Gary Buckenara analyses Geelong’s list after the 2020 season
Jeremy Cameron and Tom Hawkins will form one of the game’s most feared forward duos, writes Gary Buckenara. Will it be enough to win a premiership?
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Time is running out for Geelong to win a premiership with this group.
The Cats have done a great job to rejuvenate the list while remaining in premiership contention but they’ve lacked that last 5-10 per cent required to be a premiership team, which was evidenced by what occurred in this year’s Grand Final.
Geelong has been a good team but they must find those extra pieces to become a great team or they’ll look back on this time – with superstars Tom Hawkins, Patrick Dangerfield and Joel Selwood – as an enormous missed opportunity. It will hurt big time. You don’t often get such an elite group playing together so you must make the most of it.
With that in mind, and with Gary Ablett and Harry Taylor the only stars retiring, it’s hard to see Geelong going backwards in the next year or two – especially with the addition of Jeremy Cameron.
The list is ageing but the fact is Hawkins just won the Coleman Medal as a 32-year-old, Selwood and Zach Tuohy are both playing high-quality footy and Dangerfield, Mark Blicavs and Mitch Duncan, despite being 29-30 years old, still have several good years left. Even Lachie Henderson (30), who was a last-minute signing for this year, was an integral part of the team and has surely earned another contract.
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Geelong will be a premiership contender next year but the window of opportunity to win a flag with those players is closing. It’s why they’re taking risks and being very aggressive in the trade and free agency space.
The Cats are topping up and looking for class players who can provide that extra 5-10 per cent they need to win a premiership. It’s why they’ve signed Isaac Smith, will trade for Jeremy Cameron and are expected also secure Shaun Higgins — despite the age of Smith and Higgins. Higgins is still an A-grader, while Smith has good footy left in him and both can provide another dimension to an already elite midfield, while also hurting teams on the scoreboard. Geelong fans won’t care if those players only give them two or three years of service if those two or three years include a premiership.
It’s a credit to list manager Stephen Wells and more broadly Selwood and coach Chris Scott that the club can even be in the market for Cameron. Clearly there’s a team-first culture at Geelong where players have accepted less money than they could earn elsewhere so the group can stay together and lure stars from rival clubs in a bid to win a flag. Many clubs, like GWS, could learn a lot from Geelong.
But if the silverware cupboard is left empty, then what was it all for?
LIST NEEDS
Geelong has a very balanced list and despite inevitable injury and form issues, they’ve built enough depth over time to cover that by giving regular senior games to younger players like Quinton Narkle, Gryan Miers, Mark O’Connor, Esava Ratugolea and Jordan Clark among others. With six players aged 21 or under with the potential to develop into A or B-grade players, Geelong has still been able to draft elite young talent while playing finals. That means they can afford to take risks with established players and top up to win a premiership. An established key forward to help Hawkins would be ideal as well as a developing or established ruckman even though Rhys Stanley had a good season.
TRADE TARGETS
Cameron will be an unbelievable get. A Cameron-Hawkins attack will be one of the great forward partnerships we’ve seen. He can play as a roaming centre half forward and Hawkins deep, while both have the ability to switch roles which will give the coaches the option to mix things up if one is being well held.
GWS has matched Geelong’s free agency bid so they’ll need to satisfy the Giants in a trade. The best deal I’d offer is picks 15, 37 and Charlie Constable.
Higgins looks likely to join and while he’s 32, he’s still an A-grader who has at least two or three good years left. Geelong has three first-round picks – one or two likely to head to GWS for Cameron, but I’d have no hesitation trading one of them to the Kangaroos for Higgins, given he’s contracted. If the Cats get him for less than a first-round pick it will be an absolute steal.
UNTOUCHABLES
Hawkins, Stanley, Dangerfield, Selwood, Duncan, Clark, Blicavs, O’Connor, Ratugolea, Tuohy, Miers, Brandon Parfitt, Jake Kolodjasnij, Jed Bews, Luke Dahlhaus, Cam Guthrie, Sam Menegola, Lachie Fogarty, Gary Rohan and Tom Stewart.
TRADE BAIT
Nakia Cockatoo’s career has been wrecked by injuries and after playing just 34 games in six seasons it appears he’s decided it’s time to move to a new club to reinvigorate his career. The Cats won’t get much in return given his injury issues.
Constable is looking at his options and he’s the player I’d be willing to give up in the Cameron trade. The Giants are reportedly interested in Ratugolea but he’s got big upside and I wouldn’t consider trading him, especially if the Giants have interest in other players.
Has Parfitt signed the rumoured two-year deal yet? If he hasn’t, clubs will come hard for him because he’s very talented and could be tempted if he sees an opportunity to play full-time midfield. GWS will want him in the Cameron deal but I’d be happier to give up Constable as Parfitt will become an integral part of the midfield when Selwood retires.
RATING THE LIST
A-grade: Dangerfield, Hawkins, Selwood, Tuohy, Stewart
B: Bews, Blicavs, Dahlhaus, Duncan, C. Guthrie, Henderson, Kolodjashnij, Menegola, O’Connor, Parfitt, Rohan, Stanley
C: Atkins, Close, Cockatoo, Fort, Z. Guthrie, Jenkins, Narkle, Okunbor, Ratugolea, Simpson, Steven
Developing (with A-B grade potential): Clark, Constable, Fogarty, Henry, Miers, Stephens
Developing: Brownless, De Koning, Evans, Jarvis, Kreuger, Taheny, Tarca
What the ratings mean:
A-grade: Elite player on any AFL list
B: Top 10-18 player on most lists
C: An 18-30 player on a list
Developing: Aged 21 or under
CRYSTAL BALL
Geelong will be a premiership contender again next year and if they can secure Cameron and Higgins to go with Smith, then the opportunity to win a flag becomes very real. But time is ticking given Selwood (32), Hawkins (32) and Tuohy (31 in December) are nearing the end of their careers, while Dangerfield (30) and even Blicavs (29) and Duncan (29) are ageing. The Cats need to win a premiership with this group because if they don’t, history won’t look back on them kindly. They’ll have the underachiever tag – the team that failed to win when it mattered.
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Originally published as Gary Buckenara analyses Geelong’s list after the 2020 season
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