AFL 2021: Geelong’s huge investment in mature talent could prove costly if patchy form continues
Hawthorn had to draw a line in the sand after hanging on a year too long. And for the ageing Cats, it remains to be seen if they will suffer a similar fate.
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Hawthorn might have tried to hang on for one year too long.
It is hard to fault the Hawks’ recruiting genius over much of the club’s golden reign, but it was a big call to trade-in Chad Wingard in exchange for a first-round draft pick (Xavier Duursma) and youngster Ryan Burton at the end of 2018.
Clearly, Alastair Clarkson’s men thought they still had a genuine shot, and when they won six of their last eight games at the end of 2019 and then triumphed in three of their first four last year including wins over Richmond and Brisbane, you can understand why the Hawks still believed they were good enough.
But when the club lost 11 of their last 13 games last season, it was time to draw a line in the sand.
It was time to rebuild. Time for a new era.
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Now, the footy world watches with interest what direction the Cats take after late last year making an even bigger investment in more mature talent to add to what was already one of the competition’s oldest lists.
Rather than hit the draft hard, Geelong opted for the ultimate top-up in the belief the premiership window – after leading Richmond at half time in last year’s Grand Final – was still wide open.
Jeremy Cameron, Shaun Higgins and Isaac Smith all looked like great gets for a team in flag mode.
But over the first three rounds of 2021, Chris Scott’s men have been somewhat patchy. And now the question has bobbed up, how close are the Cats to the edge of the premiership cliff?
They got belted by wooden-spooner Adelaide in the first round, got lucky against Brisbane when a late free kick to the Lions went begging, and on Easter Monday just held on against the young and fast-finishing Hawks.
Had Hawthorn pair Daniel Howe and Sam Frost not coughed the ball up three times in dangerous parts of the ground late in the last quarter, the Hawks might have pinched one of their most extraordinary Easter Monday wins.
And this Sunday at the MCG, another significant test against a much-improved Melbourne awaits a Geelong team, which will be without Patrick Dangerfield (suspended), Higgins (hamstring) and the man they gave up three high draft picks for – Cameron – who is also on the comeback from a second hamstring strain.
Premiership hero Tom Hawkins, who had nine marks and eight score involvements in the thrilling five-point win over the Hawks, agrees the Cats have been unconvincing so far this season.
But last year’s Coleman Medalist is still very confident in what the club can achieve in 2021, especially once Cameron sidles up next to him in the hoops in a few weeks’ time.
“We are still finding our feet,” Hawkins said.
“Sides are surprising right across the competition so far this year.
“Not that we think we are in decline, and, not that we want to decline as a footy club, but we just need to find that consistency for longer periods.”
The cracks have appeared largely in last quarters, with the Cats being outscored in the final stanzas 2.3 to 8.6 over the past two games.
The obvious question is ‘have the Cats still got the legs?’
Hawkins was unconcerned by the fade-outs over the past fortnight.
“I don’t think so. If it became a trend over a long period then you would look at it,” he said.
“But we clearly weren’t ready to play against a side that were playing some pretty good footy over Adelaide in Round 1 and the Crows rolled us and did it pretty easy.
“We played some good footy against Brisbane, but weren’t able to execute for long periods and a little bit again today (against Hawthorn) it was similar.
“We were sort of up by 20 points during periods, but we weren’t playing our best footy.”
There were some big moments on Monday, as Tom Atkins bee-lined a tough ball in a two-on-one situation in the frantic final few minutes and Jack Henry played a massive hand at both ends, chopping off the Howe inboard klick which ended with an exhilarating Jordan Clark goal.
Hawkins, unselfish as always, handballed over the top to Henry who then gave it off to Clark who goaled from point blank range at the end of a blinding 100m run down the middle.
Hawkins said Scott made the call at half time to swing Henry forward and he didn’t disappoint at either end, only a fortnight after he was surprisingly dropped for the Round 1 loss to the Crows.
“Jack came forward, and we talked about how he is an impact player and Scotty wanted him to kick a goal and that second one he kicked was a bonus,” Hawkins said.
“But that one (which started with Henry’s intercept and finished with Clark’s blinding run) was brilliant.
“He (Henry) has moments like that.
“And when you are feeding off the crowd and you are in the moment and you are trying to execute a play in a big moment, just the rush of adrenaline you get afterwards is unbelievable
“And I think both sides felt it when they (Hawks) pushed late.
“But that was a really special goal for us.”
Hawkins faces one of the best defensive setups in the league on Sunday when he takes on the combined might of Steven May and Jake Lever who have started the season in All-Australian form and have led the Demons to a 3-0 start to the season.
On Monday, the Cats played with Hawkins as a sole key forward, with help from swingman Henry in the second half and ruckman Rhys Stanley.
But it is not their preferred structure in front of the ball.
With Esava Ratugolea still out, Hawkins says he cannot wait to join forces with Cameron, potentially in a few weeks.
Especially with the new rules favouring key forwards like himself when teams move the ball quickly.
Geelong was more patient, if not slow with the ball in hand on Easter Monday, but the return of Cameron, Hawkins said, could change things considerably.
“Coming in as a recruit and not being able to play (Round 1), after (hurting himself) almost in the last minute or on the last day (of pre-season training), that was really disappointing,” he said.
“I know how excited he was and it has been really frustrating for him.
“But he is doing the work and he looks in really good shape and he surprised me with just how much he has a footy in his hands. It is always in his hands.
“He has got the laid-back aspect of lifestyle with fishing and his hunting but he always has a footy in his hands. He loves the game.
“So I’m really craving the opportunity to play with him because he is such a talented player and it will be great.
“Even as the season evolves there will be more and more space and I think when Jezza comes back, having another real threat in front of goal will make a real difference to us.
“Teams can afford (at the moment) to be a bit more conscious of me on my own as a one-out key forward.
“But I think as we get used to the rules and evolve I think we will see some pretty big scores kicked, and it has been really exciting to watch so far this season.”
SOFT TISSUE INJURIES STRIKE AGAIN AT GEELONG
Geelong will be without another star midfielder for Sunday’s clash against Melbourne after losing gun playmaker Shaun Higgins to a hamstring injury.
The club’s soft tissue woes continued in Monday’s win over Hawthorn when Higgins hobbled off in the third term clutching the back of his right leg.
Higgins will have scans on the injury on Tuesday to assess the extent of the damage.
The two midfield blows will test the Cats’ depth for the crunch clash against a much-improved Melbourne side and also raise questions about the age and durability of the Cats side.
However, speedster Max Holmes impressed in his debut on Monday after Francis Evans showed exciting signs forward in his first AFL game in the thrilling win over Brisbane Lions last weekend.
But Evans also faces a stint on the sidelines after suffering an ankle injury early in Monday’s win over Hawthorn.
There were fears Evans had sustained a high ankle or possible syndesmosis injury.
Smith was quiet in his first match against his old side and the Hawthorn fans jeered the premiership hero throughout the four quarters.
There was little niggle from his old Hawthorn mates throughout the game despite a warning from coach Alastair Clarkson they would not show him any friendliness.
Hawthorn Brownlow Medalist Tom Mitchell will also face scrutiny for a gut punch on tagger Mark O’Connor in the third term.
O’Connor floored Mitchell with a bump first which clearly annoyed Mitchell who quickly retaliated with a whack to O’Connor’s stomach in the centre square.
Geelong was paid the free kick and Mitchell could be fined under the AFL’s gut punch rules.
Cam Guthrie was the star of the day, finishing up with a career-high 43 disposals (15 contested), 10 clearances and 11 marks in what was arguably the best game he has ever produced.
With Patrick Dangerfield (suspension), Cameron (hamstring), Sam Menegola (shoulder), Esava Ratugolea (leg), Gary Rohan (suspension) and Sam Simpson (shoulder) all missing, and then losing Higgins and Evans (ankle) during the game, Scott said the victory would help foster belief within the playing group.
In some good news from the medical room, Menegola looks like he will return next week to face Melbourne.
Smith almost missed Hawks clash
Isaac Smith was booed all afternoon on Easter Monday, but the former Hawk had the last laugh as his new team Geelong survived a late scare to run out five-point winners in a thriller at the MCG.
When Brandan Parfitt snapped truly late in the third quarter to put the Cats up by 30 points, it looked like Geelong were headed for a big win.
But the Hawks refused to give in, kicking six of the last eight goals to cut the margin to the less than a kick before falling short of what would’ve been a memorable victory.
The Cats continued their dominance of the marquee fixture, making it eight wins from 10 on the public holiday against their arch rival.
Geelong coach Chris Scott joked that his side shaved another six months off his life during the thrilling five-point win.
That would equate to a whole year lost for Scott in just the past 11 days after the Cats hung on for a one-point heart-stopper against the Brisbane Lions in Round 2.
On that occasion, Geelong watched a 21-point lead at three-quarter time evaporate before fighting back to clinch the victory, but Scott wasn’t concerned about a fade out trend developing with his team early in the season.
“(We were) good enough to hang in there and I think it adds to the list of great games that the two clubs (Geelong and Hawthorn) have played,” Scott said post-match
“It’s less about the people and the personnel, and more about the great histories of the clubs.
“I’m not here to defend it but it’s a better position to be in to be four goals up, five goals up and just hang in.
“It’s probably incumbent on both sides to make sure it (Easter Monday) is a good occasion, we didn’t give them a couple of goals late just to make it a better game, that’s for sure, but I think it was a pretty good game.”
Smith gave the Hawks fans a bit to boo about, especially early in the game when he set up Tom Hawkins’ first goal with a sublime pass onto the big Cat’s chest.
Smith would finish with 15 touches and six marks but, as the game wore on, he was receiving as many cheers from Geelong fans as boos from the brown and gold army.
Scott revealed Smith’s appearance against his former club almost didn’t happen.
“It wasn’t another game for Isaac Smith … but he only just made it to line,” Scott said.
“He was ill in the last couple of days, and that kind of added to the pressure a little bit for him and we had a few other issues as well.
“He couldn’t come to training yesterday, he was still pretty crook yesterday … clearly he was affected but I thought he was good for us.”
Smith was booed by Hawthorn fans every time he got the ball, but Scott thought the former Hawk handled the day pretty well.
“He’s a confident sort of guy, and I thought our players really supported him,” he said.
“It would be naive to say, ‘Don’t worry about it, don’t think about’. It’s like saying, ‘Don’t think about an apple’, and all you can think about is an apple – you need to address it.
“I don’t think there’s a player out there who’s being honest that doesn’t feel like there’s an extra edge to these sort of games – it’s very, very rare for a Hawthorn player to come to Geelong or vice versa.”
Cats champion stands up for Smith
Three-time Geelong premiership player Paul Chapman condemned Hawthorn fans for booing Smith during the match, labelling them a “joke supporter base”.
Smith was given a frosty reception by the Hawks faithful on Monday despite playing a crucial role in their three-peat and playing 210 games for his former club.
Hawthorn supporterrs - shame on you. A 3 time premiership player goes to another club and you boo him..
— Paul Chapman (@paulchapman03) April 5, 2021
Thank you geelong supporters for being more understanding.
Love you guys - respect â¤ï¸
You’re a goose champ. Nothing wrong with making an opposition player feel uncomfortable.. I’d be more concerned with the performance against a bottom 4 side
— John Polizzi (@johnpolizzi_) April 5, 2021
Chapman, who played 251 games for Geelong before crossing to another club in the twilight of his career, like Smith, thanked Cats supporters for being more understanding.
“Hawthorn supporters - shame on you. A three-time premiership player goes to another club and you boo him... Thank you Geelong supporters for being more understanding. Love you guys - respect,” he said.
Met with an angry response from a fan, Chapman replied, “joke supporter base” with several thumbs down emojis.
Howe not to blame for failure
Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson insisted Daniel Howe was not to blame for the Hawks’ loss.
The 25-year-old committed a pair of costly turnovers late in the game, which led to Geelong scores, as the Hawks were mounting a late charge to the finish line.
The first instance happened at the 20-minute mark of the final quarter when Henry intercepted Howe’s centring kick at centre-half forward to set up the Clark goal.
The second occurred about 10 minutes later when, trailing by just four points, Howe attempted to pass it to Changkuoth Jiath in the back pocket, but kicked it over his head and the ball trickled out for a boundary throw-in.
Shortly after, Tom Hawkins hit the post from a sharp angle.
“They were switch opportunities and at that point in the game to give ourselves a chance to get ourselves back into the game, we had to take our chances,” Clarkson said.
“He didn’t execute it as well as he’d like but was following instructions in terms of trying to generate some open space ball movement so we could put pressure on the Geelong side and in the endeavour to do that, we made two errors.
“But they were two errors of 100 that we made over the course of the day so I know that the lads got around him, but mistakes happen in games of footy.
“He’ll feel pretty low and feel like he’s contributed to the loss.
“Our spirit and our endeavour and our intent was commendable, but our polish with the ball and our capacity to be able to execute to hurt the Geelong side when they’re trying to defend just wasn’t at the level that we need to be right at this point in time.”
However, Clarkson drew solace from the fact that his developing side put in a pair of strong performances against last year’s grand finalists Richmond and Geelong in consecutive weeks without being able to secure victory.
“We’ve shown in both those games that there’s been passages of play where when we move the ball well and our intent is really strong, we’re right in games of footy,” Clarkson said.
But the four-time premiership mentor admitted that given all the new rules that have been introduced to the game this year, he wasn’t sure exactly where his side stood after three rounds of the season.
“What’s reality in terms of the game? I’m looking at it and saying Richmond and Geelong are grand finalists from last year so they’re going to be up there again somewhere, but we’ve played them in the last two weeks and I’d be kidding myself if I thought that they were playing their most scintillating footy right now at the minute,” he said.
“Is that because we’re close to them? Or they’re just not playing as well.
“I think we’re seeing a more exciting brand of footy … I think by and large the whole competition has looked for ways we can get more offense into our game rather than defence and I think the evidence in three rounds of footy thus far would suggest that’s a good thing for the game.”
Scoreboard
GEELONG 3.3 6.4 9.7 10.9 (69)
def
HAWTHORN 2.1 3.5 5.7 9.10 (64)
GOALS
Cats: Hawkins 2, Henry 2, Miers, Tuohy, Blicavs, Constable, Parfitt, Clark
Hawks: Breust 2, Lewis 2, Wingard, McEvoy, Koschitzke, Moore, Brockman
RONNY LERNER’S BEST
Cats: Guthrie, O’Connor, Duncan, Stewart, Henderson, Henry
Hawks: O’Meara, Jiath, Shiels, Impey, Breust, Wingard
RONNY LERNER’S VOTES
3 — C.Guthrie (Geel)
2 — M.O’Connor (Geel)
1 — J.O’Meara (Haw)
INJURIES
Cats: Higgins (hamstring), Evans (ankle)
Hawks: Nil.
UMPIRES
Chamberlain, Meredith, Wallace
VENUE: MCG
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