AFL 2021 LIVE updates Hawkins kicks five to send Geelong into preliminary final and end Giants season
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On the game:
The pointed thing was every quarter they probably just got us by a goal. A goal or two. And whether that’s experience, right thing, right time, trying to make up ground was hard. We hung in there and we were courageous because we didn’t rollover. We kept on fighting until the end. It’s a learning curve. We are a young team tonight.
“I’m really proud they had a crack against a really mature side that does the right thing at the right time a lot more than probably what we did tonight. We had equal inside 50s. We did a lot right but didn’t get our rewards when we went forward.
Shane Mumford and the Giants.Credit:Getty Images
How much did you miss Hogan tonight? Just someone to take the really strong contested marks?
Yeah, he’s been in terrific nick in terms of that aspect of the game. It’s not ideal but it is what it is. You’ve got to deal with it. And having him down there as a big key target no doubt would have cause another threat to Geelong’s defence but we didn’t have that. We tried some stuff at three-quarter time with Haynes down there. When the game looked like it was done and dusted we put Cumming down there as well. We will learn from it. You can’t sort of sit back and say, if we had have had player A, B, or C, we would be dealing with injuries all year.
How serious was the injury and could he have played next week if you had won?
It’s touch and go. He was sore a day after the game last week. We gave him every opportunity until a couple of hours ago before we made that decision. It’s a bit of a touch and go. He’s recovered from the injury well throughout the year on one occasion but he missed four or five weeks on another. So that would have been interesting.
As a throw forward on Hogan, how concerning is it that he’s had so many niggles and setbacks this year?
Clearly you want players out there more than not. It’s his first year. We are trying to get to work out how much his training management, his load, what he can do and what he can’t do. The good thing about it is he goes away after a season where he’s played nine or 10 games, probably the most he’s done for a while. Clearly we want that up to 15, 16 games but we need to make sure we get his preseason right. He’s had setbacks with a couple of soft tissue injuries but that is the job of the high performance guys and the medical staff to work out what works and what doesn’t. We will get that challenge when we resume training later this year.
Obviously, it’s still raw that now that the season is over. How will you look back at this season?
Look, I think we played a lot of young kids. An enormous amount of young kids. An enormous amount of young kids. We went in up to a dozen times this year in the games where we were extremely young and probably one of the youngest sides going around. So it’s dangerous by saying they told you in good stead because every year is different. But no doubt that experience that a lot of those players have had, especially the back end of this year when we were playing in a lot of cutthroat games where we had to win, it puts an understanding in players’ minds that if you want to compete at the pointy end, you have to turn up more than not. And so, you know, really good finish to the year, a bit of up and down throughout the middle part of the year, but overall it’s a real positive. We know we’ve been on the road for a while and that helps relationships build and we can’t wait to get back in our home to see our family and friends. But equally next year when you get to play in front of your home crowd. Yeah, I mean, it’s a hard one to answer because an hour ago or 45 minutes ago we lost a final that would have progressed us into a prelim, so that is disappointing.
Geelong coach Chris Scott spoke to the media after the game...
Q: How satisfying is that, Chris?
It is satisfying, we played better, we knew we needed to. I think I said pre-game we’ve been a consistent unit over a long period of time and have great confidence that our best footy is hard to beat. We were closer to that tonight. It was a bit of a circuitous route but we are where we want to be.
Q: Did you have a point to prove as a group this week after some of the external commentary which you might not have been across anyway? Did you feel there was a point to prove?
It’s not the way we work. I don’t believe in that extrinsic motivation anyway. It’s good theatre for the game, I understand why that question is asked and why you might wonder whether we use it, but we don’t, we don’t think it’s valuable, we think it takes our minds off what we do best. We had a bad one, it happens. Even to good teams. We needed to concentrate on what we do well and I thought we got back to that pretty well tonight.
Q: Have you considered what the shape of the game would be, it’s a different universe, with Jeremy Cameron playing for them, bearing in mind their forward issues? And not for you, even though you had Tom Hawkins, who was dominant, the combination of those two players compared to what they had?
No, not really. I had a few other things on my mind other than those weird hypotheticals. It would be weird if I was thinking that, I understand why you would be. Give me a couple of days to think about it and I’ll give you a more considered answer. What I will say is I think it would be bordering on offensive to say that the performance tonight was good because we had Jeremy Cameron and they didn’t.
Q: You had Tom Hawkins, that was pretty significant too.
Any good team has good players and they were significant but that is not the question you asked.
Q: What was it about your game tonight that showed you are back where you want to play your game the way you want to?
I thought we let ourselves down the way we defended last week. By that, when the opposition had the ball necessarily it happened before that, our contest work was better which allowed us to defend better. We had players ahead of the ball, much more dangerous and challenge the opposition a lot more. I say it regularly without going into detail, we strongly believe the three phases of the game have to fit together and if one is off it affects the others. We had two really bad parts of a game last week that we needed to address and we were beaten in the contest too much which put us on the back foot defending.
If Toby Greene has not apologised to his teammates already, then he should do so the first chance he can.
At some point in his career, the penny must drop for Greene if Greater Western Sydney’s pioneers - the club’s first wave of players in a foreign football market - are to give themselves the best chance for a crack at the ultimate prize.
Finals are difficult enough to win let alone with your most talented player and the heartbeat of the side watching from the other side of the white line.
Click here to read the story.
GWS star Josh Kelly spoke to Channel Seven after the game...
Q: What were the initial thoughts from the coaches post game?
Obviously disappointing, we had high hopes for this game and we couldn’t execute for four quarters, Geelong’s experience over the game slowly got us. They played a great brand of footy. Initially disappointed but at the same time positives out of it. We are hurting.
Q: I’m sure it is tough and raw for you but you’ve been on the road for a couple of months, I’m sure the group is as tight as they’ve ever been.
It’s been a special patch. Seventy-three days ago when we got told we were leaving, I think initially we thought we were gone for a week or two. That just kept going. Grateful for the opportunity. So proud of the boys. And the staff, everyone involved, it’s been a special year. Like you said we are tighter than ever, great bunch of guys. There is exciting times in the future, I think it sets us up. ... It’s a special group.
Q: Who knows what will happen with you guys whether you can get home but you are committed to the football club essentially for your footy life, you must be thrilled to see the
progression coming forward.
When I got that off my chest it was a relief knowing the group I will be with, the club I will be with, everyone involved, like I said, it’s a special group and somewhere I’m proud to be a part of. At the end of the day we didn’t get the result we were after. And that hurts. There will be a bit of reflection and time when we consider and say we really enjoyed the year and take a lot out of it and move forward.
After playing a club record 333rd game, Geelong captain Joel Selwood spoke to Channel Seven...
Q: Congratulations again, another prelim final, you don’t need the motivation but do you use the negativity about where the team is at, will they fall off the cliff, do you use that fire?
Personally not, it’s been part of the Geelong folklore for years. We keep backing up and getting to this stage, it’s a chance to have another go. It’s hard to get to a top four, I can tell you that. We’ve given ourselves a shot and I’d rather be in a side that does that every year that one that doesn’t get there.
Q: Tom Hawkins tonight kicked five goals, your 200th win together, no couple has ever done that in AFL football. You started together and you’ve been there all the way through together.
It’s been a special journey sharing with Tom Hawkins, he spoke so nicely about me before the game before we ran out. He probably took up too much time, probably sent us on the ground a bit late. It’s been a special couple of weeks for us, myself and him. To be honest it’s been set up by the staff, we have to come over here and we have to settle in. We did that straight away last Saturday. And from there, I can’t thank the coaches for the work they have put in. They did all the hard work and we just had to show up and play.
Q: Truly we think about Tom Hawkins and want to talk about him but what about some of your role players - Tom Atkins did a good job on Tim Taranto when he was forward and Max Holmes when your forward pressure was criticised last week to lay eight tackles tonight, you must’ve been impressed with those guys.
We could keep going, Brad Close is important, and Esava Ratugolea, these are young kids making their way and we are showing them what they are capable of. You will see them in Geelong jumpers for years to come and I will enjoy that.
Q: Mark Blicavs is your swingman, he’s played everywhere on the ground. Back tonight, where would you prefer him to play, what is his best position?
We are in a lucky position that he can play a number of positions. The running ability he can do wherever he plays, he gives us extra in defence but when he plays on the ball his follow-up work is amazing. I think he will settle down back for the timebeing. But that might change next week.
Q: Zach Tuohy gave you a different look tonight, what kind of a difference as a midfielder to have someone who takes the ball forward aggressively, must’ve been a relief at times.
He was important, I thought Jed Bews was important as well, we’ve nearly named everyone in the side.
Tom Hawkins was one of Geelong’s best with five goals and he spoke to Channel Seven after the game...
Q: Fine game of footy from yourself and a great bounce back for the Cats.
It was. It was hard-fought. We had trouble with GWS a couple of weeks before. I thought we were outstanding, led through the midfield, we had contributors all over the ground which we lacked last week. A pleasing effort for us, we keep our season alive and move on, stay in Perth. We will rock ‘n’ roll out of quarantine and give it a crack next week.
Q: Another prelim final, congratulations. You came up against an up-and-coming defender in Sam Taylor who did a good job on you last time. How much time did you put into him during the week?
To be honest, I’ve always tried to concentrate on what I do well. I try to play to my strengths and when I’m at my best I can play well against anyone. I obviously know he liked to set off from last time I played on him, he has great closing speed and good in the contests. We started to move the ball inside 50 with non-pressured entries, the ball carrier had time and space and that will be hard to stop.
Q: Congratulations. Your coach was frank last week and said anything that could go wrong did and you couldn’t get forward pressure. From the get-go tonight your pressure was right up. Was that a player-led thing or a coach directive?
Clearly poor last week in that area. It’s a tricky one because I want to put on forward pressure and make it a hallmark of our game inside forward 50. We need to play well collectively to allow small forwards or anyone down in the forward line to put pressure on. It was a collective effort, collective buy-in and that was outstanding. We talked about it at three-quarter time, we got that with the forward 50 tackle, holding the ball and we kicked a goal off the back of Brad Close. That was outstanding and pleasing for us.
Q: You ran into your old teammate big ‘Mummy’ (Shane Mumford) - might have given you a corked thigh to enjoy during the week?
The funny thing I said to Shane, I’ve played a bit of footy with him, I respect him immensely but (assistant coach) Nigel Lappin told me during the week he said watch out for ‘Mummy’ when he sits off the contest, he runs in with that knee and wants blood, he got me right in the thigh. I couldn’t do anything about it.
Geelong has set up a preliminary final against Melbourne next weekend as Tom Hawkins kicked five goals to lead his side past a brave GWS Giants.
Hawkins did his damage in the last term just as the Giants were trying to mount a late comeback kicking two crucial goals to stop any thought of Geelong falling short.
The Cats have their shortcomings but their big stars are match-winners and Hawkins showed this tonight.
Tom Hawkins.Credit:Getty Images
GOALS
Geelong: Hawkins 5, Cameron 2, Rohan 2, Close 2, Menegola 2, Ratugolea, Smith
GWS: Stone 2, Himmelberg 2, Kelly, Lloyd, Hill, Mumford, Haynes, Ward
DISPOSALS
Geelong: Tuohy 31, Menegola 29, C.Guthrie 25
GWS: Whitfield 34, Hopper 28, Kelly 25
INTERCEPTS
Geelong: Atkins 7, Henry 7
GWS: Whitfield 10, Haynes 9, Davis 7
Tom Hawkins has taken yet another mark and kicked yet another goal. He has five goals and this game should be over.
Zach Sproule has gone off the field for the Giants with a shoulder injury and medical sub James Peatling has come on.
Cats up 95-61 with 9 minutes to go.
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