Geelong faces perhaps its best chance to claim a second premiership under coach Chris Scott — and it could well be due to the side’s willingness to “blow everything up” entering season 2022.
The Cats have missed finals just once in their time under Scott’s tenure since 2011, but have failed to capture that elusive second premiership since his whirlwind debut year in charge.
Stellar leadership from Joel Selwood, the arrival of Patrick Dangerfield and the second coming of the prodigal son Gary Ablett Jr could deliver Geelong the premiership success it so desired.
Watch every blockbuster AFL match until the Grand Final Live & Ad-Break Free In-Play on Kayo. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
Even the arrival of Jeremy Cameron during the 2020 trade period wasn’t enough come 2021 as Melbourne mercilessly dismissed the Cats in a preliminary final.
So, what did they do?
With Scott and the Cats running out of cards to play, they decided to take what they had and throw it all into the middle of the table, come what may.
A radically different coaching panel was put around Scott – both from a personnel and structure point of view.
Line coaches were a thing of the past, with new chief executive Steve Hocking confirming at the outset of the year such a move had been led by Scott.
Speaking to AFL 360 co-host Mark Robinson at the start of the year, Scott confirmed things would be different for the Cats in 2022.
“In terms of game style, we took about six weeks to say, ‘let’s approach this as if we’re a new group and if we’re just starting from scratch, so how would we do it?’,” he said.
“Since then, they’ve had a far bigger appetite for risk, a greater willingness to attack through the corridor, to handball forward, to play on.”
The introduction of young talent, from Sam De Koning in defence, to Max Holmes across the wing, to delisted free agent turned All-Australian Tyson Stengle, has certainly helped.
That willingness to change has not only propelled Geelong to premiership favouritism in 2022, but it has earned the side praise for just how big a risk it took.
“There was a lot of noise about Geelong, about the adjustments they’d made,” Nick Riewoldt said during Fox Footy’s On The Couch this week.
“They were coming from a base of being a very, very good team. The risk they took, to blow everything up, to blow the program up, to do what they did with their assistant coaches, to change the game plan, I think it’s important to reflect on that.
“There was comfort in familiarity for them because they were very, very good but they blew it up thinking that jeez, if we get a decent spot on the starting grid, the changes we make will suit us come September.
“Now we’re there, they’ve got the number one spot on the grid and they’re as well placed as they’ve ever been. It’s been an unbelievable job from Chris Scott.”
Now, the Cats face their ultimate test: Converting home-and-away form into finals form.
They’ll have 20 minutes of game time to prove the doubters wrong, one suspects – the goals they’ve scored in the first quarters of their first finals? Two (2021), one (2020), one (2019), zero (2018) and zero (2017).
“In all those finals they’ve kicked less than 10 goals. That’s not going to get it done, especially not in the modern game,” Jonathan Brown said alongside Riewoldt.
“However, I think it‘s different this year, there’s no doubt they’ve improved the ball movement, they’re moving the ball faster so they’re getting greater territory.
“But that is hanging over their head.”
But triple premiership forward Cameron Mooney believes there’s something different about the 2022 version compared to past Geelong sides.
“I always felt like there was a gamestyle there wasn’t quite ‘finals gamestyle’ – they might disagree with that, but that’s just me from the outside looking in,” Mooney told foxfooty.com.au. “I always thought with their ability to score they always went too slow.
“But this year the way they move the ball forward – not sideways or backwards, it’s positive ball movement – allows, I think, the best forward line in the competition to go to work.
“For years, I would watch that forward line be crowded with opposition players in finals because they moved the ball slow and then everybody would jump on Hawkins’ back. It’s very hard to kick goals when you’re outnumbered in your forward line.
“Hopefully this year with better ball movement, more speed and more youth, I feel we’ll see a different result.”
The Cats have broken new ground so many times this season. Now comes the final straight and the ultimate test.
