Plucky Cats almost tame the Tigers
LATE comeback aside, once the emotion settles down and the hard analysis is done, the question will be: did the Cats crumble under pressure?
It is an observation that has been made of Geelong a number of times in recent finals campaigns and, in a finals-like match, Chris Scott’s side failed to debunk the myth at the MCG last night.
Yes, they came within a kick of the reigning premier, which registered its 15th victory this year, but it was again left to too few and left until the final quarter for Geelong to click into gear.
The usual suspects in Joel Selwood, Patrick Dangerfield and Mitch Duncan were monumental through the midfield, particularly late, while Tim Kelly also again proved how capable he is of performing on a big stage at the MCG.
Yet questions remain unanswered about the Cats’ bottom end that failed to have an impact under the bright Friday night lights.
Small forwards Jamaine Jones and Lachie Fogarty were quiet and defender Jake Kolodjashnij was almost unseen.
Geelong looked down and out until Tom Hawkins, who had kicked 18 goals in his previous three matches, kicked his only goal for the night 20 minutes into the last term.
It sparked a run of three late goals that threatened to cap yet another unbelievable comeback for the Cats, but this time it was not to be.
At no stage did the Cats look like they were going to win until Sam Menegola torpedoed the football into the grandstand from the goal line to cut the margin to four points.
With two minutes to play, Dangerfield recorded his eighth clearance, blasting forward from the midfield, only for the ball to eventually spill into the hands of champion Gary Ablett who sprayed the shot on goal to the right.
For three quarters, Richmond looked a class above. The Tigers led by 21 at the final change — and it could have been more — on the back of their premiershipwinning heat.
They pressured the Cats into over-handballing, causing 29 ineffective handballs and 12 clanger handballs in the first three quarters, and made them pay with goals on turnover.
With each ineffective handball came another tackle from the Tigers until the ball was theirs, yet it took until midway through the last for Richmond to land the knockout punch.
Like a boxing match that threatened to be ended in the early rounds, the Tigers landed damaging blows on the Cats in the second quarter to stamp their dominance on the battle.
Toby Nankervis dribbled one home from the pocket to stretch Richmond’s buffer to 17, before Jack Higgins got on the end of some typical Tigerspressure type football to open up a 25-point lead.
But the Cats, clinging on for dear life, were able to claw back into the contest, first with a fortuitous goal to Kelly, followed by a one-on-one mark to Jack Henry deep inside 50.
Menegola then blasted one on the run from inside the centre square to get back within a kick of the Tigers and silence the home crowd.
The Cats then hit the front briefly when Dan Menzel slotted his second goal a minute into the third term, but that did not last long as the premier found another gear to reply with the next three majors in quick succession.
The Tigers were unrelenting, keeping the Cats to only six inside-50s in the third term after recording their highest inside-50 count in a first half since Round 22, 2012. At three-quarter time, the inside-50 count read 5530, an overwhelming discrepancy that Richmond had failed to capitalise on.
Geelong changed mentality to take the game on more in the last quarter and, like a fortnight ago against Melbourne, gave itself a chance to win the game.
It did not fall the Cats’ way this time, but again they showed the game is never over until the final siren. No doubt that will be on Richmond’s mind next time, too.