Footy is finally back with the Cats set to host arch-rivals Hawthorn at GMHBA Stadium on Friday night at 7.50pm.
Geelong will be chasing their first win of the 2020 season after going down to the Giants in the opening round.
Last time we met: Round 18, 2019 – Cats 8.13 (61) defeated by Hawks 12.13 (85).
For and Against: Geelong has played Hawthorn on 166 occasions, winning 90, drawing one and losing 75.
Danger 250
It’s hard not to check twice to see if Patrick Dangerfield is already up to 250 games.
Dangerfield plays the game with such a ballistic enthusiasm that he could be very well in one of his first few seasons. But when you list his achievements across those games it’s hard not to see why he is held in such high esteem.
When he moved from the Crows to the Cats, his resume already included a very impressive 154 games, 163 goals, a best and fairest and three All Australians. But since then Dangerfield has gone to extraordinary heights adding a further 95 games, 121 goals, a Brownlow Medal, three more best and fairest awards and another four All Australians.
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Dangerfield’s arrival allowed the footy world to coin the term Dangerwood, provided side splitting comedy like the Between Two Cats series and has meant that having a 35 on the back of your jumper is just as awesome now as it was when Chappy was running around.
Look for the Cats to make sure their vice-captain’s 250th AFL game is one to remember.
Hawks return to the Cattery
It’s been 14 long years since the Hawks ventured down the highway for a game for premiership points. Surprisingly though, the Hawks have played the seventh most games at GMHBA Stadium or Kardinia Park as the opposition side.
Their overall record is 16 wins, a draw and 31 losses in that time for an overall winning percentage of 34.38%. But in the AFL era, the Hawks are one of the few sides to have a winning record over the Cats at their home ground with six wins from their nine attempts.
The last one of these was in 2006 when the Hawks blew the Cats away in the final quarter to run out 52-point winners. Since that time however, the Cats have gone on to win 80% of their games at the ground.
Over the past 13 years the Cats have found additional ways to take advantage of the slimmer dimensions of GMHBA Stadium which may be the biggest hurdle for the Hawks to overcome in their quest to head back to Waverley with the points.
Quicker game to suit Cats
Tom Hawkins believes a shorter game format will suit the Cats style of play with quarters set to remain at 16-minutes for the remainder of 2020.
Hawkins was joined by Esava Ratugolea for a GMHBA member exclusive Fan Portal experience hosted by former Geelong captain Cameron Ling.
“I really see the game suiting us a team,” Hawkins said speaking to 20 lucky members.
“We have got some really powerful players and Sav (Ratugolea) is one of those where they can reach some real top end speed, but be really powerful for short bursts, so I do see the shorter game suiting us as a side and hopefully it plays out that way.”
Broadcast
Watch: Channel Seven, Kayo and AFL app.
Listen: Krock Football
