There’s no doubt the cliff is coming for the Cats, but until it does they maintain one of the competition’s premier lists.
It’s certainly an older squad, but Geelong has numerous players who, when at their best, are in the top echelon of their respective positions.
In reality, the Cats have potential All-Australians across all lines on the ground, with one gaping exception.
Jon Ceglar was brought in to prop up the club’s ruck stocks during the 2021 trade period, with the hope he’ll be able to improve Rhys Stanley.
It’s not clear who will be given the starting mantle as the side’s ruckman, however what is likely is that only one will play if Chris Scott persists with Esava Ratugolea.
Whoever they chose, Scott will be crying out for consistency, with Stanley's drop-offs causing numerous headaches for Geelong's coaching staff over previous years.
The Cats’ assets ahead of the footy suggests they can do some serious scoring in 2022, but it will depend on keeping a clean bill of health, something they couldn’t achieve last year.
Coleman Medallists Jeremy Cameron and Tom Hawkins need no introductions and will continue to develop their chemistry, with the former spending some of 2021 injured. They may or may not be joined by fellow tall Ratugolea, depending on what structure Scott wants to play with, and the Cats have no shortage of smalls at their disposal.
Gryan Miers, Gary Rohan and Brad Close will generally start in the 22, while the Cats also rate Francis Evans highly. Luke Dahlhaus needs to lift his output, while Max Holmes and Tyson Stengle__ may have to wait for injuries at this stage.
The midfield is where the Cats get the cream. Patrick Dangerfield, Joel Selwood, Mitch Duncan, Sam Menegola, Cam Guthrie, Isaac Smith and Brandan Parfitt are all walk-up starters in most teams in the league, while their depth is also something to be admired.
Mark O’Connor is hard to remove from the best 22 given his defending attributes, which leaves Shaun Higgins, Sam Simpson and Cooper Stephens__ all fighting for spots.
Quinton Narkle is also a fascinating case, trying and failing to secure a trade at the end of last year.
He has the potential to be one of the most dynamic Cats, if he knuckles down.
Moving to the club's backline, it’s clear to see where the weaknesses lie. Tom Stewart, Mark Blicavs and Jack Henry can all dominate the air, with Jake Kolodjashnij and the talented Sam De Koning not far away.
While Zac Tuohy, Tom Atkins and Jed Bews are handy players, ground balls in defence are where the Cats are most exposed when under pressure.
That being said, the club's defence is their best asset and should only get better in 2022 with the continued development of Henry and potential debut of De Koning.
What corrupted Geelong at the back end of 2021 was injuries, with Stewart’s in particular taking a significant toll.
It can be said that the Cats are leaving too much to too few with the failure of their youngsters to fully establish themselves so far, but it’s also the case that any side needs a decent amount of luck to go all the way in September.
If Geelong can get the breaks at the right time and have their best 22 on the park at the pointy end of the season, there’s every reason to count them in the premiership race.
DEFENDERS Tom Stewart, Mark Blicavs, Jack Henry, Zach Tuohy, Jake Kolodshanij Tom Atkins, Jed Bews, Sam De Koning, Zach Guthrie, Flynn Kroeger, Nick Stevens.
MIDFIELDERS Patrick Dangerfield, Mitch Duncan, Joel Selwood, Cameron Guthrie, Sam Menegola, Brandan Parfitt, Isaac Smith, Mark O’Connor, Quinton Narkle, Shaun Higgins, Sam Simpson, Cooper Stephens, Mitchell Knevitt, Cooper Whyte, James Willis.
RUCKS Rhys Stanley, Jonathon Ceglar, Toby Conway, Paul Tsapatolis.
FORWARDS Tom Hawkins, Jeremy Cameron, Esava Ratugolea, Brad Close, Gary Rohan, Gryan Miers, Francis Evans, Max Holmes, Luke Dahlhous, Shannon Neale, Tyson Stengle, Ollie Dempsey.