Mark Blake, omitted on grand final eve last season, is the redemption story but the other three – Tom Lonergan, Harry Taylor and Travis Varcoe – had their own tales to tell at Friday's grand final parade.
The trio came to the Cats from various points of the compass.
Lonergan is from Yarrawonga, Taylor is from Geraldton in the midwest of WA, while Varcoe hails from Adelaide.
Lonergan's journey to the big show is one of the most inspiring stories in the game's rich history. He nearly died and lost a kidney in 2006 after a sickening collision with Melbourne's Brad Miller.
Amazingly, he returned to football in 2007 and capped off his comeback with a best-afield performance in the VFL grand final. But Lonergan wasn't satisfied with that.
He worked his way into the Geelong forward line this year and shapes as a key plank in the Cats' quest for back-to-back flags.
"If you had told me two years ago that I would be playing in an AFL grand final I would have laughed in your face," Lonergan said at the grand final parade on Friday.
Lonergan said he wasn't concerned when his name was mentioned as a possibility to be dropped to make way for Paul Chapman.
"Not really, I knew my role in the team and what I had to do for the team to work well," Lonergan said.
He also said he hadn't stopped to look back on what he has been through too much but was appreciative.
"I haven't had time to count my blessings, it has just been pretty full-on for the past two years. But I am pretty happy to be here."
Varcoe was on the edge of selection last year, playing 18 games in the regular season.
After failing to get a berth for the opening nine games of 2008, he has grabbed his chance with both hands and played his best game for the club last weekend.
"I am a little bit [nervous] now but I'll try and sit back and take it how it comes tomorrow. It’s what you play footy for and I am loving being in this sort of position now," Varcoe said.
Taylor is known as 'The Sponge' at Catland because he is always asking questions. And that hasn't changed this week.
"I've asked a few of the older players just how they go about their preparations and a lot of the older guys, especially in the backline, have given me advice not just on playing, but on how to handle the off-field things," Taylor said.
Taylor's last finals experience was in under-14's with Rovers Football Club back in Geraldton.
"I never played WAFL finals or anything, so this is all new to me," he said.
"I think all the training I've done from birth until now - this is a culmination of all that training and the kicks and everything I've ever done to get to where I am now. That's pretty exciting and I've had plenty of help and support around me so I'm really looking forward to it."
Taylor also said he had learned plenty from the clash with Hawthorn in round 17.
"I played the majority of that match on (Jarryd) Roughead and a little bit on (Lance) Franklin and (Michael) Osborne as well. I took a little bit away from that in terms of how they play and the patterns they run and things like that," he said.
