Home ground gives the Cats a four-goal start, says ex-coach

FORMER Adelaide and Geelong coach Malcolm Blight believes the reasons Simonds Stadium is such an enormous home-ground advantage are plain and hidden.

It ticks every box of other venues that favour home teams — and then adds a couple.

The main reason is its shape.

At 117m, it is the narrowest ground used in the AFL despite being longer than most.

It has played a part in dictating the way Geelong plays and the club that has won the most games in the modern era.

But other factors have played a part in it becoming a fortress.

Among them are: GEELONG has been an outstanding team, which makes going to the ground a challenge; INTERSTATE teams first have to make their way to Melbourne, then to Geelong; PLAYERS stay in their beds, arrive rested and to familiar surroundings, like other teams with home-ground advantage; GEELONG is one of the few teams that trains on its home venue; and, OPPOSITION supporters don’t tend to travel there en masse.

“Part of it is the ground because you just don’t get the space like you do on every other ground,” Blight said.

“There’s about a four-goal advantage when you play at home.

“Also there are two trips for interstate clubs to get down there. There are all these little boxes that seem to favour them.”

The fact the Cats train where they play should not be underestimated.

The argument is that if you do all of your summer training and drills and set up your structures at the ground, you know it that much better.

Adelaide assistant coach Scott Camporeale recognised the challenge.

“They play it really well,” Camporeale said. “It’s obviously narrower, but they structure up really well defensively and particularly there.”