GEELONG coach Chris Scott has refused to blame his team's unique preparation and the pre-finals bye for its slow start in Friday night's preliminary final loss to the Sydney Swans.
Having earned the right to a week off and a home preliminary final after their qualifying win over Hawthorn two weeks ago, the Cats played just one game in 27 days going into Friday night.
They were jumped by a Swans team that has played every week of the finals, falling 42 points down late in the first quarter after conceding seven unanswered goals.
Scott said the Cats would analyse how they approached the unique circumstances, but he would not blame the extra weekend off going into finals for their eventual September exit.
"I would rather it had been us (with the week off) … I still maintain that position," he said after the match.
"We clearly need to analyse how we approached it. We were confident going in, and we thought we gave ourselves every chance.
"I said a fortnight ago I wouldn't be sitting here if we don't get the result saying, 'it was the bye in round 23 that killed us'.
"It was completely in our control and we didn't deliver."
The pre-finals bye was introduced this year because of integrity concerns after North Melbourne rested players en masse in the final round last season to prepare for finals.
Five things we learned: Geel v Syd
The week off has widely been viewed as a success, given the anticipation leading into the finals and the high standard of football played since.
Asked what happened to his team in the opening quarter, Scott said the Swans were extraordinarily efficient with the ball and forced his team into errors with their relentless pressure.
He said his team, which won the inside 50s 72-40 but couldn't execute with the ball, was beaten but not ambushed.
"We didn't stand up to it, but ambush suggests that you weren't ready for it, and that wasn't the case," he said.
"We didn't play well, but they forced us to play poorly around the contest.
"They were a lot cleaner around the contest than we were and they tackled really well. If that translates to hardness then yes (they were harder)."
Scott said it was clear his team had work to do over the off-season, but he would not delve into how the list would be improved.
He described the 17-win campaign, which saw the Cats finish second after 23 rounds, as "a good season with a disappointing finish".
"While we've worked so hard to get ourselves in this position to give us a really good chance, we didn't take it," he said.
"That doesn't give us any right to think we're going to finish in the top half next year.
"You won't hear anyone from Geelong [talking about] 'rightful places in the top four or the top eight'.
"We've got to work to get there and that feels a long way away right at the moment."
