Bye hoodoo bites again
OBJECTS in the rear-view mirror are closer than they appear.
Was there something in Geelong’s past that would have pointed to Saturday night’s loss to Port Adelaide?
The obvious response would be a clear yes. The whole footy world has been well aware of Geelong’s postbye struggles, which reads ominously for week one of the finals.
For the eighth year straight, the Cats have fallen in the game following the midseason bye.
There is an argument that maybe they have lost to sides that are pretty good, but under Chris Scott, the Cats have rarely gone into a game they would not have backed themselves to win.
Eight straight losses (plus their last two finals off byes) cannot simply be coincidence.
Is there merit in the idea that having a week off football can soften you or leave you flat in the contested ball stakes?
There is certainly merit in the idea that if you can beat the Cats in contested footy then you can beat them on the scoreboard. Twice this season Geelong has been beaten in that stats column — against GWS (-14) in Round 4 and on Saturday night (-36).
And in other recent Geelong games off the bye, there have also been significant discrepancies.
In last year’s elimination final defeat to Melbourne, the Cats were -19 in contested possessions. In the loss to the Bulldogs post the mid-season bye last year, the Cats were -15. In the 2017 qualifying final loss to Richmond, -19.
In Cameron Mooney’s column in the Geelong Advertiser on Wednesday, he wrote: “The only way the Power can win is by dominating in the midfield.”
How right Mooney was. The clearance numbers — 52-36 in Port Adelaide’s favour — will also be of concern.
The Power’s first goal on Saturday night came from a boundary throw-in.
Scott Lycett, who was simply too strong and smart for Rhys Stanley all night, took the ball out of the ruck and handballed to Robbie Gray, who goaled on the run.
Then in the second quarter, Ollie Wines broke free of Patrick Dangerfield, roved a boundary throw-in off Charlie Dixon and goaled again.
In the third, Karl Amon broke clear from a throw-in on the wing and kicked long to Sam Gray, who marked out the back and goaled.
Winning the stoppages was only one part of Port Adelaide’s plan to dismantle the ladder leader. The other was to stay down from aerial contests.
Geelong’s defence has been No.1 this season through its ability to support each other, both in the air and on the ground.
But with Charlie Dixon back in the Power team, the plan was simple — Dixon goes up, everyone else stays down.
It brought about Port Adelaide’s sixth goal on the eve of halftime, when Dixon spoiled Mark Blicavs from taking an intercept mark, bringing the ball to ground with Gray, Steven Motlop, Travis Boak and Connor Rozee lining up for the front and centre.
Motlop roved the footy, dished off to Boak, who snapped towards the goalsquare, resulting in a Kane Farrell mark and goal from pointblank range.
The Cats forwards were also denied clean supply.
At every opportunity, the Power kicked deep inside its forward 50, so if they turned it over, the Cats had to rebound from the depths of their backline.
They forced Geelong’s defenders to kick down the line and kick to contests. With a dominance at the clearances, repeat stoppages were mini wins for the Power.
Gary Rohan, Tom Hawkins, Gryan Miers and Luke Dahlhaus had only 12 kicks between them for one goal.
Whether this is “a blip”, as Zach Tuohy described postgame, or a recipe to beat the Cats remains to be seen.
But Scott is sure to look back at Saturday’s loss in the rear-view mirror ahead of a likely home qualifying final.