GEELONG will recall veteran Jimmy Bartel for the vital clash with Adelaide but defender Lachie Henderson remains in doubt due to concussion.

Cats coach Chris Scott said the decision on Henderson would be left to the club’s medical staff with each concussion being different.

"We still don't know, unfortunately. We'd love to be able to say categorically either way, but we're still unsure whether he'll come up, but we're hopeful," Scott said. 

The coach said rookie Sam Menegola would be included in the squad after racking up 48 touches in the VFL but did not guarantee him a spot in the 22. 

The Cats may also pick small defender Jed Bews to play on Eddie Betts or Charlie Cameron. 

"Betts and Cameron are the type of players – Betts in particular – sometimes you can actually play good players who do a reasonable job and they still get beaten. He's that sort of quality player," Scott said.

"But clearly, with their attacking power and the personnel in their forward half you have to consider all options." 

Saturday night's clash shapes as crucial to Geelong's top-four chances with Scott conceding that if the Cats want to displace Adelaide, they have to win.

"Our priority is improving our game and playing our best and if that is good enough to be playing top four that is a great result, and it is clearly what we are aiming for," Scott said.

"We need to start building now because clearly for a number of weeks we have been off [our best]." 

Adelaide's most recent loss was to Geelong at Adelaide Oval in round eight, with the Cats having a 50 per cent winning record since that night. 

Scott acknowledged the Cats had struggled in the first quarter against Fremantle last Friday night but he was heartened by the fact they only conceded two goals after half-time, saying defence remained the bedrock of their gameplan.

"For the most part – the last three quarters – [Fremantle] found it hard to score and that is the cornerstone of our game," Scott said. 

"It gets more challenging this week. We need to play better than we did last week because Adelaide are the most attacking, best scoring team in the competition." 

Geelong had conceded the fewest points in the AFL after eight rounds, however they are now ranked third in that category behind the Sydney Swans and Western Bulldogs.

At that stage, the Cats were ranked second for points for and the Crows were ranked fourth, but the Crows are now the clear leaders with Geelong dropping to fifth. 

Just one game and half a percentage point currently separates the two teams.