TOM’S TOP-UP TICK
Hawkins backs efforts to bolster forward line
KEY forward Tom Hawkins has backed Geelong to top up its list with readymade players from opposition clubs. The Cats have already been linked to Western Bulldogs premiership hero Luke Dahlhaus and Sydney speedster Gary Rohan, who would fill an obvious need inside-50 alongside Hawkins in 2019.
The Swans last night confirmed Rohan had asked the club to trade him back to Victoria.
But Hawkins said while adding the two former Geelong Falcons would be welcomed by the playing group, it should not come at the expense of drafting in elite young talent.
PATRICK Dangerfield may have been cradling a coffee as teammates settled in for early beers but the Geelong champ said his club’s Wacky Wednesday was no party.
Days after being bundled out of the finals, Dangerfield and his teammates headed for the pub just a few punts from Kardinia Park for their annual post-season get-together.
Three times over the past decade a premiership cup has accompanied the team. Not since 2015, when the Cats missed the finals, have players assembled so early for a postseason drink.
As a result Geelong’s postseason analysis has already begun in earnest, with six players delisted on Tuesday as the club looks to re-energise itself back to the top of the ladder.
And despite the Brownlow medallist being among the best-dressed — poking fun at an NRL Mad Monday gone wrong — Dangerfield said the mood would be one of reflection.
“You could look at it as a celebration but it’s not that,” Dangerfield said. “We’re disap- pointed with how we played (against Melbourne).
“What it is is an opportunity to get together as a group that’ll never be together again, and that’s the reality of it.
“It happens every season. There’s been some wonderful people that have been a part of our team that won’t be a part going forward, so today’s an opportunity to get together and have a few beers and tell a few stories ... I wouldn’t put it as a celebration of the season.”
Disappointment remained the overriding emotion among players but the facts showed the Cats simply weren’t up to it against the Demons — something Chris Scott’s side is hellbent on changing as it looks to the off-season.
“You’re an also-ran if you don’t win it all, really, so the overarching emotion is disappointment,” he said.
“You make your own rub of the green and we didn’t consistently perform well enough to execute in tighter games.
“You can look at the coulda, woulda, shouldas, but the reality is we haven’t been good enough for long enough.”
Changes to the playing list are under way, while club chief Brian Cook said the club would also look at everything in its bid to start trending upwards.
Dangerfield believes his team must simply be better for longer in matches, while hinting the Cats’ front half – which managed just six goals against Melbourne – might also be a focus over summer.
“There’s been a bit of a revolving door in and out of our forward line with injury and form at times, which has been hard on ‘Hawky’ (Tom Hawkins) who’s been sensational.
“So we need to make sure that we support him and there’s a bit of continuity around him.”