Why Geelong's List Pivot Could Pay Off Spectacularly
Nov 3, 2021, 2:29AM
It looks as though Geelong has finally got the memo.
The Cats have always been a club looking to maintain their relevance as Premiership contenders no matter the cost, but the kamikaze approach at topping up may be reaching its final stages.
Having missed the top eight just once in the past 15 seasons, recent history indicates it’s been a blissful existence to be a Geelong supporter.
12 top-four finishes and 5 Grand Final appearances speaks volumes of the success bred at the Cattery, with many players reaching legendary status.
But with Brian Cook leaving and his CEO position filled with Steve Hocking, we may be seeing the mindset shift.
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It’s no secret the Cats were clearly the oldest team in the AFL in 2021, having brought in the likes of Isaac Smithand Shaun Higgins to help win the flag.
It’s also no secret that 2021 was a failure.
Over the years, the tactics have rarely shifted at Geelong, with a slow, methodical build up preferred blended with some offensive, individual brilliance.
The addition of Jeremy Cameron gave Tom Hawkins and the club another elite target in attack, something that hasn’t been around much previously, but it didn’t cause any drastic changes to the ball movement.
Indeed, the Cats were ranked 6th for disposals, 5th for marks, 3rd for clearances, 2nd for disposal efficiency and 18th for turnovers.
They were also ranked 12th for tackles, 13th for metres gained, 14th for one-percenters and 18th for intercepts.
Perhaps more telling is that tactically, it’s a zonal approach that helps the Cats the most, rather than actually defending the man and cutting off offensive movements.
They conceded the fewest disposals, the fewest inside 50s, the fewest metres gained, the second-fewest marks inside 50 and the fifth-fewest clearances.
Protecting the ball and playing a keepings-off style has been imperative to the success of the zone in Geelong. It means that when everything is going according to plan, they rarely give up field position when turning the ball over, allowing the defenders to set up behind the ball to play a lot of help-defence.
Having wingmen with extremely high work ethic means that there are always ways for Geelong to escape pressure out of the backline and in the midfield, setting up well on the backside of stoppages allows both the midfield to limit the effectiveness of opposition clearances, as well as giving space to their own stars to burst away if they win the ball.
All of this has meant Geelong is the most successful home-and-away team in the history of the game based on the last 15 years.
It just doesn’t hold up in finals.
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Generally, these tactics bully lesser opposition, of which there are plenty across the league. Dominance against contenders is varied during the regular season, but professionalism usually gets the Cats through.
The change of CEO has also brought along the signings of Eddie Betts, Harry Taylor and Matthew Egan across the football department, all bringing different types of experience to the table. All three individuals have shown a passion to guide and mentor in their professional careers.
Crucially, Hocking has already stated publicly the desire to set up a stronger environment for the youth.
Einstein’s theory of insanity mightn’t be completely applicable here, but there simply hasn’t been enough of a point of difference in Geelong’s style to breed the ultimate success.
Perhaps the most damning statistic representing the Cats is the fact they averaged 7.28 disposals per inside-50, bottom-five across the league.
Carlton averaged 6.94, West Coast averaged 7.14, Fremantle averaged 6.97, Adelaide 7.11 and the Cats were only slightly better than Gold Coast, who averaged 7.32 disposals per inside-50.
A team like Brisbane, who had to deal with devastating injuries in the most crucial part of their season, averaged 6.22 disposals per inside 50 and gave themselves the best opportunity of success through efficient transition play and a strong defensive setup.
Chris Scott and his team were so desperate to stick to their tactical morals once again that its inflexibility was the club’s biggest weakness in finals.
This is why we can expect more youth in 2022.
Of course, a quick glance at the losses of Nathan Kreuger, Jordan Clark and potentially Charlie Constable, as well as the recruitment of Jon Ceglar flies in the face of the notion.
Indeed, Clark’s potential was extremely high and the club has shot itself in the foot with the constant recruitment of veterans.
But there are positives.
Quinton Narkle, against all odds, re-signed, and the Cats won the race to secure the signature of talented small forward Tyson Stengle, on his final chance.
Max Holmes got a lot of game-time in his first season, Francis Evans is highly rated, while Brad Close, Gryan Miers and Brandan Parfitt are regulars and under 24 years of age.
We can expect Sam De Koning to become a regular too, with the spot of the retiring Lachie Henderson opening up.
Also an underrated part of the trade period for the Cats was the clubs’ ability to finish with picks 22, 30, 32 and 34 in a particularly even, talented draft.
It gives them flexibility to, at worst, use the picks and their elite recruiting team to find some gems, or to package up and potentially move a little higher up the board.
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While the Cats are still full of veterans, we can expect the backseat to be taken moreso in 2022 in a bid to freshen up the team and shift some tactical focuses.
Narkle’s speed and ability to find the ball in particular will be an extremely unique resource to capitalise upon.
If Geelong is able to turn Parfitt into its main pressure player through the middle, the Cats needn’t worry about Narkle’s defensive limitations, and they can work on getting the ball forward with more ease.
Using veterans across half-back with an eye on covering ground rather than moving the ball sideways is made much easier when there’s speed down the field.
The recruitment of Stengle adds such speed and skill to the offensive end that we’ll see more tackling from the half-forward flank of the Cats.
This forward half pressure has been inconsistent at times, and if Geelong wins more of the ball across the centre line from the opposition, with Stengle at the feet of Cameron and Hawkins, then banging the ball in as opposed to a carefully curated entry is a far more feasible and effective option.
These are small pivots that the Cats can make but with the mentality of the new CEO and with better support of the youth, Geelong has the opportunity to replenish its stocks on the run.
With some skillful, pacy types brought in, there’s no reason why Geelong can’t become a deadly transition team that ends up as a top-8 tackling and top-5 inside 50 team.
For years, we’ve been begging the club to shift its focus and make a change.
2022 looks to be the start of a new era at Geelong, and it’ll be well worth it for the fans.
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