The Cats don’t produce too many goalless quarters. While Port Adelaide achieved the task in the second quarter a few weeks back, it was something that only happened three times in 2013 and, even then, not in the first quarter. Geelong entered the game with an enviable first quarter record in 2014 having won every opening term thus far. But Fremantle reversed both trends, holding Geelong goalless in the first stanza and leading at quarter-time. It was the first time the Cats had registered a goalless first term since the Elimination Final of 2012 – again at the hands of Fremantle, and it set the Dockers on the path to victory. While the Cats stemmed the tide, they never really looked like they would challenge for the four points from then on. They lost by 32 points, having been 30 down at quarter-time.
Freo honours Pav with a win in his 300th
2. …Ryan Crowley was winning…
It’s not unusual that Ryan Crowley should provide a talking point. And it was also to be expected that he would spend his night glued to Steve Johnson, especially given the Cat veteran was averaging an unbelievable 30 possessions per game coming into the match. Perhaps the most important thing to come from their battle was that Crowley did exactly the job Ross Lyon would have wanted him to do. Johnson was strangled so tight during the first half that he might have thought he was being tagged by a boa constrictor. At one point, off the ball, the pair even clashed heads. But the most bemusing part of the tussle was an incident in which Johnson appeared to grab Crowley by the jumper and throw him over the boundary line into Joel Selwood, which resulted in the Cats' skipper receiving a free kick. It was one of few wins for Johnson, who finished with 20 disposals, but had little impact.
3. … and the Cats’ litter is growing
Geelong has a fair history of successful father-son recruiting. Tom Hawkins, Matthew Scarlett and Gary Ablett Jr have probably been the best of them, but, perhaps more than any other club, Geelong has made use of its players’ ability to sire chips off the old block. Tonight, it was Andrew Bews’ turn to watch son Jed wear the blue-and-white for the first time. Jed looked a more athletic version than Andrew did during his 282-game career, but a couple of costly skill errors highlighted the steep learning curve ahead of him. He finished with 15 disposals and five tackles.
4. How far can Freo go?
A few weeks ago, Fremantle was starting to look ordinary. Even their own supporters were wondering whether their expectation – that the Dockers would play off in the grand final – was becoming just a dream. But the tough run is now over and Fremantle has a 5-4 record. After a bye next week, they take on the Western Bulldogs, before tackling Adelaide at home, Richmond (a), Brisbane (h), West Coast (h), Melbourne (a), GWS (h), St Kilda (a) and Carlton (h). By that stage, they could well find themselves 14-4. And there’s also good news coming from the WAFL where Hayden Crozier, Matt Taberner and Kepler Bradley have hit form, while Anthony Morabito is finally getting some run into his legs.
5. Run off their feet
What is it with the runners these days? They seem to spend an eternity on the ground, often without delivering any sort of message. Is it about filling in spaces, so as to make the opposition believe that switching to the open side is not an option? That was certainly the suspicion of Geelong supporters who were watching Fremantle’s runner at Patersons Stadium. Whatever the case, Fremantle paid for having its runner on the ground too often. Twice Geelong was awarded a free kick because the Docker’s runner strayed too close to play.
2. …Ryan Crowley was winning…
It’s not unusual that Ryan Crowley should provide a talking point. And it was also to be expected that he would spend his night glued to Steve Johnson, especially given the Cat veteran was averaging an unbelievable 30 possessions per game coming into the match. Perhaps the most important thing to come from their battle was that Crowley did exactly the job Ross Lyon would have wanted him to do. Johnson was strangled so tight during the first half that he might have thought he was being tagged by a boa constrictor. At one point, off the ball, the pair even clashed heads. But the most bemusing part of the tussle was an incident in which Johnson appeared to grab Crowley by the jumper and throw him over the boundary line into Joel Selwood, which resulted in the Cats' skipper receiving a free kick. It was one of few wins for Johnson, who finished with 20 disposals, but had little impact.
3. … and the Cats’ litter is growing
Geelong has a fair history of successful father-son recruiting. Tom Hawkins, Matthew Scarlett and Gary Ablett Jr have probably been the best of them, but, perhaps more than any other club, Geelong has made use of its players’ ability to sire chips off the old block. Tonight, it was Andrew Bews’ turn to watch son Jed wear the blue-and-white for the first time. Jed looked a more athletic version than Andrew did during his 282-game career, but a couple of costly skill errors highlighted the steep learning curve ahead of him. He finished with 15 disposals and five tackles.
4. How far can Freo go?
A few weeks ago, Fremantle was starting to look ordinary. Even their own supporters were wondering whether their expectation – that the Dockers would play off in the grand final – was becoming just a dream. But the tough run is now over and Fremantle has a 5-4 record. After a bye next week, they take on the Western Bulldogs, before tackling Adelaide at home, Richmond (a), Brisbane (h), West Coast (h), Melbourne (a), GWS (h), St Kilda (a) and Carlton (h). By that stage, they could well find themselves 14-4. And there’s also good news coming from the WAFL where Hayden Crozier, Matt Taberner and Kepler Bradley have hit form, while Anthony Morabito is finally getting some run into his legs.
5. Run off their feet
What is it with the runners these days? They seem to spend an eternity on the ground, often without delivering any sort of message. Is it about filling in spaces, so as to make the opposition believe that switching to the open side is not an option? That was certainly the suspicion of Geelong supporters who were watching Fremantle’s runner at Patersons Stadium. Whatever the case, Fremantle paid for having its runner on the ground too often. Twice Geelong was awarded a free kick because the Docker’s runner strayed too close to play.
It was no surprise that Ryan Crowley tangled with Steve Johnson all night. Picture: AFL Media
