Premiership Cat Gryan Miers was already a very good player but in 2023 his has taken his game to new heights.
In Friday night’s thrilling draw with Sydney, the talented forward notched up a career-high 27 disposals, and his 20 kicks were also the most he’s had across his 98 AFL games to date.
Just two games away from reaching the 100-game milestone, the 24-year-old has established himself as one of Geelong’s most important players.
His ability to find pockets of space and deliver the football with precision to his fellow forwards has seen Miers cement himself as the number one player for goal assists in the competition this season.
On Friday night he setup three more goals, taking his season tally to 26 goal assists, six ahead of the next best player in the competition, Melbourne’s Christian Petracca.
It’s a skill that Miers honed during pre-season as he looked to add another weapon to his arsenal.
“I thought to play in this team you’ve got to give something to the team, and I thought with all of our firepower down forward with Gary (Rohan), Tys (Stengle), (Tom) Hawkins and Jezza (Cameron), I don’t need to really be the goal kicker here, but I can set them up,” Miers told geelongcats.com.au post-game.
“Sometimes I get the decision wrong, and I probably could kick the goal, so I definitely need to look at that, but I am happy to be able to contribute and set those boys up.”
Miers also hit the scoreboard against the Swans with a sidestep and goal just prior to three quarter time to draw the Cats within a point of the lead.
The result on Friday night wasn’t what Geelong came to the SCG to achieve but Miers felt it was a fair reflection on the game.
“It was a really tough game, and it wasn’t for a lack of effort that both teams couldn’t get the job done. It was an intense one, hard fought and we both didn’t take our chances when it mattered. I think the result really reflected the game.”
The draw on Friday night saw Geelong return to a place inside the top eight with a crucial run of home games to come. Starting with North Melbourne at GMHBA Stadium next Sunday.
“We want to make it our fortress. We’ve got a lot coming up, so we really want to make the most of these ones.”
Geelong’s Round 17 clash is set to be a special occasion for Zach Tuohy who it set to surpass Jim Stynes for most AFL games played by an Irishman.
