Opinion
There is no doubting Geelong are the deserving winners by far but so were Melbourne last year and Richmond before that. It could look like Geelong just had to turn up and play and that would be more than enough.
It can be hard to win premierships and for all the hard work that they have done over the past 10 years they only have one flag to show for it.
You can have very good years but with 5-6 other teams also there with you it can be difficult to win three finals and Geelong nearly didn’t beat Collingwood, who for the second time in four years lost a narrow preliminary final costing the GF of an all-Victorian spectacle.
Like Richmond and Melbourne before them they deserve to be winners as they were the standout team all year.
It takes hard work and a bit of luck at times to win a flag as your opponent on the day may be substandard or off their game slightly.
Geelong know all about falling short possibly by being slightly off or beaten by a better team. It doesn’t matter now but they primed their run well and took all before them.
They knew they couldn’t allow Sydney an equal share of the ball and made sure they didn’t get their hands on it and couldn’t go forward to a one-on-one forward line with space.
Whoever can take the game by the scruff of the neck and dominate play can take all before them.
We’ve seen in years past that one team can make a mockery of being there and spoil the big dance for everyone watching.
Only once the game becomes a contest and both teams are up for the fight does it become close. Only the West Coast versus Collingwood 2018 Grand Final has it been close in recent years as losing can be demoralising, and it’s easy to surrender once the game is lost.
Geelong fixed what was wrong with their structure that had failed them in the past and atoned for the missed opportunities.
We can say Geelong took this year’s cup when others took the past ones away from them.
We’ve seen in the past getting to a Grand Final is a difficult thing let alone playing well on the big stage.
As much as we marvelled at and celebrated Hawthorn, Western Bulldogs, Richmond and Melbourne for winning, we also acknowledge Geelong for their achievement this year.
I guess most of us move on quickly as we will this year and look forward to what our teams can do next year and with a bit of luck, hopefully they’re celebrating like Geelong.
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