Cats almost skinned by Suns but still peaking at right time says coach

IT WAS the sun-soaked gamble that could easily have sabotaged Geelong's AFL premiership defence as they almost tripped up on the Gold Coast.

Paul Chapman

IT WAS the sun-soaked gamble that, going on the evidence of Carlton's demise on the Gold Coast on Saturday night, could easily have sabotaged Geelong's premiership defence.

The Cats' seven-day winter getaway on the Coast, packed with resort-style activities, nearly backfired as the Suns fell 14 points short of a Round 15 boilover at Carrara.

But unlike the Blues, who paid dearly for their laidback approach on their visit north, the Cats' visit to "Club Metricon" was just the break they needed to recharge their batteries for a punishing run towards the finals.

Geelong, teetering just inside the top eight at the time, have found their claws since their week in the sun, with a six-from-eight stretch included the prized scalps of top-four teams Adelaide and the Hawks, and a thumping win against Essendon in round 17.

Their only losses in that period were to Collingwood and West Coast, narrowly, in Perth and the Cats can seal a home elimination final by beating second-placed Sydney in Geelong on Saturday.

"We've got Gold Coast then a hard run home," Mathew Stokes said at the time of Geelong's Coast visit.

Almost 1800km away from a cold, dark Victorian winter, the Cats enjoyed rounds of golf, a visit to Wet 'n' Wild and a fan day at Broadbeach.

They frolicked at the beach, although Stokes and Taylor Hunt were rescued from the surf by lifeguards after getting caught in a rip.

"Our best footy has been against the harder teams. We'll back ourselves to win those games," Stokes said.

"The reality is we're looking forward to the remainder of the year and those tough teams. Any team that plays us in the finals, if we make it, will probably be scared."

A day after Carlton president Stephen Kernahan criticised the Blues for treating their clash with the Suns as a holiday, Geelong's Chris Scott claimed earlier this week his team was peaking at the right time.

"We're close to our best," the coach said.

"I don't think we were on the weekend (against the Western Bulldogs) but in recent times, against the very best opposition, when it counts, we've played good footy.

"When the game's been on the line against good teams we've played well.

"The challenge for us now is to maintain that form for all four quarters and take that into, hopefully, four games in the finals series."