Field Marshal: Missing goals the easy answer behind Geelong’s form slump

GEELONG’S sudden form slump has left coach Chris Scott scratching his head. But the answer is simple — missing goals hurts.

Patrick Dangerfield had a couple of missed chances against Collingwood the previous round. Picture: Colleen Petch

SOMETIMES it’s the simple things.

In a sport where sophisticated, new-age game plans and tactics dominate discussion, it’s still about doing the basics well.

Let’s take Geelong, where a highly promising start to the season has hit a speed hump.

A fortnight ago the Cats were 7-1, in second spot on the ladder with the AFL’s meanest defence, it’s second-best offence and its biggest percentage.

Then they lost consecutive games to Collingwood and Carlton, leaving Chris Scott searching for reasons why his side is a “shadow” of their former selves.

“I’m trying to work it out. There are lots of little pieces but there’s nothing obvious,” Scott said on Sunday.

“Sometimes ... I have a very good idea, I’m just not prepared to talk about it publicly. This is not one of those situations. We’ll keep digging.”

Scott should have reverted to the old saying ‘Bad kicking is bad football’, because it’s as much a truism today as it was when TV was in black and white.

It’s simplistic, but a key reason for the Cats’ recent struggles has to be because they can’t put the ball through the big sticks.

They rank 13th for shot at goal accuracy after 10 rounds, converting 48.9 per cent of all attempts.

But it’s in the last month that flaw has started to take a toll. In its past four matches, Geelong has recorded a shot at goal accuracy of 44.6 per cent — ranked 17th.

Patrick Dangerfield had a couple of missed chances against Collingwood the previous round. Picture: Colleen Petch

Their opposition in that stretch — West Coast, Adelaide, Collingwood and Carlton — have combined for a deadeye 61.8 per cent; the most accurate percentage given up by any side.

A high “oppo” accuracy percentage points to Geelong giving up easy shots.

Easy shots points to a lack of Geelong pressure. A Cats side ruthlessly difficult to score against in the early rounds is now being cut open.

The Cats’ wonky kicking at their attacking end is bringing so much good work undone.

Geelong ranks second in the competition for inside 50m differential, yet only eighth for goals per inside 50m.

The Carlton game was only the second time the Cats had lost the inside 50m count for the year.

The Cats also lead the league in shots at goal differential, amassing 103 more attempts than their rivals in the first 10 games.

But in what is quickly becoming the achilles heel of their season, at quarter-time against the Blues it was 3.6 to 4.0.

The Cats had five more scoring shots, but the scores were level.

History says it’s a profligacy that won’t cut it come September. Seven of the last nine premiers have ranked sixth or better for goalkicking accuracy.

When Hawthorn was a shaky 4-4 last year, it was because it was only 11th for accuracy. Come seasons end, it was No.1 for the third straight season.