AFL's Cats out to pounce fast on Lions - Sports News - Fanatics - the world's biggest events

AFL's Cats out to pounce fast on Lions

By Sam Lienert 23/07/2010 03:39:33 PM Comments (0)

Geelong want to pounce early on a Brisbane AFL side lacking confidence to ensure there is no Lions revival at Skilled Stadium on Saturday.

The Cats, coming off their second loss in four rounds - against Adelaide last Friday night - and struggling to post big scores, are keen to find top form.

They appear ideally placed, almost back at full strength - boosted by the return of Steve Johnson and Darren Milburn - against fragile opposition, at a venue where they have not lost in three years.

Ruckman Mark Blake said the Cats aimed to stamp themselves on the match quickly, to bring the crowd to life and not give Brisbane a "sniff".

"If you get off to a good start down here in Geelong the crowd really jump on board and it's hard for a team to get back," Blake said.

"We look forward to getting on top early and putting a little bit of pressure on ... if you give them a little bit of a sniff, they could get on top and their confidence soon rises."

The Lions have lost 11 of their past 12 matches, including a dismal performance against Hawthorn in Launceston last round, when they were annihilated in the midfield.

It prompted four changes, including the introduction of first-gamer Ryan Harwood.

One bright light has been the solid form of young ruckman Matthew Leuenberger, and Blake expected himself and Brad Ottens to face a good battle with Leuenberger and Mitch Clark.

Blake said while the young Lions pair had great mobility, the Cats' duo could gain an edge at stoppages.

"If me and Otto can play some good footy in the ruck, we can get on top in the hit-outs and hopefully win the clearances and give our boys first use of the footy," he said.

The Cats managed just 9.9 against Adelaide and have not topped 100 points since round 12, something the return of classy forward Johnson from a three-game suspension should help.

"The team's definitely missed him a fair bit," Blake said.

But the rangy ruckman said returning to their high-scoring ways of earlier in the season was not as strong a focus as reproducing the "Geelong brand of football", starting with fiercer attack on the ball.

"If that results in a high-scoring game it does," he said.

"It's always good when you kick high scores, but at the end of the day, as long as you kick more than the opposition, that's all that really matters."

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