After a drawn first game back between Collingwood and Richmond, Australian Rules Football heads to Geelong where the Geelong Cats will be at home and take on the Hawthorn Hawks.
It was good to see the Footy back on Thursday Evening, and the Tigers and the Magpies played out a draw at the MCG in a low scoring contest.
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Geelong vs Hawthorn
Last Meeting
Geelong 8.13 61 – Hawthorn 12.13 85 at the MCG
Last 5 Meetings
Geelong – 2 Wins
Hawthorn – 3 Wins
Key Injury Concerns
Geelong – Jake Kolodjashnij
Hawthorn – Jaeger O’Meara, Jarman Impey, Daniel Howe
Current Head to Head Odds
Geelong – $1.60
Hawthorn – $2.40
In a Friday Night Clash the Hawks Head to Geelong to play on a ground they have not played on for almost 15 Years. Each time these sides meet, the games are generally played on the MCG in front of a lot of fans.
There will be no fans in the stands for this matchup, and it remains to be seen if Geelong will have a significant advantage playing on a ground they train on.
Geelong were beaten in Sydney by the Giants in Round 1 and the Hawks managed to beat the Lions by 28 Points in their opening encounter.
After a lengthy break, both sides come into this match with minimal injury concerns although the injury to Hawthorn Midfielder Jaeger O’Meara could make a slight difference.
Geelong is an experienced side, and the likes of Patrick Dangerfield, Joel Selwood and Gary Ablett will be valuable in deciding this match. It will also be interesting to see how Hawthorn Brownlow Medalist Tom Mitchell goes in his second match back from injury.
Conditions should be excellent for this encounter with no rain expected, so the game should be free-flowing, and a few of their past matches have been rather high scoring. The Hawks did get the better of Cats in their last match, but the Cats were beginning to tire in the latter stages of the season. Some say the shorter quarter lengths will do the Cats a lot of good with an ageing list, so we will have to wait and see.
The Hawthorn Coach will no doubt have some tactics planned to counteract the Cats, and they did have a preseason goal of playing more attacking football. The Geelong defence is solid though and made it tough for most teams last season, especially on their home ground.
Prediction
Geelong should be too strong on their Home Ground, despite their Round 1 performance and should take care of the Hawks.
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Check the video below to see some highlights of the last time these two sides played, in which the Hawks won the match 85-61.