Expert
Geelong obliterated Fremantle by 133 points in one of the worst performances of 2018 by the losing team.
» Click here to read the full match report
Final score
Geelong Cats 24.14.158
Fremantle Dockers 3.7.25
The Geelong Cats will take on the Fremantle Dockers this Saturday afternoon at GMHBA Stadium, in what may be a one-sided game. Join The Roar for live scores and a blog of the match, starting at 2:10pm (AEST).
This one is fairly simple – Geelong needs to smash the Dockers to improve its percentage and boost its chances of making finals.
The Cats have two simple matches to finish the season, which should see them jump into the top eight – however, the Dockers have a good recent record in Geelong which could buoy the club.
Nat Fyfe is back for Fremantle which is enormous, while Bailey Banfield is an underrated inclusion for the club.
In the team’s last three matches at GMHBA, they have won one match and lost the two other games by two points each.
It’s a ridiculous record for such a low-rated team, but it immediately gives the club a boost.
The Cats have made four changes, with only one forced. Ryan Abbott will take on Sean Darcy in an intriguing match-up to see who gives their midfielders first use, while Harry Taylor is an important inclusion.
Jordan Murdoch tends to thrive in these sorts of matches, and a 20-disposal, two-goal effort wouldn’t surprise, while Jackson Thurlow is the fourth inclusion.
Fremantle’s strength in this match is its pace when moving the ball off half-back and on the wings, both by foot and with their kicking. Nathan Wilson will be particularly important in this game, as the key to beating Geelong is to avoid kicking high to contests.
Wilson needs to either kick the ball over the top for his small forwards to run onto, or hit up the likes of Cox and McCarthy on the lead.
It all boils down to how important this match is for Geelong, however. Chris Scott would be well aware of the issues his team has had with the Dockers, and there’ll be no complacency here by the club.
Geelong’s bottom six players aren’t of particularly high quality, but that’s an issue when they come up against the better teams.
Despite the record Fremantle may have against the Cats, this will be ugly. Geelong needs to win well, and that’s exactly what they’ll do.
The live blog will have a bit of fun, because we could be seeing a massacre on our screens.
Tip: Geelong by 64 points