In what has become the must-see game of the entire AFL fixture, the Cats and Hawks will do battle in another Easter Monday blockbuster. With James Podsiadly moving to Adelaide last year, Tom Hawkins was without another big bodied forward to share the load against the Hawks devastating backs in 2014, but with the recruitment of Mitch Clark and Rhys Stanley, the Cats may have the competition’s most devastating forward line for round one.
Key point: Cats fans should arrive late, let’s say 10 minutes prior to the bounce to avoid the Hawks unfurling their much deserved 2014 premiership flag. Just kidding!
Round 2 v Dockers - Simonds Stadium - Sunday April 12 - 1.10pm
Round 20, 2014 may have been the most exciting Cats game of the season. After looking dominant early, the Cats allowed Fremantle to come back into the game. A David Mundy miss on the siren handed the Cats a two point win. Both teams will be disappointed with straight sets exits from the 2014 finals series so will be set on proving the doomsayers wrong.
Key point: This may be the last time Cats fans can see Freo legends Matthew Pavlich, Aaron Sandilands and Luke McPharlin in action at the Cattery. All three have just one year remaining on their contracts.
Round 4 v Kangaroos - Simonds Stadium - Sunday April 26 - 3.20pm
After dealing with the Roos quite comfortably in both regular season games the Cats slipped up in the semi-final and despite a valiant effort led by Tom Hawkins in the last quarter ended up going down by a single goal. Brad Scott is yet to beat his brother in Geelong and the Roos haven’t defeated the Cats at Simonds Stadium since 2007 but with offseason acquistions including Shaun Higgins and Jarrad Waite the Roos should be even more formidable.
Key point: There was no love lost between the two clubs in 2014 but interestingly both clubs gave evidence at the AFL tribunal to get stars Steve Johnson and Brent Harvey off charges.
Round 18 v Brisbane - Simonds Stadium - Saturday August 1 - 1.45pm
The last time most of the Cats playing list saw Allen Christensen he was their teammate. The next time they see him will be as an opponent. How his former teammates receive Christensen’s return remains to be seen but you won’t want to miss it! This angle combined with the Lions possessing one of the AFL’s most formidable midfields means it should be a cracker of a game.
Key point: The match will be a reunion for more than just Christensen. Chris Scott, Blake Caracella, Shane O’Bree, Nigel Lappin, Mitch Clark, football department guru Troy Selwood and head of sport science Peter Stanton are all former Lions players/employees.
Round 19 v Swans - Simonds Stadium - Saturday August 8 - 7.20pm
The Cats only night game at Simonds Stadium for the year will be a beauty. Not since he carved up Vic Metro as a West Australian U18 player has Buddy Franklin graced the hallowed turf of Simonds Stadium. There is absolutely no doubt the Swans will be one of the teams to beat in 2015 and the round 20 match will go a long way to deciding the Cats finals hopes.
Key point: The Cats have only lost once to the Swans at Simonds Stadium since 1999! That match was in 2011 but the Cats rebounded to take out the premiership.
Round 20 v Hawks - MCG - Saturday August 15 - 7.20pm
The Cats and Hawks will clash for a second time in 2015 at the MCG in round 20. Where both teams sit at that point won’t matter. It will be hard. It will be fast. It will be exciting. And whichever team lost in round one will be looking for revenge before finals.
Key point: The only result not seen in the Cats and Hawks recent rivalry is a draw. Will 2015 finally break the drought?
Click here to become a Cats member for 2015 and see all these games live.
