TonyK
CibbuanoRound one preview: Geelong v Hawthorn
March 26th 2009 22:34
VENUE and TIME: MCG, Friday 27 March, 7.40pm (AEDT)
HEAD TO HEAD: Played: 141: Hawthorn 67, Geelong 73, Drawn 1
LAST TIME: Hawthorn 18.7 (115) d Geelong 11.23 (89), 2008 grand final at the MCG.
RECENT HISTORY: Hawthorn has won four of its past five against Geelong but only one of those wins has come at the MCG.
FORM: Geelong bounced back from losing the 2008 grand final by winning the NAB Cup with a 76-point demolition of Collingwood in the grand final. The Hawks had a far from ideal pre-season with several premiership players sidelined with injury but importantly star forward Lance Franklin and vice-captain Luke Hodge played in the club’s last practice match against the West Coast Eagles and impressed.
MEDICAL ROOM: The Hawks will be without several premiership players from last year including key defender Trent Croad (foot), Xavier Ellis (hip), Rick Ladson (knee) and Jordan Lewis (shoulder). The Cats suffered a major blow ahead of the regular season with defender Josh Hint suffering a season-ending knee injury in the NAB Cup grand final against Collingwood while skipper Tom Harley is expected to miss up to six week following off-season knee surgery.
KEY MATCH-UPS: Brad Sewell vs. Gary Ablett
Ablett was clearly Geelong’s best in the grand final loss to the Hawks, racking up a game-high 34 possessions and booting two goals.
As hard as it is to believe considering what he has achieved already, the 24-year-old looks set to take his game to another level in 2009 after a stellar pre-season.
Ablett is at his best when he is breaking the lines and the Hawks will be keen to shut-down his creative run and will undoubtedly give Sewell the task of tagging the classy Geelong midfielder.
Sewell, who averaged 23.5 disposals per game in 2008, will need to be switched on defensively for the full four quarters as Ablett is capable of turning a game on its head in the space of 10 minutes and he will also need to get his hands on the football and force the 24-year-old to be accountable.
Cameron Ling vs. Sam Mitchell
Mitchell, who averaged 27.8 disposals per game last season will be keen to have a big game against the Cats on Friday night after managing just a meagre 13 disposals in the grand final win.
The Hawthorn skipper is damaging with his ability to win the football in close and dish it off by hand to the likes of Travis Tuck, Stuart Dew and hard-running midfielder Chance Bateman.
Expect Ling, arguably one of it not the best tagger in the game to be given the task of running with Mitchell in what shapes as being a crucial match-up in determining the outcome of this match.
Ling will give Mitchell no time and space in which to work and don’t be surprised if the Geelong tagger pushes forward and tries to take Mitchell out of his comfort zone.
Max Rooke vs. Luke Hodge
Hodge was instrumental in the grand final win, racking up 26 possessions and pulling down nine marks in a performance that earned him the Norm Smith medal.
The Hawthorn vice-captain is highly effective at setting up the Hawks attacking forays forward and while he has had a limited pre-season he is still a dangerous player that the Cats must contain if they are going to start the 2009 season with a win.
Rooke, who booted two goals in the grand final, is strong overhead and looms as a likely candidate to be used in a defensive half-forward role on Hodge.
The Cats will need to go through Rooke at every available opportunity when going forward in order to make Hodge accountable otherwise the 24-year-old will be able to control the tempo of the game in his customary quarterback role and punish Geelong with his precise use of the football.
Harry Taylor vs. Lance Franklin
Like Hodge, Franklin has had a limited pre-season thanks to a thumb injury but the 2008 Coleman medallist showed he is in for yet another big year after collecting 26 touches and booting four goals in a best-afield performance against the Eagles.
The last time these two sides met in the home-and-away season Franklin completely outclassed Taylor and almost led his side to victory - he finished the match with 13 possessions, eight marks and a wasteful 4.5.
Matthew Scarlett will take Franklin if he plays closer to goal but if as expected he roams across the half-forward line then you would expect Taylor to be given the unenviable task of matching up on one of the game’s biggest stars.
With centre-half back Matthew Egan, Harley and Hunt all injured the Cats are missing three of their six first-choice defenders.
Therefore the likes of Scarlett and Taylor will be relying even more on immense midfield pressure to help contain a potent forward line led by Franklin that was the third most productive in the competition in 2008.
VERDICT: The Hawks may be the reigning premiers but they will struggle to match a Geelong side that will be keen to avenge last year’s heartbreak. The Cats, who are nearly at full strength, have simply had a better preparation and their forwards surely won’t perform as badly in front of goal as they did in last year’s grand final. Cats by 27 points.
HAWTHORN v GEELONG
HAWTHORN
B: Campbell Brown, Stephen Gilham, Brent Guerra
HB: Luke Hodge, Tom Murphy, Grant Birchall
C: Clinton Young, Sam Mitchell, Brendan Whitecross
HF: Michael Osborne, Lance Franklin, Stuart Dew
F: Mark Williams, Jarryd Roughead, Cyril Rioli
Foll: Simon Taylor, Brad Sewell, Chance Bateman
I/C: Brent Renouf, Ryan Schoenmakers, Matt Suckling, Travis Tuck
Emg: Josh Kennedy, Cameron Stokes, Mitch Thorp
New: Ryan Schoenmakers (Norwood), Brendan Whitecross (Zillmere), Matthew Suckling (Wagga Tigers)
GEELONG
B: Darren Milburn, Matthew Scarlett, Andrew Mackie
HB: Joel Corey, Harry Taylor, Max Rooke
C: Jimmy Bartel, Corey Enright, Cameron Ling
HF: James Kelly, Cameron Mooney, Ryan Gamble
F: Paul Chapman, Tom Lonergan, Steve Johnson
Foll: Brad Ottens, Joel Selwood, Gary Ablett
I/C: Mark Blake, Mathew Stokes, Travis Varcoe, David Wojcinski
Emg: Simon Hogan, Tom Hawkins, Shannon Byrnes
HEAD TO HEAD: Played: 141: Hawthorn 67, Geelong 73, Drawn 1
LAST TIME: Hawthorn 18.7 (115) d Geelong 11.23 (89), 2008 grand final at the MCG.
RECENT HISTORY: Hawthorn has won four of its past five against Geelong but only one of those wins has come at the MCG.
FORM: Geelong bounced back from losing the 2008 grand final by winning the NAB Cup with a 76-point demolition of Collingwood in the grand final. The Hawks had a far from ideal pre-season with several premiership players sidelined with injury but importantly star forward Lance Franklin and vice-captain Luke Hodge played in the club’s last practice match against the West Coast Eagles and impressed.
MEDICAL ROOM: The Hawks will be without several premiership players from last year including key defender Trent Croad (foot), Xavier Ellis (hip), Rick Ladson (knee) and Jordan Lewis (shoulder). The Cats suffered a major blow ahead of the regular season with defender Josh Hint suffering a season-ending knee injury in the NAB Cup grand final against Collingwood while skipper Tom Harley is expected to miss up to six week following off-season knee surgery.
KEY MATCH-UPS: Brad Sewell vs. Gary Ablett
Ablett was clearly Geelong’s best in the grand final loss to the Hawks, racking up a game-high 34 possessions and booting two goals.
As hard as it is to believe considering what he has achieved already, the 24-year-old looks set to take his game to another level in 2009 after a stellar pre-season.
Ablett is at his best when he is breaking the lines and the Hawks will be keen to shut-down his creative run and will undoubtedly give Sewell the task of tagging the classy Geelong midfielder.
Sewell, who averaged 23.5 disposals per game in 2008, will need to be switched on defensively for the full four quarters as Ablett is capable of turning a game on its head in the space of 10 minutes and he will also need to get his hands on the football and force the 24-year-old to be accountable.
Cameron Ling vs. Sam Mitchell
Mitchell, who averaged 27.8 disposals per game last season will be keen to have a big game against the Cats on Friday night after managing just a meagre 13 disposals in the grand final win.
The Hawthorn skipper is damaging with his ability to win the football in close and dish it off by hand to the likes of Travis Tuck, Stuart Dew and hard-running midfielder Chance Bateman.
Expect Ling, arguably one of it not the best tagger in the game to be given the task of running with Mitchell in what shapes as being a crucial match-up in determining the outcome of this match.
Ling will give Mitchell no time and space in which to work and don’t be surprised if the Geelong tagger pushes forward and tries to take Mitchell out of his comfort zone.
Max Rooke vs. Luke Hodge
Hodge was instrumental in the grand final win, racking up 26 possessions and pulling down nine marks in a performance that earned him the Norm Smith medal.
The Hawthorn vice-captain is highly effective at setting up the Hawks attacking forays forward and while he has had a limited pre-season he is still a dangerous player that the Cats must contain if they are going to start the 2009 season with a win.
Rooke, who booted two goals in the grand final, is strong overhead and looms as a likely candidate to be used in a defensive half-forward role on Hodge.
The Cats will need to go through Rooke at every available opportunity when going forward in order to make Hodge accountable otherwise the 24-year-old will be able to control the tempo of the game in his customary quarterback role and punish Geelong with his precise use of the football.
Harry Taylor vs. Lance Franklin
Like Hodge, Franklin has had a limited pre-season thanks to a thumb injury but the 2008 Coleman medallist showed he is in for yet another big year after collecting 26 touches and booting four goals in a best-afield performance against the Eagles.
The last time these two sides met in the home-and-away season Franklin completely outclassed Taylor and almost led his side to victory - he finished the match with 13 possessions, eight marks and a wasteful 4.5.
Matthew Scarlett will take Franklin if he plays closer to goal but if as expected he roams across the half-forward line then you would expect Taylor to be given the unenviable task of matching up on one of the game’s biggest stars.
With centre-half back Matthew Egan, Harley and Hunt all injured the Cats are missing three of their six first-choice defenders.
Therefore the likes of Scarlett and Taylor will be relying even more on immense midfield pressure to help contain a potent forward line led by Franklin that was the third most productive in the competition in 2008.
VERDICT: The Hawks may be the reigning premiers but they will struggle to match a Geelong side that will be keen to avenge last year’s heartbreak. The Cats, who are nearly at full strength, have simply had a better preparation and their forwards surely won’t perform as badly in front of goal as they did in last year’s grand final. Cats by 27 points.
HAWTHORN v GEELONG
HAWTHORN
B: Campbell Brown, Stephen Gilham, Brent Guerra
HB: Luke Hodge, Tom Murphy, Grant Birchall
C: Clinton Young, Sam Mitchell, Brendan Whitecross
HF: Michael Osborne, Lance Franklin, Stuart Dew
F: Mark Williams, Jarryd Roughead, Cyril Rioli
Foll: Simon Taylor, Brad Sewell, Chance Bateman
I/C: Brent Renouf, Ryan Schoenmakers, Matt Suckling, Travis Tuck
Emg: Josh Kennedy, Cameron Stokes, Mitch Thorp
New: Ryan Schoenmakers (Norwood), Brendan Whitecross (Zillmere), Matthew Suckling (Wagga Tigers)
GEELONG
B: Darren Milburn, Matthew Scarlett, Andrew Mackie
HB: Joel Corey, Harry Taylor, Max Rooke
C: Jimmy Bartel, Corey Enright, Cameron Ling
HF: James Kelly, Cameron Mooney, Ryan Gamble
F: Paul Chapman, Tom Lonergan, Steve Johnson
Foll: Brad Ottens, Joel Selwood, Gary Ablett
I/C: Mark Blake, Mathew Stokes, Travis Varcoe, David Wojcinski
Emg: Simon Hogan, Tom Hawkins, Shannon Byrnes
| 36 |
| Vote |
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