Geelong has cemented second spot on the AFL ladder but not before surviving an almighty scare against the GWS Giants at Spotless Stadium on Saturday night.
After establishing a 36-point lead early in the final quarter, the Cats looked certain to cruise to a percentage-boosting win. But the Giants lifted, their superior run helping them boot five of the last six goals before going down 13.16 (94) to 12.15 (87).
While the Cats weren’t at their clinical best, the team’s superstars were influential throughout the match. Inspirational captain Joel Selwood finished with a game-high 39 disposals, while Steve Johnson collected 30 and booted three goals.
Arguably the best player on the ground, Johnson said the Cats were looking forward to next week’s bye. “We’re in a really good position with a week off next week, which we deserve,” he said.
“We’re looking at slowly creeping our way up the ladder. Results seem to be going our way, but we just had to control what we could (against GWS) and come out here and play a good game. We were a little disappointed with how it finished, but you take the points.”
Up by four at halftime, the Cats appeared to have shaken off the GWS challenge with a dominant third quarter. Josh Caddy, Jimmy Bartel, Mitch Duncan and Tom Hawkins all booted majors in the points blitz, the Giants unable to stop the visitors’ penetration in the corridor.
But the home team didn’t raise the white flag. Goals in quick succession to Tom Boyd and Dylan Shiel sparked the comeback, the Giants with all the momentum heading into the final 15 minutes. Joshua Kelly was next to goal for GWS before Selwood’s 50m effort seemed to steady the Cats.
But the Giants kicked again, with majors to Jeremy Cameron and Boyd setting up a thrilling finish.
