The Cats started Joel Corey in the middle and Jimmy Bartel deep forward. Matthew Scarlett was on Ben Hudson at full-forward as the Dogs started with a five-man forward line. Cameron Ling started on Adam Cooney and was with him for most of the game. Bartel started with Scott Welsh on him, but the Brownlow medallist played most of the game on Daniel Cross in the midfield.
FOUR QUARTERS
Q1: Geelong 6.5 (41) v Western Bulldogs 2.1 (13)
Corey Enright had a stellar term, winning 17 possessions. Scarlett and Harry Taylor had 13 disposals between them as they consistently got loose and drove the Cats forward. Tom Hawkins did a terrific job keeping Brian Lake away from the action, removing the Dogs' best escape valve. The Cats defenders were mostly letting Dogs forwards go up the ground and getting them on the way back, with the Dogs breaking down across half-forward and the Cats having all sorts of space.
Q2: Geelong 1.0 (6) v Western Bulldogs 2.2 (14)
Rodney Eade didn't go ballistic at quarter time – a lot of shoulder-shrugging and pointing but nothing over the top, then he was back to the board. The result was Lake getting clear of Hawkins and creating beautifully, collecting 10 of his 21 possessions in the term. But the Geelong midfield pressure was making the Dogs just bomb it long into the hotspot – not great with the Dogs' forward structure, and the Bullies didn't make the most of their superiority. The game was much more one-on-one inside the arcs than it had been.
Q3: Geelong 6.4 (40) v Western Bulldogs 4.1 (25)
Both sides started with six-man forward set-ups. Mooney had Jarrod Harbrow instead of Dale Morris. Jason Akermanis took Corey Enright back to the goal square and booted two in two minutes early. When the Dogs went to a five-forward set-up, the Cats played one loose and often made it Scarlett.
Q4: Geelong 1.3 (9) v Western Bulldogs 4.6 (30)
The Cats had five forwards at the start, with the Dogs playing one loose in the backline, and with Brian Lake forward for a part of the time little Liam Picken was alone on Brad Ottens in the square. Picken got free to mark and repel, but Lake came back to Ottens, and they split it as the Dogs ran a partial defensive zone.
MATCH-UPS THAT MATTERED
Brian Lake v Tom Hawkins
Hawkins was good early, keeping Lake away from the centre of the action, but Lake broke out in the second to be very damaging. In the second half, Lake was mostly on Ottens and won that one too.
Matthew Scarlett v Scott Welsh
Scarlett spent the majority of the game on Welsh and won the disposal battle handily, 18-8, but the quality of the possessions was the key more than the number. Scarlett consistently ran off to set up Geelong attacks, and was probably the best player over the course of the match.
Harry Taylor v Mitch Hahn
Taylor clearly had the better of Hahn, and it's hard to believe he's in just his third season. Taylor racked up 17 disposals to Hahn's seven, and he finished with two inside-50s and three rebound-50s.
THE COACHES
Mark Thompson
Didn't do anything particularly radical, but did work to keep Scarlett available as the main route out of the backline. Managed Ottens' game time, and time in the ruck, well. Used the hard body of Joel Corey in the middle at bounces.
Rodney Eade
Was calm and collected at quarter-time despite the Cats getting a terrific start and worked it so that Lake was free in the second where he cut up the Cats with 10 possessions. Created plenty of opportunities in the second half, with Akermanis booting three, but missed shots can't be kicked from the coaching box.
HOW THE GAME WAS LOST
Skill errors from the Dogs were very costly. The Dogs consistently missed targets early and very gettable goals late (4.6 in the final quarter). The Cats were able to get out of their defensive 50 too easily, and struggled to get drive off half-back apart from during the second term. The Dogs hit the post a couple of times, and kicked several out on the full.
HOW THE GAME WAS WON
The Cats won with experience – it might not have been finals experience per se, but it was their older, wiser heads who did the damage. Enright, Ablett, Scarlett, Milburn, Bartel, Ling, Chapman, Ottens – they all contributed across the day when needed. Enright was everywhere behind the centre and consistently set up attacking thrusts. A good first term built the foundation for the win despite the Cats looking to be running out of legs in the last.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
