I strongly, strongly dislike the Cats. I hope with every fibre of my being Brisbane beat them on Saturday evening. Now that’s out of the way, the highest compliment I can give the Geelong Football Club is that I respect the hell out of them.
As a Hawthorn supporter – it’s tough to admit, but it’s true. Win a Ziggy BBQ for Grand Final day, thanks to Barbeques Galore! Enter Here. Unlike some other mobs in the AFL that my Hawks have a rivalry with (looking directly at you, Essendon), you simply have to tip your hat to the Cats.
They are just so well run, and do things on and off the field incredibly well. Their record in the last 20 seasons is nothing short of remarkable. Since 2004 they have only not made the finals on three occasions (2006, 2015 and 2023).
They have won four premierships and are about to line up for their 14th preliminary final in that time. To put this into context – the next best since 2004 are Collingwood with nine and Sydney with eight. This just doesn’t happen.
The AFL is a socialist system (by design) and you aren’t meant to have this level of sustained success without bottoming out. Shaun Mannagh celebrates a goal with Jack Bowes. (Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images) Their ability to regenerate their list by savvy recruiting from other clubs, and at times quite genius drafting has been second to none, and they have effectively had three or four successive iterations of their side come through whilst staying constantly rel.