Geelong has given its hopes of finishing top four a boost with a gutsy 11-point win over Fremantle at Optus Stadium on Saturday.

After a red-hot start, the Cats had to withstand a tremendous challenge from the home side, with the lead changing three times in the final term before a cool-under-pressure goal to Shaun Mannagh sealed the 10.13 (73) to 9.8 (62) win.

Captain Patrick Dangerfield was pivotal in a frantic final quater, claiming seven of his 20 disposals as he finished with with a game-high 11 clearances and booted a goal as the Cats dug deep to keep the Dockers at bay.

Geelong burst out of the blocks with three goals in the opening five minutes of play, kick-started by milestone man Jeremy Cameron, who slotted the ball through from a tight angle after being rewarded for a tackle.

Ollie Dempsey followed soon after with a trademark creative soccer from the goal square, while Ollie Henry also converted a holding-the-ball free kick into a goal.

Rhys Stanley, who dominated the hitouts with 14 to Luke Jackson’s six in the opening quarter, covered plenty of ground to find himself able to capitalise on a loose ball in the goal square and give the Cats their fourth before Fremantle had a major on the board.

After the Cats dominated the clearances and controlled the play early, the Dockers worked their way back into the game, with much of the play taking place in their forward half in the latter stages of the term as they narrowed the margin to 13 points at the first change.

Fremantle continued to challenge in the second term, dominating disposals and kicking three of the first four goals to level the margin at 33-apiece, before a Shannon Neale goal gave the Cats’ a one-goal buffer that they maintained to the main break.

The Cats made their inside 50s count in the opening half, scoring from 10 out of 19 entries, compared to Fremantle’s nine scoring shots from 29 entries.

As Fremantle continued to mount pressure in the third quarter, Geelong was left to rue missed opportunities, with 1.5 for the term seeing them concede the lead and go into the final change four points down.

But with Dangerfield leading the way - including booting a team-lifting goal - the Cats rose to the challenge in the final quarter, showing nerves of steel to respond and respond again as the lead changed three times.

After the Dockers reclaimed the lead through Caleb Serong's third goal, the Cats responded with Shannon Neale's second for the match, before Shaun Mannagh showed composure under pressure to kick the sealer.

FREMANTLE  2.1   5.4   8.7   9.8 (62)
GEELONG       4.2   6.4   7.9   10.13 (73)

GOALS
Fremantle: Caleb Serong 3, Hayden Young, Sam Sturt, Luke Jackson, Michael Frederick, Jordan Clark, Jye Amiss.
Geelong: Shannon Neale 2, Shaun Mannagh 2, Jeremy Cameron, Ollie Dempsey, Ollie Henry, Rhys Stanley, Gryan Miers, Patrick Dangerfield.

BEST
Fremantle: Clark, Serong, Ryan, Young, Chapman, Sharp 
Geelong: Dangerfield, Stewart, Holmes, Miers, Blicavs, Dempsey

INJURIES
Fremantle: Nil
Geelong: Tanner Bruhn (concussion) 

LATE CHANGES
Fremantle: Sean Darcy replaced in selected side by Matt Taberner
Geelong: Gary Rohan replaced in the selected side by Oisin Mullin 

SUBSTITUTES
Fremantle: Karl Worner (replaced Matt Taberner in the fourth quarter) 
Geelong: Oisin Mullin (replaced Tanner Bruhn in the third quarter) 

Crowd: 50,600 at Optus Stadium