HAMMYGEDDON
First Ablett, now Dangerfield succumbs to hamstring injury as Cats face anxious wait ahead of season eason opener against Melbourne.
GEELONG’S much-hyped midfield trinity is crumbling before its eyes after superstar Patrick Dangerfield suffered a hamstring injury in the Cats’ four-point loss to Essendon in Colac yesterday.
The Brownlow medallist joins champion Gary Ablett (hamstring) under an injury cloud for Geelong’s Round 1 clash with Melbourne, leaving captain Joel Selwood as the only fully fit member of the Cats’ dynamic midfield trio.
Dangerfield will have scans on his right hamstring today, after pulling up lame from a kick in the first quarter of yesterday’s clash.
Assistant coach Corey Enright said it was too early to tell how serious Dangerfield’s injury was.
“It’s really too early to tell too much and how significant it is. Obviously there’s something there,” Enright said.
“There’s tightness in the hamstring and he got pulled from the game.
“Probably the next couple of days will be the most important days (and) we will get some more information around that and see how he is.”
IF last week’s game against Gold Coast was about exposing Geelong’s draftees to senior football for the first time, then yesterday’s hit out was about seeing how players respond to adversity.
Yes, it was just a pre-season game, but the Cats went into the contest with the Bombers expecting Patrick Dangerfield and Rhys Stanley to be out on the field.
The pair made up half of Geelong’s starting quartet in the middle of the ground, yet they were done by quarter time.
It took a little while to get a response, but when it came in the third quarter, it was reasonably impressive.
The problem for the Cats was they could not sustain that intensity, and with Essendon turning the tables in the last term and the breeze at Central Reserve playing a helping hand, Chris Scott’s men found themselves on the end of a four-point defeat — their second loss from two JLT Series games.
Pre-season matches can be tricky to gauge, but given Geelong had spoken about how important this one was before the season starts in two weeks, there are some big concerns.
Fitness of key players is one and form of remaining personnel another.
But Scott now has a fortnight to get things right, because Melbourne awaits, and those two sides could not have had any different JLT Series campaigns.
BACKS
IT is amazing just how com- fortable Geelong looked down back with Harry Taylor.
He is the general and without Lachie Henderson his importance is magnified.
Taylor had great support from Jake Kolodjashnij (15 disposals, four mark and six tackles), who will undoubtedly spend most of his time in defence — certainly in the early part of the season — and Tom Stewart and Jed Bews were handy again.
Zach Tuohy (28 possessions and three rebound-50s) was prominent. Zach Guthrie handled himself well and should be a contender for a Round 1 berth.
It looks the most settled area of the ground with Taylor back there, and although it is not the Geelong defence we have come to take for granted, they are working well together.
FORWARDS
THERE still appears to be some issues with efficiency inside-50 but it was a marked improvement on last week in Geelong’s forward line.
The third quarter showed what the Cats are capable of when they moved the ball direct, and while Tom Hawkins finished with five goals, it was his presence that unsettled the Essendon defence.
Provided the delivery is to his advantage, he will nearly always be able to outmark his direct opponent.
Dan Menzel also sent a reminder to Geelong’s coaching staff of his value prowling the forward 50, and with Dangerfield and Stanley in doubt, he will again be vital to the Cats being able to kick a winning score.
His four goals were one thing, but his marking and chasing were also highlights.
WITH Dangerfield missing for most of the match it was Mitch Duncan who stood up, and the West Australian was dominant through the middle of the ground, racking up 38 possessions, five clearances, six marks and four tackles.
Joel Selwood also found plenty of the footy in his first match of the year, and after a 35-disposal game, combined with 12 clearances, five inside-50s, four marks and two tackles, announced that he will hit Round 1 ready to go.
Tim Kelly was quieter but should be a starter in a fortnight.
Charlie Constable picked up where he left off last week, gathering 18 disposals, this time at 77 per cent efficiency and eight marks.
If Dangerfield fails to return for the Melbourne game, Constable could be a surprise Round 1 inclusion.
But the Cats are confident Gary Ablett will be right.
RUCKS
BIG man Zac Smith may well have been at the top of the pecking order in Geelong’s ruck stocks already, but if there was any doubt then it was gone midway through the first quarter when Stanley left the field with a recurrence of the calf complaint that saw him sidelined recently.
Smith was serviceable, finishing with 29 hit-outs in three quarters, and the Cats clearance numbers increased when he came on.
Esava Ratugolea and Mark Blicavs both spent some time providing assistance and whether Ratugolea plays in Round 1 remains to be seen, but Blicavs is there as a capable back up.
Smith played some of his best footy as the sole ruckman in 2017 so he won’t mind the added weight of carrying the ruck on his own, which it looks like he may have to do in the opening rounds.
PLAYER WATCH
MARK Blicavs started on the wing, went into the ruck after Stanley went off the ground injured, drifted forward, took a superb mark and converted, and minutes later laid a brilliant tackle that resulted in another Geelong goal.
After playing down back and impressing last week, it’s encouraging to see that he is in such good form heading into the start of the year.
Blicavs rounded out his preseason with 18 possessions, four marks (two inside-50), two rebound-50s and eight tackles — a sign of his intent — and while he will be required to play a variety of roles as usual, he seems up for the challenge. Might sound silly, but he could be one of the Cats’ most important players given the growing injury issues elsewhere.
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