What an occasion it will be.

Geelong’s Round 5 clash against the Gold Coast Suns on Saturday afternoon will see two of the Cats’ modern-day greats celebrate milestones.

Captain Joel Selwood will pull on the Geelong hoops for 300th time, while Gary Ablett Jnr will play his 350th AFL game.

The match itself should be a close contest. The Suns are flying sitting second on the ladder off the back of three consecutive wins. Geelong’s form has been a little up and down to start the season, but there is no doubt the team will be looking to lift for this big occasion.

Match Details

Geelong Cats v Gold Coast Suns at GMHBA Stadium
Saturday 4 July @ 4.35pm

Last time we met: Round 10, 2019 – Geelong 13.13 (91) def Gold Coast 9.10 (64)

Mitch Duncan was the star for the Cats with three goals and 27 touches. Tom Hawkins chipped in four goals, while Mark Blicavs was excellent down back with 18 disposals and 11 intercepts.

Brayden Fiorini and Lachie Weller led the charge for the Suns with 29 and 27 disposals respectively.

For and Against: Played: 11 | Won: 9 | Lost: 2

Milestone Men

Between them they have then have won five Carji Greeves Medals, featured in three premierships and 14 All Australian Teams.

On Saturday, Joel Selwood and Gary Ablett Jnr will play their 300th and 350th games respectively.

“They have just been remarkable players and people for our football club,” Geelong Coach Chris Scott said at Tuesday’s press conference.

“They will go down as all-time greats irrespective of what happens from here.”

“It is a privilege to be involved in the game and it is important that we play well for a whole host of reasons and the fact that it is a milestone for those guys is only one of them.”

Jack Henry will also celebrate a milestone, be it a smaller one – pulling on the blue and white hoops for the 50th time.

How the two sides compare

The statistics point towards a close contest between two evenly matched sides.

The Cats may not have produced their best football in the past fortnight, but it is worth noting that they are the second highest scoring team behind Port Adelaide after four rounds.

Geelong’s average of 74.8 points per game is slightly better than Gold Coast, who are ranked fifth in the competition with 65 points per game.

Both forwardlines don’t rely heavily on one or two individuals to kick a winning score.

Ben King leads the charge for the Suns this year with seven majors ahead of Matt Rowell and Ben Ainsworth with six, while Tom Hawkins, Mitch Duncan and Gryan Miers have each kicked five goals for the Cats.

Both sides also rank in the top five for clearances and total disposals.

In fact, the midfield battle could be where it is won.

Rowell, who Chris Scott compared to a young Selwood, has been superb for the Suns this season and alongside Touk Miller form a dangerous duo to watch in the middle. 

Their battle with Selwood and Patrick Dangerfield is set to be a beauty.

Broadcast

Watch: Fox Footy, Kayo, AFL Live Pass
Listen: K rock Football