GEELONG, AUSTRALIA - AUGUST 20: Jai Culley of the Eagles tackles Tom Stewart of the Cats during the round 23 AFL match between the Geelong Cats and the West Coast Eagles at GMHBA Stadium on August 20, 2022 in Geelong, Australia. (Photo by Morgan Hancock/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images
Geelong has sent another reminder to the footy world of how good its dominant best form is in a 47-point win over the West Coast Eagles to improve to 2-3.
Jeremy Cameron, Tom Hawkins and Brad Close all booted four goals apiece, while Patrick Dangerfield was brilliant when the whips were cracking as the Cats emerged victorious at Adelaide Oval, 21.10 (136) to 13.11 (89).
Afl News: Geelong Cats Defeat West Coast Eagles Tom Hawkins Pre Match Gaffe Has Teammates In Stitches, Video
After conceding the first two goals of the day, the Cats exploded with 14 of the next 15 majors including a nine-goal blitz in the second term to take complete control.
Watch every match of AFL Gather Round LIVE & ad-break free in play on Kayo Sports. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >
The only downside for the Cats was an arm injury to Tyson Stengle, with Herald Sun journalist Jon Ralph reporting the gun forward has been left hospitalised with fears of a broken wrist.
West Coast The Team To Beat As Nic Naitanui Unleashes
Meanwhile West Coast, who trailed by 76 points at one stage, fought back gallantly in the second half, with Oscar Allen and Jake Waterman kicking four goals each themselves as the Adam Simpson’s side fell to 1-4.
Adam Simpson’s side had more energy than the Cats in the opening minutes, while Mark Blicavs appeared to be playing a negating role on Tim Kelly.
Oscar Allen added another for the Eagles to extend their lead to 14 and continue their promising start, dominating inside 50s (8-1), scoring shots (4-0) and contested possessions (16-7) in the early parts of the game.
Afl Finals Fixture 2019: Week Two, Geelong, West Coast Eagles, Brisbane Lions, Gws Giants
“They’re getting a lot of free running with the footy forward of centre, they need to spot up their forwards a touch more, ” Hawthorn legend Dermott Brereton said of West Coast on Fox Footy.
Patrick Dangerfield missed Geelong’s first opportunity in front goals, while West Coast rebounded the other way with crisp ball use but Waterman couldn’t convert the shot and continue his hot start.
In a nasty incident, Reuben Ginbey copped an accidental finger in the eye from Dangerfield while he was at the bottom of the pack, laying on the ground in pain for some time before coming from the ground in the hands of trainers.
Afl Scores, Results 2022, Geelong Cats Defeat West Coast Eagles Updates, Round 23: Live Ladder, Stream, Stats, Video, News, Blog
Tyson Stengle kicked the Cats’ second goal after a downfield free kick, while Brad Close added another to give the reigning premiers their first lead.
“They were a bit sluggish at the start of the game, but they’re certainly not anymore, ” Crows great Mark Ricciuto said of Geelong on Fox Footy.
“They are absolutely in top gear now. Young sides fade out late in quarters and games, (the Eagles) have just gone missing for the last 10 minutes.”
Stingy Cats' Defence Continues Afl Form
Next Zach Tuohy kicked a highlight boundary goal, while Cameron added two more to make it nine-unanswered goals as alarm bells would be going off in the Eagles coaches box.
“Major concerns now for West Coast ... this is getting ugly for West Coast and their fans, ” Fox Footy commentator Mark Howard noted.
Cameron kicked his third goal for the term with an awkward floater kick that sailed through where his surprise reaction told the story.
Live Afl 2020, West Coast Eagles Vs Geelong Cats, Round 9
The Eagles had a brief moment to celebrate after Ginbey put through his maiden career goal, but Cameron responded at the other end with his fourth goal of the quarter to continue his remarkable form.
“Ten’s (goals) not out of the question if West Coast have a poor second half – even if they have an average second half, ” Ricciuto said of Cameron.
Stengle came from the field in the final minute of the second term with what appeared to be an arm injury after landing awkwardly in a tackle from Josh Rotham in the only dampener from the Cat’s epic first half.
Afl Grand Final Time: Gillon Mclachlan Speaks On Big Issues At Sportnxt Conference, Twilight Decider
“We got overwhelmed ... mainly from clearances, we really struggled to get back in the game, ” Eagles coach Adam Simpson told Fox Footy at half-time.
“There’s some fundamentals we can get better at – we’re not happy with it – as much as the effort was there. We’ve got to try and clean up the stoppages.”
West Coast started the second half on a positive note, with Waterman kicking the opening goal for his second major of the day.
Afl Grand Final 2022: Every Geelong Cats Player Rated In Grand Final Thrashing Of Sydney Swans
But the Cats responded, with Hawkins missing a set shit before Jack Bowes made goad on a brilliant finish from the boundary line.
Issac Smith made it two in a row for the Cats after a brilliant chain of play starting with a sublime Stanley ruck tap to Dangerfield.
West Coast still had some fight left in it though, kicking two-straight goals including a highlight long-range finish from Jack Darling to make it three majors each for the term.
Afl Round 20 Heroes & Villains Andrew Gaff Inexcusable Punch
Jack Petruccelle booted a fourth-straight goal to continue the West Coast fightback, while Allen followed with his third major of the day to bring its deficit back to 47 points.
Waterman and Sam Petrevski-Seton kicked the opening two goals of the fourth – marking seven of the last nine majors overall for West Coast to stem the flow of the game.
“They’ve turned up, haven’t they? It’d be so easily to get emotionally drained at half-time and accept their fate, ” Brereton said of West Coast’s fightback.
Official Afl Website Of The Brisbane Lions Football Club
Close and Allen added goals for their respective teams to take each of their tallies to four majors alongside Hawkins, Cameron and Waterman in a big day for the forwards.
For the second consecutive week, Geelong flicked the switch and produced a ruthless blitz against a lower-ranked team that had no answers.
After trailing Hawthorn by nine points at half-time six days earlier, Geelong slammed on 10.5 to 0.0 in the third term to set up its first win of the season.
Afl Grand Final 2022: Swans, Cats Fans Wild As Geelong Wins
The Eagles had the first four scoring shots of the game at Adelaide Oval. Cue a gobsmacking Cats onslaught, which saw them have 16 of the match’s next 17 scoring shots – 11 of them goals – to skip-out to an unassailable 56-point lead midway through the second term.
Geelong showed no mercy to West Coast, dominating the disposal, contested possession and clearance counts as it emphatically denied its opposition of the footy.
Geelong let the Eagles back into the game midway through the third quarter as they conceded five consecutive goals. But Brad Close kicked two majors late in the term to steady the Cats before three quarter-time.
Afl News: Geelong, Geelong Cats, Afl 2020, 2011 Grand Final, Collingwood, Travis Varcoe, Cameron Ling
The only sour spot was an injury concern to All-Australian forward Tyson Stengle, who was subbed out of the game at half-time after landing awkwardly on his left wrist due to a Josh Rotham tackle.
After Mark Blicavs slammed through Geelong’s 11th consecutive goal in the second quarter, Fox Footy’s cameras panned to the West Coast coaches’ box. And the look on the face of a bereft Adam Simpson said it all.
The Eagles had started the game promisingly, leading 2.2 to 0.0 after seven-and-a-half minutes. But once Geelong found its rhythm, the Eagles had no answers as they struggled to get their hands on the ball.
Sydney Swans Vs Geelong Cats Betting Props: Afl Round 16
“Look at Adam Simpson. He knows he hasn’t got many cards to play or tricks to pull, ” Ricciuto told Fox Footy after Blicavs’ goal.
“West Coast is just too undermanned at the moment with eight of their best 22 out. And even with their best 22, they’re hardly going to mix it with the Cats.
Simpson said his side was simply “overwhelmed” in the last 10 minutes of the first quarter and the first 20 minutes of the second, “mainly from clearances”.
Sportwatch: Hawks Topple Eagles, Lightning Crush Thunderbirds, Roosters Too Good For Dragons
“There’s some fundamentals we can get better at, we’re not happy with it. As much as the effort was there, there’s some method we need to try and get back to and we’ve got to try and clean up the stoppages.”
The key-position player, who had interest from the Power during the off-season, has been thrown permanently behind the ball this season and is having a positive influence for Geelong.
That was certainly the case in the first quarter on Sunday when Ratugolea took an incredible six intercept marks for the term alone. It was the most intercept grabs taken by a Geelong player, usurping ex-teammates Harry Taylor and Lachie Henderson.
Afl News 2022: Tyson Stengle, Recruit Of The Year, Inside Story, Geelong Cats, Grand Final Against Sydney Swans, Latest
Ricciuto said Ratugolea was a “competitive beast in the air”, but added he’d like to see the tall Cat perform against some of the league’s flag contenders.
“He hasn’t looked as comfortable when the ball’s coming down with a bit of speed and a bit of good ball use, ” the Crows legend told Fox Footy.
“Intercepting defenders look great when there’s hack kicks coming out of the middle or it’s coming out under pressure. But the time will come when he’s got to stand up in a game against a good side.”
Cream Rises To Top After Geelong's Bloodless Win Over Insipid Collingwood
After the Ratugolea show in the first quarter, Coleman Medal leader Jeremy Cameron took over in the second, booting an incredible 4.1 from 10 disposals for the term alone.
“He’s a chance to kick 100, isn’t he?” an optimistic Ricciuto asked. “Twenty-three rounds, so he’s got the extra