Well, the Cats are into another Grand Final, dispensiong with their modern rival, Hawthorn, in the Prelim.
Justin Rake and Disco Monagle have all the ratings from another Cats Prelim win.
Geelong (Justin)
The Cats are through to another Grand Final, and it comes on the back of some superstar performances from their superstar players in this must-win preliminary showdown.
They proved too disciplined, too strong, and too smart to come undone at the hands of the Hawks, as a 35-year-old Patrick Dangerfield turned in one of the crown jewels of his career to send his team to the big dance.
We, the football public, have grown so accustomed to Geelong winning through to a grand final that we often take the performances they put in to get them there for granted.
But, as a ring-crazed Gollum once said, “Not this time!”. This time, you simply can’t deny the brilliance of this team and their coach.
Let’s get stuck into how they all went, shall we?
[14] Connor O’Sullivan – 6
Held down the defence admirably while his fellow soldiers fell down around him. His numbers were modest with just seven disposals and two marks, but he did draw three free kicks and his presence was impressive for a player of his age.
[16] Sam De Koning – 7
Really liked his game both in defence and pinch-hitting in the ruck. Finished with 18 disposals, six marks, and laid three tackles, playing his role soundly.
[38] Jack Henry – 3
Struggled to come back from an ankle injury sustained in the first term, and the veteran Jack Gunston took full advantage for a time. The Hawks forward gave Henry fits until a quieter fourth quarter offered the Cats defender a reprieve. A fit Henry means a lot for this team’s flag dreams, so hopefully he can get the ankle right during the week.
[42] Mark O’Connor – 4
Wasn’t much of a factor on this one, finishing the night with seven disposals and not a single tackle to his name. It’s not all about numbers, and O’Connor certainly never disgraced himself, but a quiet outing for the defensive mid.
[44] Tom Stewart – 2
Every season has a story of heartbreak, and it appears Tom Stewart is going to be this year’s Oscar McInerny after he was subbed out with a concussion sustained from a Mabior Chol tackle. Hurt his wrist in the same exchange for good measure. Missed almost all of this game and will miss the grand final next week.
[39] Zach Guthrie – 7
Was busy in the first half while the Cats were struggling, and did all he could to ensure they never fell out of the game. Had 10 of his total 21 disposals in the second term.
[12] Jack Bowes – 5
Didn’t stuff the stat sheet by any means, but Bowes was important creating opportunities out of stoppages and was in the thick of the action when the Cats put four goals on the board in the blink of an eye after half time.
[9] Max Holmes – 8
Had to work into the game as much of his team was forced to do, but Holmes settled nicely to end up with 25 disposals and a goal to his name. Laid seven tackles, and continues to cook teams with his run. Will be a super important player next week, and is clearly hungry for the premiership he missed out on in 2022.
[28] Oliver Dempsey – 6
Could have been a much higher rating had he slotted the two shots on goal he took, but overall Dempsey was still damaging getting forward off the wing.
[18] Tyson Stengle – 8
A brilliant night for the talented small forward, booting three goals from his 15 disposals and laying six tackles. Caused chaos in the front half all night, and Hawthorn never really had an answer for him.
[7] Shaun Mannagh – 8
Had 15 touches and two goals of his own as he worked alongside Stengle to be a genuine threat. The “best young player in the competition” (at just 28 years old, mind you) continues to come into his own, and will be a big piece in next week’s decider.
[45] Brad Close – 6
Could have finished with a similar night to his fellow small forwards mentioned above, but missed his two shots on goal. Still managed 15 disposals and contributed to a forward line that put 115 points on the board.
[33] Shannon Neale – 4
Struggled to get into the game with Tom Barrass keeping tabs on him. Did boot a goal from his three disposals, but will need to be more of a presence against either Collingwood or Brisbane next week.
[5] Jeremy Cameron – 8
Jezza did Jezza things, after taking his time to work into the game he still finished with three goals from five shots, 16 disposals, and nine marks. The best in the business.
[35] Patrick Dangerfield – 10
What. A. Star. Dangerfield put together what I am not afraid to call the finest performance in his glittering career, turning in 31 disposals, three goals, and eight clearances to lead his team. The skipper was phenomenal, and his longevity needs to be spoken about. Other “goats” from his era like Fyfe and Dusty might have had higher peaks than Danger, but the fact that they are gone and he is still doing this is just downright ridiculous. Ten outta ten.
[46] Mark Blicavs – 9
Was absolutely fantastic in the ruck, nullifying Lloyd Meek to the point that Hawthorn rolled with Mabior Chol in the ruck for the most crucial centre bounces of their season. Finished the night with 12 disposals, 11 tackles, and 29 hitouts, but more importantly controlled his airspace and made the Hawks work around him. Great game.
[3] Bailey Smith – 9
Looked a bit shellshocked at the beginning, but you wouldn’t have known it by the end. The superstar midfielder led the game with 36 disposals, and also booted a goal to go with six tackles and six clearances. A big night on the stat sheet, and an even bigger night on the field.
[30] Tom Atkins – 9
Did a great job as the first match-up for Jai Newcombe, and then put his own stats on the board to collect 25 disposals and 11 tackles. His in-and-under work is among the best in the competition, and he’ll need another similar showing next week.
[17] Lawson Humphries – 5
Played his role and barely made a mistake in what was an otherwise quiet outing for the dashing defender.
[19] Jack Martin – 4
Looked out of his depth for a large chunk of the game, struggling to get a disposal until we were well and truly past the early stages. Did kick a goal to impact the scoreboard, but otherwise didn’t have a great say in this one.
[32] Gryan Miers – 8
Was magnificent again, putting a bow on the night with 27 disposals and a goal. He continues to carve sides up through the corridor, and led the game with four goal assists.
[34] Oisin Mullin – 5
Not sighted a great deal, possibly due to his effective blanketing job on Watson, but also didn’t make any blunders in playing his part for the team. Will be a watch to see what kind of role he gets in next week’s big game.
[13 – Sub] Jhye Clark – 6
Was extremely impressed after the young bloke was subbed on for the injured Tom Stewart. I thought for sure he’d be all at sea in that situation, but not only was he a level head, he found a way to do some damage with 14 disposals and four clearances. Should take plenty of confidence into the following week, and will hope to be in the starting 22 come grand final day.
Hawthorn (Disco)
What is a good season for a team that finished eighth on the ladder and were just one point behind at halftime in a Preliminary Final before they faded away in the second half?
For Hawthorn, some will argue it is a season wasted, but in reality it was one mighty effort.
In the end, two interstate finals leading up to this Preliminary Final took its toll on the Hawks.
Further, it didn’t help the Hawks cause that one Patrick Dangerfield put on an absolute clinic leading his team from the front. Dangerfield’s performance has to be recognised as one of the great final’s performances in modern history.
After a semi-final in 2024, followed up by a preliminary final in 2025 the future is bright for the Hawks.
[24] Josh Battle – 6.5
Keeping Jeremy Cameron quiet is a huge assignment for any defender, but to Josh’s credit he was on top of Cameron when the game was in the balance in the first half.
In the end though, the pure weight of numbers allowed Jezza to get off the chain and kick three goals in the second half. An honest performance without standing out.
[37] Tom Barrass – 6
My memories of Tom Barrass still extend back to his finals series in 2018 when he and Jeremy McGovern were dominant in the Eagles success.
Barrass had a quietish, beige type of game against the Cats by the standards normally expected from him, noting he did hold Shannon Neale to just one goal and minimal possessions.
When Battle and Barrass learn to work in tandem as Barrass did with McGovern, or Lever and May at Melbourne in 2021, then the Hawks are well on their way to finishing higher next season.
[15] Blake Hardwick – 5
Hardwick is a tough nut, and he certainly knows how to lay a tackle that impacts, which he did in the first half of this Preliminary Final, but like a lot of his teammates he fell away after halftime.
Hardwick’s overall game can be described as good fading to beige.
[4] Jarman Impey – 7
When the Hawks were attempting a rear guard action in the third quarter Impey was one of the Hawks players leading the way.
Impey is a very consistent player who can be relied upon to play his role each week and then some.
Impey was again amongst the Hawks best. Another Squawker who has had a good September.
[6] James Sicily – 6
In the first quarter the Hawks were dominating the scoreboard and general play, well that was until a free kick was given to Patrick Dangerfield as a result of an unnecessary push in the back by James Sicily.
In that instance the Danger Genie had been released, and it wasn’t going back into the bottle.
Moving forward to the third quarter and the Cats are rampaging, Sicily allowed his man Jack Martin to have a critical ten minute burst as he ran rings around him either kicking goals or creating goal assists.
The dichotomy of James Sicily is his good is elite, but his boo-boos are horrid, and in this game his good work was tarnished by his boo-boos. James Sicily is an extremely hard player to critique.
[16] Massimo D’Ambrosio – 5
When the Cats were rampant in the third quarter Massimo lost his bottle to some degree as he made some nervous turnovers and mistakes.
A bit like Sicily, he had some good moments as well, but he looked spent after halftime.
[10] Karl Amon – 7.5
It is hard to fault the performances of Karl Amon during this finals series, and in this match he had the most possessions for the Hawks and he was amongst his team’s best players.
A 28 possession game matched with an attitude of not surrendering franks Karl Amon as a player who can stand the heat in September. Karl Amon had a really good finals series – well done.
[25] Josh Ward – 3.5
Some players get through a whole game without being noticed for anything good or negative, and such was the performance of Josh Ward.
It would be fair to say Josh Ward had no impact on this match – not that I noticed anyway. A very beige performance.
[13] Dylan Moore – 8.5
Even allowing for a quiet second quarter, Dylan Moore was the best player on the night for the Hawks.
Players who can self-correct and work their way back into a game after a quiet stretch are worth their weight in gold.
Dylan Moore overcame a quiet second quarter to finish with 26 possessions and a nice goal in the last quarter to be the Hawks best on field. Moore is another Hawk who has had a good finals series.
[23] Josh Weddle – 2
At halftime Josh had a mere two possessions to his name as well as having absolutely no impact on the contest.
In the last quarter poor old Josh dropped a deadset sitter of a mark which truly summed up his night.
Weddle had a complete Barry Crocker of a night.
Josh Weddle gets a mulligan for this match as two weeks of hard travel for a player who was returning from injury was not an ideal preparation for a long finals campaign.
[18] Mabior Chol – 7.9
Mabior played a stellar game, especially when the game wasn’t going the Hawks way.
As a finals player Mabior has come ahead in leaps and bounds since last year, and he has proven he can be an effective swing player for Sam Mitchell when required.
Mabior’s ruck work and around the ground pressure in the second half was excellent.
Chol never gave up and he played the game right out.
Without entering into any debate about Chol’s tackle on Tom Stewart, it is a shame Stewart will miss the Grand Final.
[34] Nick Watson – 1
For a brief moment in the second quarter when Nick the Wizard kicked a miraculous goal from the boundary it looked like he was going to light the MCG up, but alas, that was his only highlight for the match.
What would have disappointed his coaches, teammates and supporters most was his inability to adjust his game to a defensive role when sent back in the last quarter.
Mercurial players often have quiet games and in the case of Nick Watson he is still learning his craft, but when he adds consistency to repertoire he has the natural ability to be the most feared small forward in the game. A bad game, but lessons well learned.
[19] Jack Gunston – 8.5
Take note Nick Watson, Jack Gunston had a sloppy first quarter, but after quarter time he was the Hawks most dominant forward on the ground.
Three goals, a couple of goal assists to Mitch Lewis, fifteen possessions, seven marks and a couple of tackles is a typical Jack Gunston performance in a final.
By the end of his career Jack Gunston must be considered as one of the best to don the Hawks jumper.
[2] Mitch Lewis – 6
Three goals from Mitch Lewis in the first half of the game was an excellent return from a player who has had a few confidence issues since returning from injury.
Mitch faded in the second half, but he never gave up trying.
If Mitch can have a clean period of time without injury interrupting his career he is a valuable asset to the Hawks.
[31] Connor McDonald – 5
When the Hawks were mounting a rearguard comeback in the third quarter Connor McDonald played an instrumental role for that ten minute period.
Connor took a good contested mark and then goaled to bring the margin back to 14 points as part of the Hawks third quarter rearguard rally, but by night’s end that was really his only highlight.
For the rest of the match Connor was like a lot of his teammates, very vanilla.
[17] Lloyd Meek – 6
Statistically big Lloyd had a good game, but his overall impact on the contest wasn’t obvious.
Too often the Cats midfielders fed off his tap work resulting in goals, especially in the third quarter.
Dangerfield was like a kid in a lolly shop at the start of the third quarter as he roved Lloyd’s tap outs to perfection as he went on a rampage.
The Hawks looked more dangerous when Mabior Chol was in the ruck and that includes around the ground as well.
[3] Jai Newcombe – 3.5
At the start of the third Jai Newcombe was a witches hat as Dangerfield, Max Holmes and Tom Atkins ran riot from each centre clearance battle catapulting and thrusting the Cats forward as the Catters took full control of the match.
Hats off to Tom Atkins who nullified the Hawks match winner for the entire game.
This is the first finals match in Jai’s career that he has been comprehensively beaten and given his professional attitude to his team and his own game this performance will eat at him until he gets some redemption.
[11] Conor Nash – 8
Conor Nash was one of the Hawks best players with 22 possessions, a goal and six bone jarring tackles.
Nash is a deceptively tall player who can play in almost any position assigned to him.
If I was to compare the big Irishman to another player it would be his compatriot, Zach Tuohy.
[14] Jack Scrimshaw – 6
It is hard to evaluate Jack Scrimshaw’s game as it had some really good bits and some ordinary bits as well.
Four marks and five tackles from Jack’s fifteen possessions as well as 235 metres gained does give him a pass mark, but…
[15] James Worpel – 6
By the end of James Worpel’s career he will be known as a solid footballer who played his role well, and that description sums up his match against his new suitors Geelong.
Sixteen possessions, five tackles with 318 metres gained is a typical James Worpel solid game.
[33] Jack Ginnivan – 7.5
Jack Ginnivan has developed this season into a very reliable player who has some magic about him.
In previous seasons Jack has relied on his magic to get him through, but he has really matured this season into a damaging player who can play in many positions.
Despite a couple of errors, Jack was one of the Hawks best and to his credit, he played the game right out to the finish.
[30] Sam Butler – 3
[subbed out in 3rd)
Sam Mitchell had to swing the magnets at the start of the third quarter when the Cats were on a rampage, and that included subbing Changkouth Jiath into the game.
Until he was subbed out Sam Butler was having a beige match and his demise to the pine was probably the right call.
[9- Sub] Changkuoth Jiath – 4
[subbed on in the 3rd]
Unless a sub does something spectacular it is very hard to appraise their performance.
For the third straight week Jiath was the Hawks sub and when he came on his lack of match awareness was pretty obvious, but to his credit he had a good last quarter as he tried to lift his team.
