in Sydney but can go into the game with a small glimmer of hope and knowledge that we can test ourselves and really see where we are at. I don’t mean win the game but get some respect back from the competition by bringing the same intensity that we took to the pies.

GO CATS

 

 

  

I heart Joel Selwood

“I don’t know why it is not working. Why isn’t it working?”

We have Joel Selwood the best contested player in the AFL yet every week I look at the stats and the Cats have lost the contested ball and the clearances. The skipper leads headfirst into every contest and receives very little physical support from the rest of the midfield. If you could bet on blokes getting cuts over the eye Joel Selwood would be $1.01 favourite every week and I would still back him. The devils advocate would argue that he drops his body and looks for free kicks, the fact is he is just hard and at the moment he is the only one.

He deserved six Brownlow votes on the weekend against the Gold Coast.

I touched on it last week but the cats aren’t brave. The stat that I found the most damning from the game is gold coast taking 13 bounces to the Cats 3. The cats refuse to take the game on and when asked Chris Scott says we don’t look into the past and that we are a new side, well I agree but the fact is that the side we have become under Scott is the tick the boxes do the team thing side with absolutely no confidence or flair to take the game on. The same way Scott was as a player this cats side wants to play the percentages , I can see it every time Harry Taylor gets the ball , he is looking for safety every time. I do buy into the whole defence wins premierships and I want to blame our backline but they have been as good as can be expected when the ball is coming in as often as it has been. I cant actually blame Taylors seemingly negative play because I guess he figures that the ball is just going to come straight back in and at least he has time to set up if it’s a stoppage and tis is what he has been trained and instructed to do. The truth is the Cats should be avoiding stoppages like parking inspectors at the moment because we are getting smashed in that department every week.

The lack of bounces just illustrates how negative our ball movement has become under Scott. In the first three matches the Cars have taken just 15 bounces to the oppositions 36 and round two against Freo both teams had 7.

That tells me that opposition sides know to attack with run and carry because they know that we won’t chase and tackle but will guard space and try and corral which is just giving their two way runners easy possessions.

Having said all that there was a lot of positives to come out of the game. First we won a game we shouldn’t have, or did gold coast lose it? I’m not sure, either way its four desperately needed points. Ten more wins and we can start thinking about finals. Secondly the game of Marc Blicavs was his best for the club. He came through when we needed him most and slotted through the sealer but it was really a sustained four quarter effort from the big man. Think he may have polled his first Brownlow vote.

 

We can’t beat Nth Melbourne this weekend on exposed form. Shouldn’t even get close however we are Geelong and I really hope the boys can rally around Tom Hawkins and pull off a big one to get the season back on track.

Go Cats   

 

The scene is this, its grand final day 2014. Hawthorn has put on a clinic at the MCG and the draw of the TV screen is becoming less of an attraction. (I had believed the hype on Sydney and loaded up confirming my reputation as the worst sports gambler of all time.)

Third helpings of BBQ have been devoured and fourth helpings will put me firmly in fat bastard territory so it’s not an option. Just when talking with the Mrs. amongst a patio full of the ladies was becoming a viable option for the rest of the afternoon a glimmer of hope for all supporters of every team not playing the game  hits the screen.

The 2014 AFL Sprint.

 

Hope.

Hope in the form of Jordan Murdoch and a four beer two joint buzz.

The resident Hawthorn supporters are all puffed up like rosters strutting the yard and are ripe for the picking. All their betting has centralised around the hawks winning the game today and it’s over by half time so they have some coin and some confidence, perfect sucker material.

The Hawks have young Billie Hartung who is quick as a flash and was unlucky to miss the squad but through a mate of a mate I had heard that he has been out all week on the gas with the box hill VFL team that had just won the grand final. He had been told early that he wouldn’t be playing so I am betting that he isn’t in tip top shape for this race.

When making a private bet it always pays to get the best of the odds. The TAB isn’t a charity; the markets it posts are as close as you can get to winning chances and if you can bet mate even money on a two horse race when the actual odds are weighted in your favour it can be considered to have a plus expected value. The more plus EV bets you can make over a period of time the better off you will be in the long run and immediate results shouldn’t matter. The same can be said for football, if the ball spills to the front of a marking contest 75% of the time the player that is front and square will have the opportunity to get the ball an extra 25 times over 100 contests.

Poker has similar concepts.

 It’s just the smart play.

“Alright you Hawthorn soft cocks, I’m prepared to take Jordan Murdoch even though he has been out with the boys on the piss for the week over your pretty boy Billie fit and ready to go Hartung, who was stiff not to be playing today actually, what you reckon? Who is keen?”

The hook has been baited. Geelong supporter mouthing off when the hawks have the game wrapped up at half time. These blokes will throw cash at me.

“Il take that.”

“Me too.”

A nibble.

“How much then boys? I will warn you I backed Sydney today so this is me chasing some losses.”

“$10?”

“$10 whoa big spender are you sure you shouldn’t  check with your husband and see if your aloud to bet with the boys, maybe you can get the kids outside to chip in and make it $12.50. I’m basically giving money away here , Murdoch is like the fourth fastest at our club.”

“$20 then.”

That is a big bite, time to start reeling them in and see what is on the hook.

“Alright $20 each then, head to head, Murdoch vs. Hartung to see who the quickest in the AFL is.”

Hands are shaken and I have two bets on both of which I have the clear favourite in a two horse race for even money. Good result on a crap day.

Conversation starts amongst the blokes as to who the actual fastest player in the AFL is and a fairly persuasive argument is made for Patrick Dangerfield who has won the last three sprints in a row and being a bit of an old bastard I put forward Scott Chisholm ex Freo player that won in sub 11 seconds as all time that I've seen. The rest of the time till the start of the race is spent ridiculing the lone Carlton fan that has the audacity to put forward Dennis Armfield into the mix. Fair dinkum the only way Dennis Armfield wins a race is if they change it to an egg and spoon race and he is only allowed to compete against people with comparably bad facial hair.

The race itself is a bit of a fizzer. Murdoch runs nice and tall and hits the front at the halfway mark. Billie Hartung makes his charge at about 60m but the Geelong jet easily fights off his challenge then puts the foot down and blows them away to win easily.

I would like to pause here and ask why the StKilda football club has taken the piss and entered Clinton Jones in this race. He finishes last or near enough to it but the fact he was allowed to run is a disgrace. If you cant be bothered with any aspect of the grand final like the saints have made a habit of over the last 150 years at least send a kid that can run and might be inspired off the experience not a middle aged plodder who made his career not getting a kick himself but scragging good players off a kick. You plan to delist him at the seasons end anyway yet there he is proudly sporting a StKilda Guernsey at the only game that might give your club some international exposure, might make it onto ESPN plays of the day and some bright spark at the Saints decides to send Clinton Jones to race 100m.

Piss weak effort StKilda, sums you up as a club.

So $40 up.

A little bit of excitement for a Cats fan with not much to celebrate in 2014.

It helped me watch the second half of the exhibition that will end in hawthorn putting a full stop at the end of the 2014 AFL season.

It gave me hope that the Cats would be the first side to ride the conception that in order to be successful you needed to bottom out and go through the draft system. Through thorough list management and solid core values you didn’t need to follow the AFL rollercoaster system.

We were wrong. Maybe Hawthorn will crack the code and be the first true power of the modern era. They arguably are already but then that brings the Cats and the Lions into the conversation. It all gets a bit squirly. 

I can easily see the cats following Brisbane’s decline. But will they?

The Cats are playing scared at the moment. Not scared of the opposition, we are scared of ourselves. We know we are not good enough and we are too scared to try. It makes me sick. Gone are the Cats of old swinging into the middle with a dangerous pin point pass to a guy who has taken the initiative and run into space. Gone is any surety the backline held due to the sheer volume of ball that gets sent straight back in and worst of all our pressure is non existent at best. Any pressure we encounter be it actual or perceived causes poor decision making and our mantra seems to be hold off and corral instead of applying any physical contact on the ball carrier.

We used to hunt the ball in packs but now we are the hunted and getting picked off regularly by teams that are braver than us.

I've got a plan B for the cats. Lets just go back to taking the game on , giving the ball to Jordan Murdoch who has been given the inspiration to take a four bounce 100m sprint down the wing of the MCG and told to kick it long into the Tomahawk and Clarke. Then its up to hard work to lock it in our forward zone with relentless pressure.

I’m staying positive that it all turns around against Gold Coast Suns at the cattery on Sunday. We haven't beaten the Suns in few matches but we cant have dropped away that much can we?

Go Cats   

 

 

The easter Monday massacre

Gee the Hawks were good.

Danger signs were there early on for the cats in their Easter Monday clash with the reigning premier. The hawks had brought the pressure game that dismantled the swans in last year grand final but early on the cats held on. Even went goal for goal , even matched the hawks around the contest . Until the siren went for quarter time.

It was like watching a team have a switch flicked. The hawks stepped up every aspect of their game and the cats settled back on the effort of the first term that saw them up at quarter time. The Hawks set up on the defensive side of the contest at most of the stoppages and as soon as the ball got loose it seemed like they had an extra two players. They just knew where to be at the right time. They are easily the best  drilled side in the league.

It was predictable. Predictable for the other hawks around the contest , predictable to their teammates down the fields even predictable to me sitting in the grandstands, it was seemingly predictable for everyone, except the cats players. They looked clueless around the contest , weak , slow and not willing put in an effort unless it got  rewarded with the ball. The polar opposite to the hawks who seemed to relish putting on a block or smother or scrag to give their mates an extra split second to ensure anther target was hit further up the field. They wanted the Cats to get the loose ball because they had them covered like a cheap suit.

The Hawks were brave in every sense of the word. They were strong and brave in the contested situations , while the cats went to ground the Hawks kept their feet and then pushed to outnumber at the next contest either to be an option or to help out a teammate. The running brigade of Hill and Rioli knew their roll perfectly , relentless pressure , force turnover , then run and exploit.

If a loose ball was gathered by the cats it was nervously flicked around by hand until a Hawthorn player was able to pick off the next link in the chain and then they punished that link with some of the hardest tackling I have seen on a football field. They basically turned Geelong's quick hands into the old fashioned hospital handpass and an easy turnover ,then over the top to a mobile runner , 30 m run and carry and easy goal.

This happened time and time again.

Cut to when the Hawks gathered a loose ball. I was two slick handballs into space and the ball was in the hands of a runner who was armed with some information:

The Cats are slow and they don't chase.

This is where the bravery comes in , it's all well and good to know that your quicker than your opponent but takes bravery to take those opposition on in the middle of the MCG in front of 80000 people. That what the hawks did , time and time again. The loose ball would occur and within 10 seconds they had run it 80m and the ball was up the other end  out of trouble and in a position for them to score.

Not only did the Cats not look like they could chase any of the Hawks down , they didn't look like they wanted to.

The only saving grace for the Cats will be that this won't be the only thrashing the Hawks hand out this year, plenty of sides won't be able to match the Hawks output because plainly put they were awesome. You can't control how the opposition play but you can control the effort that you put out and from the stands it looked like the Cats gave up early in the third term.

Not good enough in round one of a premiership season when you were exposed in the same fashion last year.

The Cats are lazy when they don't have the ball.

 As soon as the opposition has the ball they are able to have a free man thirty metres away from the contest at all times. It seems there is no urgency to run defensively to pick up these men or at least make an effort to put on some token pressure. Now I'm no AFL standard coach but I would have my charges relentless in their pursuit to turn the ball over and then rest when we have possession, slow it down around half back all ready to reset and launch a counter attack, but the Cats seem to have it the wrong way around. Plenty of guys streaming into the open looking for easy kicks when we have the pill but when the going gets tough and it's time to run without the promise of an easy kick the current batch of cats take the easy option and had the best seat in the house to see the best side in the last twenty years ply their trade. The defensive structure is not there.

Where is the plan B?

Too many times in the last few years the coaches box seems bereft of ideas when the opposition gets a run on. Chris Scott has to take some accountability and when an opposition kicks two in a row a move needs to be made stem the flow. Get some numbers behind the ball , hold up the opposition even set up a bit more defensively at the stoppages. Do something because at the moment the cats are easy beats for the likes of the top four sides.

Lets address selection.

How George Horlin-Smith was not in the side has me absolutely baffled. I'm not privy to how each player trained over the preseason and I understand that effort has to be rewarded with games in the big time but the only guy that I thought had a pre season deserving of a round one call up was Darcy Lang. (Mitch Clarke goes without saying is a permanent fixture in the cats forward line this year)

Lang was ok in the game and deserves to keep his spot. Gregson was poor and clearly not to level of a Geelong vs. Hawthorn Easter Monday clash. I'm all for giving these guys games but I think we can be smarter about it.

Smedts has shown he is not an AFL footballer, his decision making is poor at best and his disposal was shocking which was  amplified as he was continually given the ball and allowed to use his foot skills to exit the back half. I use the word skills as a figure of speech. The worst part is Taylor Hunt who was let go at the end of last year had a ripper for the Tigers. His contested work and running would have served us well. When coaches make calls on players and move them on from the club they have to live and die by their decisions. Hunt is a far superior player than Smedts and the call to get rid of one and gift the other a game is simply put a bad management call.

Horlin-Smith in my opinion is one of the best young players in the game and I was shocked he couldn't get a game. He is a hard at the contest player and that was an aspect the Cats were sorely lacking , he needs to back in the side next week.

Scary game this week against Fremantle. On exposed form the cats are going to get another touch up, this time in front of the faithful at home but let's end on a positive, at least we can all enjoy a $4 bucket of chips.

 

Follow Aaron Booth on Twitter @azareidies or add him on google+ Aaron Booth

 

 

 

 

                

WEEK 3 CATS VS BLUES

So how good is the cockatoo going to be?

There are some players in all levels of the game, from the local under 10s to AFL senior football that when they get the ball seem to have more time than everyone else and the cats new number 5 is one of those players. I might be getting a bit carried away as he has only amassed a total of about 15 possessions but it's how he looked when he has the ball that has excited me the most. His body looks ready to mix it with big boys at AFL level, obviously it won't stand up to the rigors of a full AFL season complete with finals campaign this early on so he is going to have to be managed because its these types of players that can win you a final with five minutes of brilliance.

In my humble opinion its these types of line breaking , run and carry players that are going to be the key in the upcoming seasons and the indigenous boys are the best in business as far as I'm concerned. Hawthorn have the cream of the crop with Cyril and Hill both of which can turn a game on its head in a matter of minutes but they are littered throughout the league.

Hands up who can catch Garlett streaming of a half back flank with a metre head start?

Anyone want to look silly trying to chase Jetta down the wing of the SCG late in the last quarter of a final?

Didn't think so.

 I'm really looking forward to seeing the Motlop Cockatoo show in action for the next decade.

Chris Scott can't be happy with last week's game against the Crows and I'm not too happy with Chris Scott. I am writing this a week later and I can only really draw a couple of positives out of the game. I've touched on the Cockatoo and the only other honourable mention has to go to big Mitch Clarke. The big fella got off the chain and roamed the forward zone like a hungry junkyard dog. He is still very rusty and at times looks well out his depth at the level, but every so often he  has given a glimpse of what his potential offers the football club.

Here is the concern:

Geelong lost the clearances yet again.

30 to 27 is not a massive loss but it's been a reoccurring trend. The boys got first use out of the ruck winning the hit outs and I thought that big Dawson was very good at the bounces and making his presence felt after the ball hit the deck but you cannot win games of football against the best sides in the AFL when you consistently give the opposition first use of the ball out of the middle. It was the stoppages where this really shone through 19-12 in Adelaide's favour.      

Contested possessions are the true indicator of where the boys are lacking and the cats were smacked 104-135. That's five times a quarter that the ball is in dispute and they coming up short. You can get away with that at the cattery in the NAB challenge against the Crows but against Hawthorn at the 'G' on Easter Monday......  it could get ugly.

 

The young apprentice at work is a massive Carlton fan, so much so it clouds his judgement and he made a fatal error by entering into a finish higher bet with me last year. I took the cats and he had Carlton .

"What shall we put on it ?" I asked prepared to go as high as I could  "A slab?"

He thought for a moment and countered.

"Why not make it two?"

"Done."

I should have kept bidding.  

I don't even drink beer and one of the slabs of Crownies is still sitting next to my fridge ready to offered to anyone that comes around. Carlton were never going to finish higher than the cats and this just illustrates that the love for your own club can blind you to the actual reality of the situation. Which brings me to the newest bet we have made. It's another finish higher but this time it's the Brownlow medal. He has Mathew Kreuzer and I have taken Mark Blicavs. Head to head most votes wins.

Unfortunately for the apprentice two days after the bet was made Kreuzer went down with stress fractures of the foot. Not a great injury type for a big man who relies heavily on his mobility.

Blicavs however is fast becoming the most agile, mobile big man in the game. His ruck work is getting better by the week and when the ball hits the ground he becomes another midfielder which could give the cats a decided advantage in a close contest. He is still learning the game not having played much as a junior and having watched every game he has played in the AFL he has improved week in week out and that is all that can be asked of him. I can't praise him highly enough. From what I have seen already this year he has improved his strength and size without really sacrificing any of the elite running that saw him catch the eye of the great Stephen Wells. He has been training with the backline under the tutelage of one H. Taylor and if he can get his two way running going and push back to chop out the likes of Taylor, Lonergan , Rivers , Mackie and Co it will definitely cause some headaches for opposition coaches. His running for a 195cm plus type player is nothing short of freakish and only two other players in the comp have him covered.

Lance Franklin possesses the greatest burst of speed for a guy his size that I have ever seen. Couple that with sublime skills and one of the best left foot shots at goal from outside 50m it's no wonder that he is the 10 million dollar man.

The other guy is the greatest running leading forward in the games history. His name is Nick Reiwoldt and has set the standard for running the last ten years.

I'm not saying Mark Blicavs is going to be the greatest player in the history of the AFL, I'm saying if he keeps improving at the rate that he already is he could easily redefine the standard of endurance and running expected by big man in the AFL.

Anyone want a beer ? My shout.    

Week 2 Lie to me

2015 is the first year that I have been a member of the Geelong Football Club after supporting them for 30 years.  I plan on writing this biased, un fact checked and grammatically incompetent  blog each week. These are my stories. (Cue noise from Law and Order)

 

 

Week 2 "Lie to me"

           

            So it's a week into the NAB Challenge and it has been bruise free footy at its best, hardly a advertisement for our great game. The obligatory season ending knee injury for one of the comps young guns has been the only thing to raise my eyebrows because the standard of footy  certainly hasn't.

             The Adelaide Crows travel down to the cattery for a Thursday night fixture and id be prepared to bet (readers note: The author has been placed on a self imposed gambling ban which will lift Round 1 of the AFL season , penance for being inept at picking NBA winners) that it won't be bringing its full complement of star players to thrill the Kardinia crowd. Unless Morgan Freeman appears on the news explaining that NASA has found a rip in the fabric of space and time which has given us access to a parallel universe ,which turns out needs to be saved from oblivion  and the only way to save it s that two AFL teams must battle it out on a Thursday night with both teams bringing a physical intensity and a finals like frantic pressure , I suspect that we will see the same brand of insipid full contact training we have witnessed in the first week of this "competition".

            And I don't blame the clubs at all. What are they playing for exactly?

            Both of these teams could potentially have their seasons derailed before they even start with season ending injuries to key players. I would hate to see Big Tex Walker or The Tomahawk go down for the year, robbing the fans of a season of strong marks on the lead and tests of strength against the best defenders in the comp.

            All I want to see out of this game is some lies. I want a full grown man to look down the camera, lie and say all contract talk will be taken care of at the end of the year. I want to hear that all your concentrating on the season at hand and that your manager takes care of all the contract stuff. I want to hear that your super happy at the crows and money has no place in your decision.

            I'm talking to you Mr Dangerfield .

            Lie to me, and I promise I'll believe you.

            I believed G. Ablett.

            I believed L. Franklin.

           

            The two biggest names in our game both sat and warmed the chair that Paddy will sit in this year and both were forgiven for lying to the media and us the supporters. I guess three dump trucks full of money backed up deposited straight into your bank account will do that to a person. Now it's your turn Paddy. It's the money or the box.

            Free agency as set out by the AFL not only encourages dishonesty but it rewards it. Don't believe me? Just wait and see the first player to announce midyear that they are moving at the end of the year NRL style , my guess is they may play the rest of the year in the magoos and valuable game time will be given to some younger guys "in the interests of the club". Free agency is not even "free",  the appalling compensation pick system is nothing but a ill thought out appeasement to the clubs that are being pillaged while the other more business minded clubs that have room to move in the salary cap can  reap the rewards.

           The cats have to be the most affected club losing the best player in the competition but the club I feel for the most is Melbourne. The perennial cellar dwellers have had the best players from their list cherry picked by better clubs and it's all been rubber stamped by the AFL. Pretty sure Paul Roos could use J. Rivers and J. Frawley in the backline this year, but that doesn't serve the AFLs purpose . It seems they would much rather grow the game in new markets than look after the oldest football club in the world.

            The jungle drums will be beating around which players will make the move at the seasons end and all the focus will be on which players are the targets and who will take the money and run.  

              My personnel jungle drum will be beating around which journo is slack enough to trot out the tired old Jungle drum analogy this year. I am claiming that phrase early in the season and I'm watching out for any professional scribe that unimaginatively uses it this year.

 

Early season market for "Jungle Drum" phrase in player movement.

 

 

1.50 fav           Mark Stevens (Ch 7)

 

1.90                 Jon Ralph

                        Craig Hutchinson

                        Damien Barrett

 

2.00                 Tony Shaw

                        Caroline Wilson

 

3.00                 Mark Robinson

                        Eddie McGuire

 

3.50                 Gerard Healy

 

5.00                 Mike Sheehan

                        Dermott Brereton

 

10.00               Patrick Keane

 

15.00               Gerard Whateley

 

 

 

Follow Aaron Booth on Twitter @azareidies or add him on google+ Aaron Booth

 

 

 

 

                       

Week 1 NAB CHALLENGE

2015 is the first year that I have been a member of the Geelong Football Club after supporting them for 30 years.  I plan on writing this biased, un fact checked and grammatically incompetent  blog each week. These are my stories. (Cue noise from Law and Order)

 

Week#1 NAB Cup vs. Gold Coast Suns @ Tony Ireland Stadium, Townsville QLD

 

So up to the sunny Tony Ireland stadium(which is actually quite cloudy) in Townsville the cats will go to take on the increasingly seasoned Gold Coast Suns. I am expecting big things from the GC this year with the list they have assembled and the concessions granted by the AFL. Finals is a very achievable goal for the Suns and should have been achieved by the group last year had a certain G. Ablett not gone down with season ending shoulder injury.

The suns got the cats in the home and away last year in what was probably the best win in the clubs short history so they hit the field knowing if they play good footy they can win this game.

This year for me is all about the cats and with the ring of “Straight sets..” in my ears I write this full of confidence for the year ahead. I'm like a 10 handicap golfer confidently striding to the first tee , the 18 holes ahead of me are all a clean slate of possible greatness.

The reason I’m confident about 2015 is the Cats core of dependable All Australian  senior players. Bartel, Hawkins, Enright, Kelly, Taylor, Lonergan, Stokes and led brilliantly by Joel Selwood the captain of the national side. These guys have been to the well many times before and know what is needed to be a premiership side on and off the track. All the noise coming out of the club is that they are demanding the same from the younger brigade coming through. They will be stung by the manner in which they exited the finals last year. Chris Scott included. And so they should be.

Can they turn it around this year? Or like so many pundits annually predict is this going to be the year that cats finally slide back to the middle of the field.

I don’t think the slide will occur this year but I think the pre-season will give us an indication as to whether the Scott era will be a dynasty or a brief flicker of a career that seems to be the trend of the day with clubs seemingly ready to sack a coach. With the cats tough start to the year it’s going to be crucial that they hit the ground running and pick up as many wins as possible early on.

 

 

4.30 Game time.

First impressions. GC look fit. The Cats look ready.

            When your right your right and as per usual the cats older players namely Jimmy Bartel and James Kelly lead the way and a super fit Tom Hawkins dominates the forward line kicking two and missing a couple for good measure.

            The score board wont say it but the Cats were the team that played the better footy however GC managed to capitalise on there opportunities when the cats younger players turned the ball over with skill errors under pressure on the defensive side of midfield. All the fist gamers looked a strep off the pace of AFL footy with the exception of the Cockatoo and the impressive boy from Colac Darcy Lang who got the footy took the game on and when he made the always going to happen skill error under pressure he willed himself  to the next contest forced a turnover and picked up another possession for his troubles.

Gold Coast by a point.

Second Quarter.

Break in transmission cheers for that foxtel, why not reel out some ads …........ GC by 2pts two minutes in.

            The cockatoo takes a strong grab ala Jimmy Bartel and shows silky kicking skills in a rare highlight for the cats in the second term. The conditions look brutal and the cats wilt as the GC turns it up a notch only letting the cats off the hook with poor goal kicking accuracy kicking five straight behinds.

            Contested ball and clearances are yet again are a concern for the cats getting absolutely smashed by the GC midfield and delivery into the forward line is nonexistent with each defensive rebound stopped by the suns pressing up the ground and sent back into the overwhelmed Geelong defence time and time again.

Gold Coast up by 18pts. Should be up by 40.

            If the second term was a golf hole the cats put it in the piss off the tee and then three putted.

Third Quarter

            Gregson kicks a goal early and is lively and Chris Scott gets one back in the coaches box after being thoroughly outcoached by Rocket Eade in the second term.

Guthrie shows poise and class when he steps through traffic and kicks a Mums delicious Sunday roast goal of the day and the kid from Colac Darcy Lang is easily the most impressive of the young fellas with a mark and goal to go along with his bag of touches.

            The cats clawed their way back into the game and will go into the last with a sniff and a 10 point deficit. Result is meaningless all the final term can do is produce an injury to a star player and create a talking point.

            Both teams should be competitive this season from the standard of footy seen so far in taxing conditions.

Gold Coast by 10pts

Last Quarter.

The kid from Colac puts his magnet in the must play round one section of the coaches whiteboard with his second from a clever Stevie Motlop cross but the cats look tired early in the last and the 10 point margin looks enough unless the cats can lift or get Stephen Dank on the phone.

Mitch Clarke finally impacts the game and does it big time with a “Ritchie” kicking two in two minutes putting the cats up by 2. If that kind of play becomes the norm for the big fella he could definitely be a 40+ goal a year player.

Great last quarter of footy by both teams but in the end the Gold Coast too good and too strong in the tropical conditions.

Final score Gold Coast Suns by 8pts

 

Darcy Lang the Coca Colac kid was the standout for me amongst the cats with less than 50 games to their names. He knew where to run to find the footy and used it fairly well in the tricky conditions. His second and third efforts stood out more on a day where it was easy to slack off and blame the heat and he seems to have developed  an understanding with Stevie Motlop. The silky one crossing two goal assists Lang's way both with no look across the body passes.   

Mitch Clarke ticked a few boxes and like a good race horse will be better for the run, he shouldn't be judged on this game and just needs to play some regular footy.             The Cockatoo showed a glimpse as did Gregson and should both debut this year if they continue to develop. Prepared to forgive the rest of the less experienced guys who were all pretty average at best.

The danger signs that emerged at the end of last year are there again for the cats with Chris Scott outcoached (yet again) and the cats losing the contested ball and clearances, areas identified by the club for improvement, improvement that was just not evident.

Fair to say the Irish experiment failed miserably with the big Pod only involved in one passage of play which resulted in giving away a free kick 40m out directly in front. The question has to be asked, why even play the kid in 33 degrees? He blew up quicker than a balloon animal at a clown convention.

I can't really take much out of the contest other than to say when the cats usual suspects moved the ball they looked the better side but with too many passengers and players not willing to get the hard footy the rot that set in at the end of last year looks to have continued .

So back to the Cattery next week where we will take on another middle tier side with a new coach in Adelaide . Time to raise the bar.   

Go Cats!