All the Geelong Cats news ahead of a round 18 clash with Carlton
Sam Simpson’s concussion battle meant he couldn’t even watch football in the early days. Here is how he got himself back to the field, one step at a time.
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To get footy back, Sam Simpson had to give it up.
During the worst days of his concussion battle, the Geelong midfielder literally had to get away from the game.
Just trying to track the ball around the field was enough for his head to spin out and double vision to kick in.
Mundane things were off the table in those early days, he couldn’t watch TV or scroll on his phone.
Even his usual ritual of joining his Cats teammates in doing a newspaper quiz at GMHBA Stadium became too much.
But he never considered giving up on footy. Instead, Simpson saw neurologists in Melbourne once a week and found exercises to help his brain back to normal, before he even thought about footy training.
“It wasn’t too much fun. I’m definitely glad to be back to normal,” he said.
“Even the day-to-day (exercises), it was first things first (away from footy) and then it was about getting back to footy.
“I was in a spin 24-7 for a couple of months there. Things made it worse, like running and stuff at the start. My vision would get worse with that.
“To be honest at the start, I couldn’t even watch footy. In terms of tracking the ball it was something that would really trigger me, I just had to put it on the back burner a little bit knowing that it was going to be good for my foot in the long-run.
“I just had to dumb things down and then get right and get back to footy after that.”
While Simpson was rocked, it took time for symptoms to take hold after he was brought down in a tackle in the pre-season.
It was so close to Geelong’s first pre-season clash that he would have just cleared the AFL’s mandatory 12-day concussion period to play, but instead his condition worsened.
“It was a pretty typical tackle where the head hit the ground and I was stunned by it,” he said.
“It actually wasn’t too bad originally. I just progressively got worse and I was in the stage where everything was spinning for a couple of months and it was a bit of double vision.
“All the day-to-day stuff was difficult and I had to find the balance of not doing too much but also retraining things to get through it as well.”
Once he could get back in the club, Simpson locked himself down with Geelong rehab and conditioning guru Paddy Hogben to plan a return to the field.
He was constantly spotted running laps at Cats training but Simpson still tried to get his hands on the footy and he even acted as an assistant coach for a VFL game.
Having played just 19 AFL games across five years – which includes the 2020 grand final – Simpson used the time to put in a mountain of work on his body.
It wasn’t until mid-June that the silky midfielder was allowed to step into contact drills – even if he wanted to jump in sooner.
“I tried to sneak into a few little contact drills early and stuff that the boys had a little laugh about,” he said.
“It has been clear all along … the plans have been really good and the club has been great about it as well.”
Simpson has hope of earning his way back into the AFL side but first he will play his first game of the season in the VFL against Carlton on Saturday.
It will be a big Saturday for Hogben’s rehab group, with draftee James Willis also playing his first game of the year after a long-term knee injury.
Out-of-contract at the end of this season, Simpson has no worries about what his future holds beyond this year.
He has learned in the last six months to deal with what is in front of him, to get back into normal life and back into footy, before worrying about what is ahead.
SCOTT SEES NO NEED FOR COVID SHAKE UP
Geelong coach Chris Scott doesn’t see the need for any adjustments to the AFL rules should there be a major Covid outbreak within a club before a final.
The Cats have made some small changes around the club to ward off an internal outbreak after midfielder Brandan Parfitt was ruled out of action this week due to Covid protocols.
As the disease begins to spread again across AFL clubs – Brisbane was hit hard last weekend, five players were ruled out of Friday night’s clash between St Kilda and the Western Bulldogs and Ken Hinkley will not coach Port Adelaide on Sunday due to the virus – Scott said he was expecting a “challenging two months for the wider community”.
But if a large group of players went down within one team before a final, the Cats leader doesn’t see the need for any changes to protect the integrity of the league.
Each club has a “Covid list” it can call upon to top up on players if too many are ruled out at any stage this season as a way to make sure games are played.
“What affects the integrity more is changing the rules mid-season,” Scott said.
“The AFL got ahead of it at the start of the year and put a range of protocols in place (to clubs) if they needed it and that is in place.
“I don’t see any reason to change it, you wouldn’t change it if a club had 12 hamstring injuries.”
Scott would not be drawn on how Parfitt was faring or whether his housemate Tyson Stengle had to change his movements this week ahead of Saturday’s blockbuster against Carlton.
Midfielder Quinton Narkle also lived with Parfitt this season but recently moved into his own place.
“We will let you know if guys are available or not but any more detail than that, we won’t be too forthcoming,” Scott said.
As it begins to gear up towards finals, Geelong is still keeping an open mind about its ruck division with Jonathon Ceglar to play his second game back after a broken foot in the VFL on Saturday.
Scott said the Cats are keen to get a look at the former Hawk at the top level before finals.
“He is playing VFL this weekend and that will leave five AFL games to go after that,” Scott said.
“The intention is to try and get him into the team and I am not exactly sure how that is going to work at the moment.”
PARFITT RULED OUT OF BLUES RETURN THROUGH COVID
Geelong midfielder Brandan Parfitt’s return from a broken hand has been pushed back due to Covid protocols, as defender Jake Kolodjashnij returns for a blockbuster clash with Carlton.
Parfitt trained early this week and was declared available to make his return after a six-week lay-off this weekend but will instead be kept away from the club for a week.
He joins the likes of Kolodjashnij and Gary Rohan as Cats to miss a game this year due to Covid protocols.
Geelong is not alone in dealing with Covid effects this week, with five players to miss Friday night’s crunch clash between Western Bulldogs and St Kilda for the same reason.
Kolodjashnij missed last week’s stunning win over Melbourne due to concussion protocols and will take Jed Bews’ spot in the side this weekend, with the speedy defender managed.
Carlton has added Liam Stocker to its side, alongside Will Hayes who was the club’s medical-sub last week.
Josh Honey and Lochie O’Brien have been axed by the Blues.
Kolodjashnij will walk back into a defence primed to take on Carlton kingpins Harry McKay and Charlie Curnow, and his extra height could be crucial for the Cats, given the likes of Blues superstar Patrick Cripps can float forward and become a target.
Rising defender Sam De Koning is likely to draw the match-up on McKay, with Jack Henry favoured to man Curnow.
Blues ruck Marc Pittonet (knee) had been close to a return to face Geelong but will instead play VFL, leaving Tom De Koning to start in the middle.
Geelong has named Bews as an emergency, opening the door for him to be handed the medical-sub role, alongside Cooper Stephens, Esava Ratugolea and Shannon Neale.
Carlton has named Sam Durdin, Will Setterfield, O’Brien and Honey as its emergencies.
The MCG clash will have a big bearing on the top-four, with the Cats hoping to hold on to top spot.
HIGGINS EXPECTED BACK SOON AFTER KNEE SURGERY
Veteran Cat Shaun Higgins is expected to be back on field “well and truly before the season is out” despite knee surgery last week.
The midfielder underwent a minor clean out of his knee after a season marred by soreness that had kept him out of action for almost two months.
Higgins played one VFL game on June 26 and collected five handballs as an AFL medical-sub in round 16 against North Melbourne, when he was brought into the game in the final quarter to replace Jake Kolodjashnij (concussion), his only appearances since playing against Fremantle on April 30.
He was back moving around at GMHBA Stadium on Wednesday, running on the club’s Alt-G machine, which simulates movement without gravity to ease pressure on the legs.
Higgins is expected to return to the field early next month, giving him a chance to break back into Geelong’s AFL side before finals.
“He is highly professional and we see him playing football well and truly before the season is out,” Geelong football boss Simon Lloyd said.
A 260-game veteran with the Western Bulldogs, North Melbourne and now Geelong, Higgins, 34, is the oldest player on Geelong’s list and appears likely to be in the midst of his final season.
Only five active players – Todd Goldstein, Paddy Ryder, Robbie Gray Callan Ward and Daniel Rich – have played more games than Higgins without appearing in a grand final.
While he has played just one AFL game since round 7, Higgins has worked hard to help his teammates on their push to finals, even acting as a pseudo assistant coach during a trip to play West Coast back in round 14.
“We had a bit of a skeleton staff, a few of our key people were missing and Shaun is such an experienced guy and plays such an important role around our coaching and off-field that it was decided that dual role was more important in that week than him playing VFL,” Chris Scott said after that game.
‘NO CONCERNS’ FOR SIMPSON ON CONCUSSION RETURN
Returning Cat Sam Simpson will step back on the field on this weekend with “no concerns” after missing the entire football season so far due to concussion.
The silky Geelong midfielder will play VFL on Saturday afternoon against Carlton, his first official game since he picked up a head knock in an innocuous tackle at training late in pre-season.
Simpson, 24, said he was determined he “won’t change the way I play or go about things” despite a four-month rehab process, one that was tied down by dizzy spells.
For about two months after his injury, Simpson “was in a spin 24-7” and he would see double and he dropped thoughts of playing football to focus on being able to perform routine tasks.
The 19-game AFL onballer never considered giving up his football career and visited neurologists in Melbourne once a week as he plotted a course back to the field.
He said he planned to play without any thoughts of his injury when he takes on the Blues and has hopes of breaking into Geelong’s ladder-leading AFL side before finals.
“I am going to have no concerns about it, it is just footy as usual,” he said.
“I reckon when you are on the park for those two hours, you give it your all.
“If you are out there you are right and you give it your all, that is what I want to be and I want to make an impact for the VFL this week and I suppose just wait and see what happens with the senior side.
“It could be hard to break into, you also never know what happens. Footy is a funny game and if that opportunity comes I will be ready.”
Simpson has been worn down by soft tissue injuries at times in his career but is valued internally, given four of his 19 AFL games have been finals.
He was brought back from a seven-week lay-off to play in a semi-final in 2020 and thrust back into the Geelong side in round 22 last year, before playing a qualifying final.
Having been trusted to join a Cats side in the run to finals in the past, Simpson said he was hopeful of doing it again.
“I have only played 19 games but knowing that four of them have been in big finals, they are the ones you are grateful to be a part of,” he said.
“I suppose it is nice having that under your belt and striving to get back there again.”
I DIDN’T SEE DE KONING RISE COMING: HENDERSON
Former Geelong defender Lachie Henderson did not see Sam De Koning’s meteoric rise coming before this season and he says the breakthrough young Cat has been “brilliant”.
De Koning had played only one AFL match before this season – as a fill-in forward – but began the year by essentially taking the retired Henderson’s spot as Geelong’s most regular tall defender.
The 21-year-old has exploded in his 14 games this year and is arguably the brightest key defensive prospect in the league.
He currently ranks above average in intercept marks, intercept possessions and spoils and controlled the skies in last week’s win over Melbourne.
He will not only come up against his brother Tom for the first time when Geelong meets Carlton on Saturday night, De Koning will also likely stand in-form Blue spearhead Harry McKay.
Henderson said he hadn’t seen the star qualities in De Koning last year but once he saw the athletic tall in action this year it was clear he had star potential.
“I can’t say I could see it coming,” Henderson told SEN.
“He has done a mountain of work, he follower Harry (Taylor) around flat out in 2020.
“I watched round 1 and I saw a few things that made me go ‘wow’, just his bodywork and a couple of decisions he made. From then on, yes, but before that I didn’t think he would have gone as quickly as he has.
“He has been brilliant this year and I actually really enjoy watching him.”
Henderson has been watching Geelong’s season from Queensland, where he is playing with QAFL side Labrador under Sydney premiership player Nick Malceski.
The 206-game swingman, who also played with Brisbane and Carlton, said he wasn’t surprised Geelong is still in premiership contention.
The Cats overhauled their coaching panel around Chris Scott heading into the season, breaking up a long-running group and Henderson said while some changes had to be made, he has only seen some minor tweaks at the club.
“It (the coaching panel) was the same for so long that change was inevitable,” he said.
“I think the same coaches were the same as I had over the whole six years there, I had a lot of different coaches when I was at Carlton.
“It was time to change and there have been some little intricate changes but I don’t think a lot has changed. I think the ball movement has become a bit quicker and that is the main one and some personnel changes have been invigorating for them.”
ATKINS UNSURE OF ROLE DESPITE MIDFIELD BRILLIANCE
Even in the midst of his revelatory run in the midfield, in-form Cat Tom Atkins believes he is “definitely still not out of the back six”.
Flipped into the midfield for the first time in round 10 against Port Adelaide, Atkins has been one of the biggest improvers in the league across the past two months, adding his manic pressure to the Geelong mix and finding plenty of his own ball at the same time.
But the former backman hasn’t forgotten his position, and with Brandan Parfitt due back from a broken hand this week against Carlton, Atkins wouldn’t be surprised if he was pushed to defence.
“I am definitely not out of the back six at the moment, I will probably be back there at some stage,” he said.
“I am just trying to help out in the midfield where I can.”
Atkins has done more than “help out”, with Geelong’s midfield numbers up since he entered the centre square.
Since round 11, Geelong has leapt from seventh to fourth in the AFL for contested possession and clearance differentials, according to Champion Data.
Atkins has led the Cats for tackles in that time and is third on the team for contested possessions and clearance averages.
The Cats have won every one of those six matches, with Atkins spending 88 per cent of his time in the midfield compared to just 8 per cent before round 11.
The decision to move Atkins into the guts came after Geelong’s loss to St Kilda in round 9, when a harsh review found the Cats’ pressure wasn’t up to scratch with Paddy Ryder dominating around the clinches.
“We have got amazing midfielders at the moment, I think I just bring a specific skill which is pressure,” he said.
“(After) the St Kilda game, it was one of the big talking points. We have got such a good defensive back six that can read the ball really well so as long as we can put enough pressure on the midfield than our defenders will chop it off easily.
“It is a very simple skill of the game (pressure), it doesn’t require much skill, I guess it is just intent and mindset.”
Atkins dials up that intent beyond most other players, given his smaller stature for a modern midfielder, he tackles harder than most.
But even after the St Joseph’s product brought Demons James Harmes down in a big tackle on Thursday night, he was thinking about the ones that got away.
“I definitely miss my fair share of tackles, I think I missed Harmes earlier before that,” he said.
“As I have said my whole career, I am sort of second to the ball a lot so you learn how to tackle pretty quickly.”
MARK O’CONNOR’S NEW CONTRACT VIRTUALLY SORTED
Geelong defender Mark O’Connor is “just waiting for some paperwork” after agreeing to terms on a two-year contract extension.
The Irishman, 25, breezed through negotiations earlier this year and while the deal isn’t yet signed, he is set to stay a Cat until the end of 2024.
He joins Max Holmes as two key signatures who have all but signed with the club, while Brandan Parfitt is also closing in on a new deal.
O’Connor briefly considered his future in Australia when returning home to Ireland at the end of last season but once he flew back to Australia, he quickly committed to the cause at Geelong.
An important lockdown defender who can run through the midfield as a tagger, he said his new deal was essentially done.
“I think we are just waiting for some paperwork now,” he said.
“I think terms are all agreed, just waiting on a piece of paper.”
O’Connor and his Cats teammates enjoyed a weekend off after an excellent win over Melbourne on Thursday night, with finals-bound Carlton to come on Saturday night at the MCG.
Geelong moved to the top of the ladder on Thursday night and O’Connor said he thought his team was still improving as it eyes a tilt at the premiership.
“We are trying to build towards the back-end of the year,” he said.
“It’s like we have added another layer onto our game which is nice, hopefully we can keep building.
“It kind of feels like we are a bit under the radar I guess. At this point of the year it is important to put in consistent performances and I feel like we have done that.”
O’Connor has played largely in defence during Geelong’s seven-game winning streak, but was thrown into the midfield in round 14 to tag West Coast captain Luke Shuey.
The hardworking Cat is highly valued internally for his defensive effort and drew the tough match-up on Richmond star Shai Bolton a week later, showing his versatility.
He said it was good to be settled down back but O’Connor is happy to go where he is needed.
“I am actually enjoying a bit of continuity in the one spot,” he said.
“Similar to the team, I am just trying to build my own game in the back end of the year and be consistent now.”
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Originally published as All the Geelong Cats news ahead of a round 18 clash with Carlton
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