There is no doubting that more than just four points will be at stake when the Cats and Borough meet on Saturday afternoon in the ABC TV Match of the Round. Nick Duxon takes a look at the VFL Grand Final replay.
The long awaited clash between last year’s Grand Finalists comes at the perfect moment, right at the mid-way point of the season, with little separating them on the ladder.
Geelong is sitting comfortably in 3rd place with seven wins, only percentage differentiating the top three teams.
Just two points behind are Port Melbourne – who have somehow overcome a raft of injuries to key players such as Shane Valenti, Toby Pinwill and Danny Hughes – with six wins and a draw.
Perhaps more fascinating will be the duel between the two men at the helm – Geelong’s Matthew Knights and the Borough’s Gary Ayres – as both men have already had their names mentioned in regards to Melbourne’s senior coaching position.
Just like his AFL-affiliated counterpart Chris Scott, former Essendon coach Knights secured a premiership in his first year as the Cats’ VFL leader in 2012.
But what has been most impressive has been his development of Geelong’s young brigade, who have begun to filter through and hold their own in their successful AFL side.
The Cats enjoyed the bye last round, but prior to that annihilated finals contender Northern Blues, with young guns Josh Caddy and Jordan Schroder particularly impressive.
On the other side, Gary Ayres’ coaching record speaks for itself.
Ayres has been Port Melbourne coach since 2008, and in 2011 coached the Borough to an undefeated season and premiership win.
Port haven’t missed a finals series since Ayres took the reins, and despite injuries and no AFL affiliation, the Borough have again found a way to be more than competitive so far in 2013.
They are coming off a shock loss to North Ballarat – but with Chris Cain, Toby Pinwill and Dean Galea all in form, Port will be desperate to get revenge for last year’s grand final loss.
Port Melbourne are now close to full strength, while Geelong coming off the bye will welcome the return of Mitch Brown, but possibly lose Josh Caddy, who has been named on an extended AFL bench.
Young Cats Thurlow, Smedts, Murdoch, Stringer and Taylor Hunt have also been named on the extended bench as well as in the Cats’ VFL side.
If that wasn’t enough to play for, the winner could jump to the top of the VFL ladder at the conclusion of Round 11, pending other results.
Verdict: For me, the Cats’ fresh legs coming off the bye in clear conditions will be vital against their experienced Port Melbourne counterparts, and I’m tipping the home side to win in a close one by two goals.
Last Modified on 21/06/2013 16:23