Hard road ahead

AS WE enter Round 16 of our state game, the Cats are in a much more precarious position than anyone would have guessed at the start of the season.

Sports editor Nick Wade today lays out the rough terrain between now and any kind of September glory for our city’s home team.

Of course, just because there is hard road ahead does not mean that the path is insurmountable. And it is when the odds are stacked up that true grit and spirit can emerge.

But the outlook based on the season so far is far more pessimistic than it was in the opening round.

Sports prediction is of course a dismal attempt at science, but it’s safe to say with 15 rounds gone and eight remaining the Cats cannot afford to lose too many of the remaining games and still be in the finals, let alone the top four Let alone dreaming of a flag. Of the teams the Cats are yet to play, there are some you would hope they could make light work of.

The Gold Coast Suns are an example of that — but the Cats play them in the final round. Psychologically if nothing else, the Cats’ race is likely to be run by then.

And there are harder teams on the path ahead: Swans, Crows, Tigers.

Right now, after the loss to the Doggies, it feels like the Cats are in a winter funk.

It is too early in the season to write off September hopes or to bluntly question how this dream list is not dominating the competition.

The Cats have an admirably rounded philosophical approach about life being more than footy.

There are also some at Kardinia Park who believe in the idea that you can’t be too relaxed when trying to achieve great things.

But toughness and hunger are also pretty good keys to triumphing against adversity.

It might be true that winning isn’t everything.

But it certainly leaves a big hole when it’s not there.

Let’s all hope the Cats can turn it around soon before it’s too late.