WHY MONDAY MATTERS

EVEN before I joined Geelong, the Easter Monday clash between the Cats and the Hawks was something I always looked forward to.

I was not a Geelong or Hawthorn fan, but as a pure football fan, there was something so compelling about this rivalry that meant it just could not be missed.

It was a day I would always circle on the calendar and clear my schedule to watch, because you just knew it was going to be a classic.

No matter where the teams were on the ladder, they almost always ended in drama, with acts of individual brilliance, separated only by one or two goals — if that. And nothing has changed.

So for me to be part of this traditional game is incredibly special and something I don’t take for granted.

I just remember the feeling of walking out on the MCG in Round 2 last year — just my second game of AFL footy — and feeling the energy of a pulsating crowd.

It is hard not to be swept up in it. “How good is this?,” I thought.

Aside from the elimination final against Melbourne last year in front of 91,767, it remains the biggest crowd I have ever played in front of.

It turned out to be a bit of a shootout with a few momentum swings, and Hawthorn ended up winning 118 to 117 in a game where 35 goals were kicked for the afternoon.

One thing that stands out is the roar of the crowd after every goal, for either team. The Hawks pulled away, then we pulled them back and they just snuck over the line at the end.

There was a real edge to the atmosphere and it was an incredible experience to have so early in my AFL career.

While we do try to make sure we approach every match with the same mindset, it is hard not to get caught up in the hype of our Easter Monday showdown with Hawthorn.

It is a great rivalry, one of the best rivalries in our competition, and we are lucky to be part of such a special game that continues to maintain its high standards.

Hawthorn is similar to us in many respects this year. The Hawks have had a lot of change to their playing list and have brought in some really damaging players in recent years.

But what stands out is their top-end talent: they have still got many quality leaders on their list and players who just know how to stand up and deliver in the big moments — like we do.

History shows that we are going to have to be at our best if we want to beat them.

We obviously want to make up for last week’s narrow loss against GWS Giants.

That was a disappointing result. We felt like we had the game on our terms in the first quarter and after that they beat us up around the ball.

They’re a very good side, but we just couldn’t really get our game going the way we wanted to.

One of the small positives we took out of the game was we got so close even with so many players having quiet games.

There were a few of us, myself included, who didn’t perform to our usual high-level standards and we only lost by four points, so there is so much upside.

It was one small hiccup, one that was frustrating, but no point worrying about it because we have a major job to do on Monday.

I JUST REMEMBER THE FEELING OF WALKING OUT ON THE MCG IN ROUND 2 LAST YEAR — JUST MY SECOND GAME OF AFL FOOTY — AND FEELING THE ENERGY OF A PULSATING CROWD.