WHEN the Cats came up short against the Demons in first round of the 2018 finals series, Chief Executive Brian Cook promised a ‘deep analysis’ into what went wrong.

Cook and the Cats quietly conducted a list overhaul in the trade period, moving on 11 players as three Cats were transferred to new clubs and another eight players were delisted.

The list now stands at 37 heading into the draft, with list and recruiting manager Stephen Wells saying Geelong will call out seven names across the National and Rookie drafts.

Cats Media has taken a look at where the list currently stands before the drafts, starting with our defence, forwards and continuing with our mids and rucks. 

Rucks (Rhys Stanley, Ryan Abbott, Zac Smith)

The ruck position generated plenty of outside chatter come selection time each week, with neither Stanley, Smith or Abbott truly making the position their own in 2018.

Stanley’s mid-year purple patch showed just what the athletic tall is capable of, before a string of calf injuries put his runaway form to an abrupt halt.

Ryan Abbott proved he can mix it at the top level, performing admirably against Max Gawn in the Elimination final, while Zac Smith was cut adrift from the side completely after round nine against Essendon.

Both Stanley and Abbott signed new two year deals at the end of the year.

Midfield (Patrick Dangerfield, Joel Selwood, Tim Kelly, Gary Ablett, Mitch Duncan, Sam Menegola, Cam Guthrie, Scott Selwood, Charlie Constable, Jordan Cunico)

The Cats boast one of the most talented midfields in the league on paper. The challenge for the Cats engine room is to find some cohesion and start winning the ball from clearances.

Dangerfield, Selwood and Ablett are all now all likely to be playing at or past their peaks, so improvement will have to come from elsewhere.

Tim Kelly will return after a second-placed Carji Greeves finish, while Charlie Constable has huge wraps for some dominant VFL performances. Both players can continue to elevate their games.

Mitch Duncan, Sam Menegola, Cam Guthrie, Scott Selwood and Jordan Cunico all spent time rotating into and out of the stacked midfield and wings in 2018, presenting a challenge for Chris Scott and the coaching staff to determine exactly where they fit into the midfield puzzle.