2018 Geelong Football Club season

Geelong Football Club
2018 season
Male athlete in mid-air with arms extended overhead in readiness to mark a football
Patrick Dangerfield preparing to mark the ball during the Cats' round 20 match
PresidentColin Carter
CoachChris Scott
(8th season)
Captain(s)Joel Selwood
(7th season)
Home groundGMHBA Stadium
AFL season8th
Finals seriesElimination final
Best and FairestMark Blicavs
Leading goalkickerTom Hawkins (60)
Highest home attendance73,189 vs. Hawthorn (Round 2)
Lowest home attendance24,507 vs. Fremantle (Round 22)
Average home attendance34,207
Club membership63,818

The 2018 season was the Geelong Football Club's 119th in the Australian Football League (AFL). It was the club's eighth season under senior coach Chris Scott, with Joel Selwood appointed as club captain for a seventh successive year. Geelong (known as the Cats) participated in both the inaugural AFLX competition and the 2018 JLT Community Series as part of their pre-season schedule, and the club's regular season began on 25 March against Melbourne at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). The Cats finished the home-and-away season with a 13–9 win–loss record and placed eighth on the league's ladder, qualifying for the 2018 finals series as a result. Geelong were defeated in an elimination final against Melbourne by 29 points, and therefore did not progress past the first finals week.

Mark Blicavs was named Geelong's best and fairest player, polling 234 votes for the Carji Greeves Medal ahead of joint runners-ups Patrick Dangerfield and Tim Kelly on 233.5 votes each. It was Blicavs' second Carji Greeves Medal, having previously won the award for the 2015 season. Tom Hawkins was the club's leading goalkicker for the seventh successive season, scoring 60 goals. Dangerfield and Tom Stewart were selected in the 2018 All-Australian team, with Stewart also receiving the AFL Coaches Association's Best Young Player award. The Cats also fielded a reserves team in the Victorian Football League (VFL) and a women's team in the VFL Women's (VFLW) competition. The women's team finished runners-up after they were defeated in the VFLW Grand Final by Hawthorn.

Background

Male athlete in guernsey and shorts
Male football coach jogging on playing surface
Joel Selwood (captain) and Chris Scott (coach)

Chris Scott continued as the club's senior coach for an eighth season, after signing a contract in April 2017 extending his tenure until the end of 2019; during the season, Scott agreed to a new contract to extend this period until the end of 2022. The Cats had four assistant coaches this season, each responsible for specific positions: James Rahilly (forward line), Matthew Knights and Nigel Lappin (midfield), Matthew Scarlett (back line). Corey Enright was also a member of the coaching panel, fulfilling the role of development coach for Geelong's young players. After spending two seasons as the club's director of coaching, Simon Lloyd was appointed to the role of Geelong's football department manager in September 2017, replacing Steve Hocking who had vacated the position to become the AFL's head of football operations.

Joel Selwood was appointed the club's captain for a seventh successive season, with Patrick Dangerfield and Harry Taylor retaining the roles of vice-captain and deputy vice-captain respectively. They were supported by a leadership group made up of teammates Mark Blicavs, Mitch Duncan and Scott Selwood, who all remained in the group from the prior season, with Zach Tuohy the sole promotion to the group.

Ford Australia was the major sponsor of the club for the 2018 season, continuing a long-running deal that started in 1925. GMHBA was the new naming rights sponsor for the Cats' home ground Kardinia Park, with a ten-year deal for the venue to be known as GMHBA Stadium from 2018. Geelong signed up 63,818 members, an increase of 16.3 per cent from the prior year. The average home ground attendance for the Cats this season was 34,207 spectators.

Playing list

Changes

Gary Ablett joined Geelong in the off-season trade period from Gold Coast

Following the retirements of premiership players Tom Lonergan and Andrew Mackie at the end of the 2017 season, Geelong delisted Josh Cowan, Matthew Hayball and Tom Ruggles from their playing list; although the Cats committed to redrafting Hayball via the upcoming rookie draft if he was not offered a contract by another club prior. Conversely, after spending the prior two seasons on the club's rookie list, James Parsons was upgraded to the senior list for 2018.

Geelong were involved in three trades during the annual trade period, the first of which involved the Cats exchanging pick 53 in the upcoming national draft for Richmond's future third-round pick in the 2018 edition. Geelong also traded Darcy Lang to Carlton in exchange for pick 58 and a swap of the clubs' fourth-round selections in 2018. Despite showing interest in Jack Watts (Melbourne) and Jake Stringer (Western Bulldogs), the Cats only gained one player via trade: Gary Ablett from Gold Coast (along with pick 24 and a 2018 fourth-round pick), with Geelong parting with pick 19 and their 2018 second-round pick in return. Ablett played for the Cats from 2002 to 2010, and had previously requested an unsuccessful trade back to Geelong at the end of 2016. Additionally, Steven Motlop departed the club as a restricted free agent, after the Cats opted to accept an end-of-first-round draft pick as compensation instead of matching Port Adelaide's offer to Motlop. This was despite Geelong coach Chris Scott stating prior to the free agency period that he hoped Motlop would remain at the club. Geelong's trade period was labelled a "significant gamble" by Josh Elliott of The Roar due to Ablett's age as a 33-year-old. Nathan Schmook of AFL.com.au rated the Cats' trading a 7 out of 10, given the club held picks 22 and 24 in the draft and "will back themselves to find quality talent" with these selections.

Four players were drafted by the Cats in the 2017 national draft: Lachie Fogarty (pick 22), Tim Kelly (24), Charlie Constable (36) and Gryan Miers (57). Christopher Doerre of ESPN.com.au graded the Cats' draft performance as an A+ reasoning that Fogarty and Kelly were "astute selections", and predicting that Constable and Miers "may be two of the draft day steals". In addition to redrafting Hayball (pick 30), Geelong also selected former Essendon and Western Bulldogs player Stewart Crameri (16) in the 2018 rookie draft. Geelong did not participate in the corresponding pre-season draft.

Statistics

Geelong used 40 players from their playing list this season, with six playing in all 23 of the club's games. There was seven players who played in their first AFL game: Ryan Abbott, Lachie Fogarty, Jack Henry, Jamaine Jones, Tim Kelly, Quinton Narkle and Esava Ratugolea. Stewart Crameri also played his first game for the Cats, having previously played for both Essendon and Western Bulldogs. Tom Hawkins was the club's leading goalkicker for the seventh successive season, scoring 60 goals; Hawkins also finished in third position overall for the Coleman Medal, awarded to the league's highest individual goal-scorer during the regular season.

Playing list and statistics
Player No. Games Goals Behinds Kicks Handballs Disposals Marks Tackles Milestone(s)
Ryan Abbott 45 4 3 3 20 23 43 11 23 AFL debut (round 20)
Gary Ablett 4 19 16 15 296 256 552 85 72 200th Geelong game (round 12)
Jed Bews 24 21 2 2 124 106 230 72 37
Aaron Black 23 3 0 0 23 17 40 17 9
Mark Blicavs 46 23 1 3 153 182 335 91 76
Wylie Buzza 12 3 1 2 10 12 22 9 7
Nakia Cockatoo 5 2 0 2 14 11 25 6 4
Charlie Constable 18 0
Stewart Crameri^ 36 4 5 3 27 19 46 20 9 Geelong debut / 100th game (round 7)
Jordan Cunico 31 14 4 6 164 93 257 64 30
Patrick Dangerfield 35 22 24 23 305 314 619 82 102
Mitch Duncan 22 21 7 8 315 238 553 133 74
Lachie Fogarty 13 15 5 12 109 90 199 37 52 AFL debut (round 1)
Ryan Gardner 20 0
Cory Gregson 28 10 3 4 57 36 93 22 34
Cameron Guthrie 29 13 3 0 99 113 212 34 39
Zach Guthrie^ 39 7 0 0 50 32 82 25 11
Tom Hawkins 26 21 60 29 212 113 325 153 40
Matthew Hayball^ 15 0
Lachie Henderson 25 7 0 0 70 37 107 31 17
Jack Henry^ 38 22 8 4 160 73 233 84 66 AFL debut (round 2)
George Horlin-Smith 33 4 3 0 34 31 65 7 15 50th game (round 8)
Timm House 30 0
Jamaine Jones^ 41 7 4 2 30 30 60 14 26 AFL debut (round 10)
Tim Kelly 11 23 24 16 277 249 526 77 81 AFL debut (round 1)
Jake Kolodjashnij 8 23 0 2 154 136 290 95 42 50th game (round 3)
Lincoln McCarthy 6 2 2 3 14 8 22 5 4
Sam Menegola 27 23 22 12 283 259 542 126 103 50th game (round 21)
Daniel Menzel 10 13 27 15 100 41 141 51 14
Gryan Miers 32 0
Jordan Murdoch 21 16 9 8 147 91 238 68 58 100th game (round 10)
Quinton Narkle 19 6 5 2 31 42 73 13 14 AFL debut (round 15)
Mark O'Connor# 42 5 0 0 37 21 58 23 9
Brandan Parfitt 3 19 15 7 164 178 342 50 85
James Parsons 34 11 9 7 70 64 134 32 24
Esava Ratugolea 17 8 7 7 37 32 69 26 15 AFL debut (round 1)
Joel Selwood 14 23 7 13 298 323 621 94 124 250th game (round 1)
Scott Selwood 16 13 3 1 80 135 215 40 69
Sam Simpson^ 37 1 0 0 3 4 7 3 2
Zac Smith 9 3 1 0 9 20 29 5 8
Rhys Stanley 1 15 6 3 99 103 202 44 42
Tom Stewart 44 22 1 1 296 146 442 132 46
Harry Taylor 7 8 4 4 58 39 97 30 12
Jackson Thurlow 40 7 3 0 68 41 109 31 14
Zach Tuohy 2 23 10 3 336 168 504 117 29
Key
^ Denotes player who was on the club's standard rookie list, and therefore eligible for senior selection.
# Denotes Category B rookie where player needed to be elevated to club's senior list during this season to be eligible for senior selection.

Season summary

Male athlete jogging during an Australian rules football game
Tim Kelly played his debut game in round one, and finished joint runner-up for the Carji Greeves Medal.

The fixture for the 2018 season was confirmed by the AFL in October 2017; Geelong were scheduled to play nine games at GMHBA Stadium. This was an increase from the previous season where the Cats played seven games at their home ground. Although uncertain of the impact of Gary Ablett's return to Geelong, Peter Ryan of The Age predicted that the Cats would "qualify high" for the finals due to having "nine home games and a quality midfield". This assessment was reflected in the annual pre-season survey of captains conducted by AFL.com.au, with eight out of the other 17 club captains expecting that Geelong would qualify for the finals this season.

The inaugural AFLX competition was played in February 2018, with games following AFLX rules (which is a modified version of Australian rules football). For this competition, clubs were split into three groups consisting of two pools in each; the top team in each pool played off in a grand final for that group. Geelong won both their pool matches, against Port Adelaide and Fremantle, before losing to Adelaide by eight points in the group grand final; the Cats also participated in the 2018 JLT Community Series as part of their pre-season schedule, playing in two games against Gold Coast and Essendon.

Geelong began the regular season on 25 March against Melbourne at the MCG, with the Cats narrowly winning by three points. Midfielders Joel Selwood and Gary Ablett each garnered 39 disposals in the win; Selwood was playing his 250th game and it was Ablett's return game for the Cats. In the lead-up to the following week's match against Hawthorn on Easter Monday, there was anticipation about Ablett, Selwood and Patrick Dangerfield taking the field together for the first time, with the midfielders labelled the "holy trinity". Dangerfield collected 31 disposals in his first game back from injury, combining with Ablett (35) and Selwood (29) as the three players with the most disposals for the Cats. Despite the impact of this trio, Hawthorn secured a one-point win—although their lead was as much as 25 points early in the final quarter. Travelling to newly-opened Optus Stadium in round 3, the Cats lost to West Coast by 15 points; the crowd of 54,535 was the highest attendance for a sports event in Western Australia. Selwood captained his 143rd match in round 4, surpassing Reg Hickey's 78-year-old record of most games as Geelong captain; the Cats defeated St Kilda in their first game at GMHBA Stadium for the season.

Bearded male athlete wearing long-sleeve guernsey jogging during an Australian rules football game
Zach Tuohy kicked the winning goal after the siren against Melbourne in round 18.

Geelong won three of their next five matches, with the round 6 game against Sydney their sole loss at GMHBA Stadium for the season. Playing against Carlton in round 10, debutant Jamaine Jones scored his first goal with his first kick and the Cats won by 28 points; it was Carlton's first game at GMHBA Stadium since 1997. Geelong won their next two games, including an 85-point win against Gold Coast; the Cats subsequently recorded an 18-point loss in round 13 to reigning premiers Richmond. Heading into their bye in round 14, Geelong were placed fifth on the league's ladder with an 8–5 win–loss record.

Geelong were defeated by Western Bulldogs in their first match following their week off, losing by two points after Cats defender Harry Taylor missed a goal after the siren; it was the seventh consecutive year the Cats had lost after a mid-season bye. Three weeks later Geelong had another opportunity to win after the siren against Melbourne in round 18; this time Zach Tuohy scored a goal for the Cats to win by two points. Geelong recorded a 42-point against Brisbane in round 19, with Tom Hawkins scoring seven goals for a second consecutive game. Geelong's loss in round 20 was the first time Richmond had defeated the Cats twice in a single season since 1982. Geelong's score of 24.14 (158) against Fremantle in round 21 was their highest of the season, with the Cats recording a VFL/AFL record of 23 unanswered goals; the 133-point margin was Fremantle's biggest defeat in the club's history. This dominance was repeated the following week, with the Cats finishing the regular season with a 102-point win over Gold Coast.

These final two wins helped the Cats place eighth on the league's ladder with a 13–9 win–loss record, qualifying for the 2018 finals series. Geelong were defeated in an elimination final against Melbourne by 29 points, and therefore did not progress past the first finals week; it was Melbourne's first finals appearance since 2006. In a post-season review for AFL.com.au, Mitch Cleary described the Cats' season as one that "promised so much but delivered little", and graded their overall performance a "D".

Results

Table of AFLX competition results
Game Date Result Score Opponent Score Ground Attendance
S G B T S G B T
1 15 February Won 3 6 6 72 Port Adelaide 5 1 4 60 Coopers Stadium, Adelaide 10,253
2 Won 4 2 5 57 Fremantle 3 1 4 40
GFX Lost 2 4 3 47 Adelaide 3 3 7 55
Table of regular season results
Round Date Result Score Opponent Score Ground Attendance Ladder
G B T G B T
1 25 March Won 14 13 97 Melbourne 13 16 94 Melbourne Cricket Ground A 54,112 9th
2 2 April Lost 18 9 117 Hawthorn 17 16 118 Melbourne Cricket Ground H 73,189 10th
3 8 April Lost 11 14 80 West Coast 14 11 95 Optus Stadium A 54,535 12th
4 15 April Won 15 13 103 St Kilda 7 14 56 GMHBA Stadium H 27,338 8th
5 21 April Won 12 12 84 Port Adelaide 7 8 50 Adelaide Oval A 45,372 6th
6 28 April Lost 10 9 69 Sydney 12 14 86 GMHBA Stadium H 31,036 9th
7 4 May Won 14 9 93 Greater Western Sydney 4 8 32 GMHBA Stadium H 25,079 6th
8 13 May Won 9 12 66 Collingwood 5 15 45 Melbourne Cricket Ground A 44,602 3rd
9 19 May Lost 7 8 50 Essendon 12 12 84 Melbourne Cricket Ground A 50,228 8th
10 26 May Won 11 7 73 Carlton 5 15 45 GMHBA Stadium H 31,090 6th
11 2 June Won 17 19 121 Gold Coast 4 12 36 Metricon Stadium A 17,490 5th
12 9 June Won 14 12 96 North Melbourne 8 11 59 GMHBA Stadium H 31,265 4th
13 17 June Lost 9 11 65 Richmond 12 11 83 Melbourne Cricket Ground H 46,423 5th
14 Bye 7th
15 29 June Lost 15 11 101 Western Bulldogs 16 7 103 Etihad Stadium A 29,499 8th
16 5 July Won 8 23 71 Sydney 9 5 59 Sydney Cricket Ground A 34,363 7th
17 12 July Lost 14 13 97 Adelaide 16 16 112 Adelaide Oval A 46,095 8th
18 21 July Won 16 4 100 Melbourne 14 14 98 GMHBA Stadium H 30,125 9th
19 28 July Won 18 12 120 Brisbane Lions 11 12 78 GMHBA Stadium H 28,226 8th
20 3 August Lost 12 10 82 Richmond 12 13 85 Melbourne Cricket Ground A 67,054 9th
21 11 August Lost 8 12 60 Hawthorn 10 11 71 Melbourne Cricket Ground A 59,529 9th
22 18 August Won 24 14 158 Fremantle 3 7 25 GMHBA Stadium H 24,507 8th
23 25 August Won 22 10 142 Gold Coast 5 10 40 GMHBA Stadium H 28,004 8th
EF 7 September Lost 6 10 46 Melbourne 10 15 75 Melbourne Cricket Ground A 91,767
Key
H Home game
A Away game
GFX 2018 AFLX competition grand final match
EF Elimination final

Ladder

Pos Team Pld W L D PF PA PP Pts Qualification
1 Richmond 22 18 4 0 2143 1574 136.1 72 2018 finals
2 West Coast (P) 22 16 6 0 2012 1657 121.4 64
3 Collingwood 22 15 7 0 2046 1699 120.4 60
4 Hawthorn 22 15 7 0 1972 1642 120.1 60
5 Melbourne 22 14 8 0 2299 1749 131.4 56
6 Sydney 22 14 8 0 1822 1664 109.5 56
7 Greater Western Sydney 22 13 8 1 1898 1664 114.1 54
8 Geelong 22 13 9 0 2045 1554 131.6 52
9 North Melbourne 22 12 10 0 1950 1790 108.9 48
10 Port Adelaide 22 12 10 0 1780 1654 107.6 48
11 Essendon 22 12 10 0 1932 1838 105.1 48
12 Adelaide 22 12 10 0 1941 1865 104.1 48
13 Western Bulldogs 22 8 14 0 1575 2037 77.3 32
14 Fremantle 22 8 14 0 1556 2041 76.2 32
15 Brisbane Lions 22 5 17 0 1825 2049 89.1 20
16 St Kilda 22 4 17 1 1606 2182 73.6 18
17 Gold Coast 22 4 18 0 1308 2182 59.9 16
18 Carlton 22 2 20 0 1353 2282 59.3 8
Source: AFL
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) percentage; 3) number of points for.
(P) Premiers

Awards

Geelong held their player awards night at Crown Palladium on 4 October. The club's best and fairest award, the Carji Greeves Medal, was won by Mark Blicavs, who received 234 votes; Patrick Dangerfield and Tim Kelly were joint runners-up with 233.5 votes apiece. It was Blicavs' second Carji Greeves Medal, having previously won the award in 2015. Additionally, George Horlin-Smith received the Tom Harley Award for best clubman, and Jamaine Jones was presented with the Community Champion award. Jack Henry was named the club's Best Young Player.

Dangerfield and Tom Stewart were selected in the honorary 2018 All-Australian team; Blicavs and Tom Hawkins were shortlisted but ultimately not selected in the final squad. Stewart also received the AFL Coaches Association's Best Young Player award, and Kelly was named Best First Year Player by the AFL Players Association. Henry was the Cats' sole nomination for the season's Rising Star award, nominated for his efforts in round 7.

Table of awards received by Geelong players
Award Awarded by Player Result Ref.
All-Australian team Australian Football League Mark Blicavs Shortlisted
Patrick Dangerfield Selected
Tom Hawkins Shortlisted
Tom Stewart Selected
AFL Rising Star Jack Henry (round 7) Nominated
Mark of the Year Jack Henry (round 23) Nominated
Leigh Matthews Trophy for Most Valuable Player AFL Players Association Mark Blicavs Nominated
Tom Hawkins Nominated
Tom Stewart Nominated
Best Captain Joel Selwood Nominated
Robert Rose Award for Most Courageous Player Nominated
Best First Year Player Tim Kelly Won
Best Young Player AFL Coaches Association Tom Stewart Won
Carji Greeves Medal Geelong Football Club Mark Blicavs Won
Best Young Player Jack Henry Won
Tom Harley Award George Horlin-Smith Won
Community Champion Jamaine Jones Won

Reserves team

The club's reserves team, participating in the VFL, was coached by Shane O'Bree for a third season. Tom Atkins was the sole captain, having co-captained the prior season with Jake Edwards and Ben Moloney.

The reserves team finished the regular season with a 13–5 win–loss record and placed third on the league's ladder, qualifying for the finals series as a result. Geelong did not win either of their finals, losing to the Casey Demons in a qualifying final and then the Box Hill Hawks in the semi-finals. Atkins was awarded the club's VFL best and fairest award.

VFL Women's team

Geelong Football Club
2018 (VFLW) season
PresidentColin Carter
CoachPaul Hood
(2nd season)
Captain(s)Rebecca Goring
(2nd season)
Home groundGMHBA Stadium
Deakin University, Waurn Ponds
VFLW4th
Finals seriesRunner Up
VFLW Best & FairestRichelle Cranston
Leading goalkickerKate Darby (18)

2018 was the club's second season of women's Australian rules football with the club fielding a team in the 2018 VFL Women's season, in preparation for the club's entry into the top-level AFL Women's competition from 2019. Paul Hood and Rebecca Goring continued as the coach and captain from the prior season. The women's team consisted of 39 players who were eligible for selection in matches in 2018.

Geelong finished in fourth at the end of the expanded 16-week home and away season to qualify for the finals. Winning consecutive finals, the Cats progressed to the 2018 VFL Women's Grand Final at Etihad Stadium, falling short to Hawthorn in the decider by 13 points.

Results

Key
H Home game
A Away game
F Finals
Table of season results
Round Date Result Score Opponent Score Ground
G B T G B T
1 6 May Won 7 10 52 Melbourne University 2 1 13 GMHBA Stadium H
2 13 May Draw 4 3 27 Collingwood 3 9 7 Olympic Park Oval A
3 20 May Won 8 9 57 Williamstown 0 4 4 Williamstown Cricket Ground A
4 26 May Won 8 3 51 Carlton 7 2 44 GMHBA Stadium H
5 3 June Won 4 4 28 Melbourne University 4 3 27 University Oval, Parkville A
6 16 June Won 4 7 31 Darebin 2 4 16 GMHBA Stadium H
7 Bye
8 1 July Lost 1 0 6 Western Bulldogs 4 4 28 Eureka Stadium A
9 7 July Lost 2 8 20 NT Thunder 13 7 85 Marrara Stadium A
10 14 July Won 8 7 55 Southern Saints 2 5 17 Deakin University, Waurn Ponds H
11 21 July Won 10 8 68 Casey Demons 4 3 27 Queens Park, Highton H
12 Bye
13 4 August Won 10 7 67 Richmond 1 2 8 GMHBA Stadium H
14 11 August Won 8 11 59 Essendon 2 2 14 GMHBA Stadium H
15 19 August Won 8 5 53 Casey Demons 2 4 16 Casey Fields A
16 25 August Lost 3 7 25 Hawthorn 6 5 41 Box Hill City Oval A
1SF 9 September Won 7 9 51 NT Thunder 6 6 42 North Port Oval N
PF 16 September Won 5 12 42 Collingwood 4 4 28 North Port Oval N
GF 23 September Lost 2 5 17 Hawthorn 4 6 30 Etihad Stadium N

Ladder

Pos Team Pld W L D PF PA PP Pts Qualification
1 Collingwood 14 12 1 1 607 328 185.1 50 Finals series
2 Hawthorn (P) 14 12 2 0 596 332 179.5 48
3 NT Thunder 14 11 3 0 831 430 193.3 44
4 Geelong Cats 14 10 3 1 599 367 163.2 42
5 Darebin 14 8 6 0 527 481 109.6 32
6 Western Bulldogs 14 7 7 0 494 589 83.9 28
7 Carlton 14 6 8 0 562 536 104.9 24
8 Southern Saints 14 5 9 0 439 475 92.4 20
9 Melbourne University 14 5 9 0 455 585 77.8 20
10 Casey Demons 14 5 9 0 414 594 69.7 20
11 Williamstown 14 4 10 0 473 676 70.0 16
12 Richmond 14 4 10 0 358 521 68.7 16
13 Essendon 14 1 13 0 292 733 39.8 4
Source: SportsTG
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) percentage; 3) number of points for.
(P) Premiers

Awards


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