ON THE rare occasion that Joel Selwood is struggling to influence a game, his philosophy to rectify the situation is straightforward. "If you're having a bad one, don't have a shocking one," the Cats skipper said after Saturday’s win over Richmond. "It's as simple as that."

Selwood didn't have the huge impact on the Cats' victory for which he is accustomed, dealing with a close tag throughout the day from Tiger Shaun Grigg.

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He was held to just two disposals in the first quarter, and had only eight touches by half-time. But that wasn't going to stop the 26-year-old from continuing to edge his way into proceedings.

"You've got to fight on and there'll be a moment in a game that you'll be able to change, and there'll be a time you can help the side," Selwood said.

"There were little things that probably don't get seen that I was doing in the first half, but you're probably just used to getting the ball. You have to work out a way to get into the game." 

That time came in the last term, when Selwood proved his superstar status by gathering 11 final-quarter disposals and four clearances.

At the start of the term the skipper was there to lift the Cats to a 32-point lead, which proved to be unassailable. But he was also there closer to the final siren, as Richmond made a late charge and booted the final four goals. 

Selwood was also awarded seven free kicks and laid seven tackles in the win, which he said was important to the Cats after starting the season with just one win from their opening month.

He has taken lessons from Geelong’s three defeats this year, and is aware the group still needs to improve.

"We came out today and knew the Tigers were going to come hard. They were in a similar position to us, and it was a must-win game for both clubs. [We're] glad to get the result today," Selwood said. 

"We need to win more of the ball, we need to keep it in our forward line more and when we get our chances [we need] to hit the scoreboard harder."