Geelong book place in AFL grand final with thumping victory over Brisbane

Geelong are one win away from an elusive AFL premiership after banishing their preliminary final demons with a 71-point thumping of the Brisbane Lions at the MCG. Lifted by a heroic performance from star veteran Patrick Dangerfield, the Cats booked their second grand final appearance in three seasons by winning 18.12 (120) to 7.7 (49) in front of 77,677 fans.

Geelong will enter the September 24 decider on a 15-game winning streak and are guaranteed to start the game as warm favourites no matter if the Sydney Swans or Collingwood win the other preliminary final. It was the Cats’ sixth preliminary final since 2013, but they have not won a flag since 2011 and their only grand final appearance in that period was a loss to Richmond in 2020.

But young speedster Max Holmes looks set to miss the decider after being subbed out with a suspected hamstring injury in the third quarter. The 20-year-old looked heartbroken on the bench, punching the ground, as Irishman Mark O’Connor was substituted into the match.

Dangerfield set the tone for Geelong, booting the first goal of Friday night’s match on his way to a first-quarter tally of nine touches and two majors. The Brownlow medallist finished with 28 possessions, approaching the match with a steely determination to win the premiership that has eluded him in 302 games with Adelaide and the Cats.

“We feel like we have been building and it is not just one player, it has been such a strength of ours all year, if one is down, the next stands up and that is been our mantra,” Dangerfield told the Seven Network. “It is a credit to our coaching staff, they have been so balanced and not just with the wins, even when we have not played our best.”

The Cats fielded the oldest team in VFL/AFL