CAUGHT SHORT
GEELONG coach Chris Scott admits the Cats were “comprehensively outplayed for big parts” in yesterday’s heartbreaking one-point loss to Hawthorn at the MCG.
But Geelong has little time to lick its wounds with a sixday break and a trip to Perth to play West Coast on the horizon. The Cats were down by as much as 25 points during the last quarter, but rallied late level the scores with just minutes remaining.
The Cats had chances to get the match-winner, but couldn’t, with Hawks captain Jarryd Roughead kicking a point with two minutes remaining to secure the thrilling win.
Scott admitted the match highlighted a number of concerns, with Geelong beaten in the ruck for the second week in a row and again struggling to get the ball inside-50. The Cats, featuring an undermanned defence, also allowed Hawthorn to enter their forward 50 a massive 62 times.
Scott said his team “would have been lucky to win” had it managed to kick that match-winning goal.
“It’s two weeks in a row (where the result has come down to a kick). We could have easily been sitting here 0-2 and scratching our heads a little bit,” Scott said. “We thought we were comprehensively outplayed for big parts of the game and were able to turn it around after half-time. Even then it ebbed and flowed and it always does against the Hawks. When you are so far behind on the entries (inside-50), then it always makes it hard. Especially given we were a bit undermanned in defence.
“You just can’t give up 62 inside 50s with their potency in the forward half. If we had stolen the game, even a draw, it would have been just that, a steal.”