Cats coach Chris Scott has cautioned against overconfidence ahead of Geelong’s season opener against Adelaide on Saturday, despite a strong recruitment drive in the offseason.
“We’d be overconfident if we thought that this was a better shot than what we had driving to the Gabba on October 24 last year – that’s a pretty good shot,” Scott told the media on Wednesday.
“We’ve got a lot of work to do to get back to that point again.”
Like any season, the Cats could contend ‘’if we get a lot of things right and we get a bit of luck”, he said.
“We’re always trying to have one eye on the future and one eye on the now, and those two things don’t need to be mutually-exclusive.”
That mentality would need to begin against the Crows, last year’s wooden-spooners, at Adelaide Oval at 4.35pm (AEDT) on Satuday, Scott said.
“Our ambition is to approach every game with the mindset that we need to play our best.
“We would expect Adelaide to be optimistic – hopeful about what the season could be, fit and somewhere near the best footy they’re going to play for the year.
“I think that’s a pretty good mindset for us to go in with.”
Scott said he tried “not to rate” Geelong’s premiership hopes “too much” after the Cats secured 2019 Coleman Medallist Jeremy Cameron, along with Isaac Smith and Shaun Higgins.
“We’d like to kick a good team score – I think the best forward lines in history, in the best teams, have been really cohesive ones,” Scott said.
“I don’t know Jeremy as well but Tom’s proven himself to be a very unselfish forward – even when he kicks a lot of goals in seasons, he’s always high for assists as well.
“I guess if I could have my way, one would be kicking it to the other a fair bit.”
Cameron, Smith and Higgins will play on Saturday, along with young gun Jordan Clark, Scott confirmed.
The speedy young midfielder impressed in the Cats’ Community Series game against Essendon amassing 29 possessions.
“He does have some attributes that we’d like to bring into our team,” Scott said.
His training with the Cats over the summer was the former cricketer’s “first AFL pre-season”, Scott revealed.
“He’s had multiple arm injuries that have really held back his physical development, so he’s free from those issues now, and has had a really good physical preparation,” he said.
“He came back in fantastic shape.”
Ruckman Rhys Stanley is set to return after missing the Community Series win under the AFL’s new concussion protocols.
But Scott ruled out midfielders Mitch Duncan and Sam Simpson, and forward-ruck Esava Ratugolea, despite Duncan training on Wednesday.
In the AFLW Geelong will take on the GWS Giants at GMHBA Stadium beginning 1.10pm.
