CATS FLYING HIGH
Gary Ablett turned back the clock, taking a screamer and kicking three goals as the Cats overpowered arch rivals the Hawks in their Easter Monday showdown to go top of the ladder.
GARY Ablett was the designated villain for Hawthorn supporters but for other footy lovers the Geelong maestro’s Easter Monday magic was a source of pure joy.
Ablett wound back the clock at the MCG as the Cats outlasted the Hawks in a thrilling 17.11 (113) to 13.12 (90) finish to go top of the ladder.
In a high-quality match full of big moments, Ablett delivered the highlight with a secondquarter screamer on the back of David Mirra.
Soaring above his opponent in a way that instantly brought to mind his famous father’s heroics, the little master kicked truly to extend the Cats’ lead.
Ablett had his second goal minutes later, expertly receiving a handpass from Luke Dahlhaus and finishing on the outside of his boot from the forward pocket.
The 34-year-old made it look effortless, although his workrate wasn’t lost on former Essendon champion James Hird.
“He bolted 40 metres, 50 metres down, he got the handball — he’s up and about, Gary,” Hird said while commentating on Triple M. “We shouldn’t be surprised, should we?”
A pantomime villain in one of the AFL’s enduring rivalries, Ablett was roundly booed by the Hawks-dominated crowd from the moment he lined up against Jack Gunston.
But by the time Ablett received a handball from Joel Selwood on the verge of threequarter time and unleashed from 50m out for his third major, it was clear the twotime Brownlow medallist had won the day.
Geelong coach Chris Scott praised Ablett’s performance.
“Gary’s Ablett’s contest, for a 35-year-old — that’s a pretty special game, we thought,” Scott said. “He rarely got the ball gift-wrapped, he had to go and win it and he just looked dangerous all the time. It was a big mark (he took in the second quarter), you don’t see him take too many hangers. It was what we were hoping we would get from him.”
“I think maybe our expectations have been a little bit misrepresented. We knew what we were getting — a 35year-old who fits extremely well into our TPP structure (salary cap), who could add something in the big moments.
“If that was our baseline expectation, then in our mind he has exceeded it. I think he is giving us great value.
“We never said that he will go and slaughter the competition as a 35-year-old and win us a premiership.
“The good players get booed, it seems to be a trend. I don’t think anyone really likes it, do they?
“But does anyone really care that much? Gaz doesn’t.”