GMHBA Stadium was alive and rocking on Saturday night, with 33,188 people packing in to see the Cats take down the Hawks.  

It was the second biggest crowd at GMHBA Stadium in over 30 years, watching the traditional rivals do battle as the Cats cruised to an important 51-point victory.  
 
The newly developed Joel Selwood stand has seen a big increase in attendances this year, with an average of 32,592 people packing in each week, which is over 11,000 more than in 2023.  
 
Brad Close spoke to Triple M after Saturday’s win, touching on how important the support is from the Geelong crowd each and every week.   

 
“It was great, a packed house down here at GMHBA Stadium and we love playing down here,” Close told Triple M.  
 
“There was a bit of yellow and brown out there too which made things interesting, but our home fans bring the energy each week out here and we love playing down here.  
 
“I thought our midfield really hunted around the footy and brought the physicality.  
 
“We knew they were going to come at us after half time, but we came out really strong and managed to run away with it in the end.” 
 
The win over Hawthorn has capped off a strong fortnight for the Cats, which has seen them record two wins to regain momentum heading into the back half of the season.  
 
Another big challenge lies ahead for Geelong on Friday night, with a clash against the reigning premiers at the MCG awaiting as the Cats look for their third consecutive win. 
 
Close said he believes the team is still building towards their best form, with plenty to work on despite two strong performances against Essendon and Hawthorn.  

 
“I think we still have a lot of work to do,” Close said.  
 
“Collingwood are going to be another tough challenge next week, we are looking at it week by week at the minute.  
 
“We are trying to get to our best footy, there has been some good patches the past couple of weeks which is promising.  
 
“We still need to put together four quarters and I think our best is still ahead of us.”