Veteran defender Andrew Mackie says Geelong faced a test of character in Sunday’s thrilling two-point win over Fremantle, but that the side passed with flying colours.

The Cats lost skipper Joel Selwood to concussion in the first minute of the game, and were without midfielder Darcy Lang and defender Tom Stewart through injury for much of the second half at Simonds Stadium.

Despite the lack of rotations and a 19-point three-quarter time deficit, Geelong fought hard to record their ninth win of the season.

“It shows a lot of character, to be honest. You learn a lot about a few players,” Mackie told Cats Media post-match.

“To walk away with the win, given where we were at half time, it’s really significant for us.”

Through their four losses this season, the Cats have proven even in defeat they are never out of the game and have recorded come-from-behind victories over the likes of North Melbourne, St Kilda and now Fremantle.

Mackie says the side can draw strength from those results and has the ability to stand up when it’s all going wrong.

“You draw on everything. It’s a test of character and [you] see what we can do as a club when the back’s against the wall,” he said.

“It’s something that we’ve been lucky enough to have some players who really enjoy that situation. Today was really positive from that point of view, that it wasn’t going our way and sometimes you’ve just got to just get it done.”

“In the end we walk away with four points and that could be really big for our season.”

That the Cats secured the four points takes nothing away from what was a win not without its flaws.

The Dockers were in control for much of the match and kicked seven unanswered goals in the second quarter to open up a 34-point lead, and Mackie says Geelong can’t afford to keep cashing in their ‘get out of jail free’ cards.

“It’s definitely one we take. We don’t give them back. But there’s a lot of things we can do better,” he said.

“We won’t have our head in the sand – there’s obviously some work to do. But as I stand here now, I’m pretty proud of the way the boys came back and won the game.”