It is a simple equation for the Cats in their Round 18 clash against Sydney at Metricon Stadium on Sunday.

Win and they secure a top four berth and a double finals chance, lose and they will finish outside the top four and play in an elimination final.

“It is an important game for us irrespective of ladder position,” Geelong Coach Chris Scott said.

“We would like to be playing well going into a finals series, but given the way things have fallen it is really clear for us that we need to not only play well but we need to win to finish top four.

“I always thought it was going to be an important game and it has proven to be so.”

Scott confirmed at Friday’s press conference that captain Joel Selwood and Gary Ablett were likely inclusions against the Swans.

“That’s our thinking at the moment that those guys will come back in.”

“We are still a couple of days out and as has been our process all year, we’ve waited until late as possible before we absolutely finalise our team, but I think we earmarked for Gary to come back in as soon as he was available and the plan was the hold Joel back as long as we possibly could and we have done that, so there is no reason to think that those two won’t play.

Gary Rohan is also firmly in the mix to return against his former side.

“Best guess is that Rohan will be available to play, (Rhys) Stanley won’t be, and Jack Steven will be available.”

Geelong has won their past three games against the Swans by an average winning margin of 20 points.

The Cats will go in as favourites to extend that winning streak; however, the Swans have built some strong recent form with two victories from their past three games.

“They have certainly improved as the year has gone on so I suspect that we will be playing them at close to their best for the year.”

"I think this is a good chance for us to acknowledge that the stakes are high, the results are really important one for us, lets confront it and do the best we can." 

For and Against: Played 225 games | Won: 124 | Lost: 101

Last time they met: R19, 2019 – Geelong 16.11 (107) def Sydney 12.8 (80)

Broadcast & Match Details

Sunday 20 September from 3.35pm AEST.
Watch: Seven, Fox Footy, Kayo
Listen: K Rock Football

It's a big game for... Tom Hawkins

Tom Hawkins currently leads the Coleman Medal with 40 goals of the season, nine ahead of Port Adelaide's Charlie Dixon in second place. After West Coast big man Josh Kennedy was unable to close the gap on Thursday night, Hawkins is in a strong position to win the award for the first time.

GEELONG needed a hero on Sunday, and not for the first time the Cats turned to Patrick Dangerfield. Once again, he didn't let them down. 

The Brownlow medallist and superstar midfielder was crucial to the Cats booking a spot in the top-four, dragging his side over the line against Sydney with a six-point win.

The nail-biting 10.9 (69) to 9.9 (63) victory saw the Cats secure a double chance and set up a clash with either Brisbane or Port Adelaide in the qualifying final. But it was far from an easy ride for Geelong, who fell 17 points behind midway through the third term. 

That's when Dangerfield, who was having a quiet day playing mainly in attack, stepped up, booting a goal in the third term and then another two to start the last quarter and steer his side over the line. 

You could've blamed Cats fans – and certainly coach Chris Scott – for having nerves right until the final seconds, however, as the Swans booted the last two goals of the game and ended with all the run in the dying minutes.

They also had a chance to draw level, but James Rowbottom's flying shot at goal was smothered with two seconds to play. A draw would have seen the Cats relegated to fifth position on the ladder. 

Sydney, in its final game of the year, burst out of the blocks in a high-scoring first term and controlled the contest until late in the third quarter.

In fact, they should have been further ahead of a lethargic and lacklustre Cats outfit that took too long to get going despite the returns of captain Joel Selwood (16 disposals) and champion Gary Ablett (16 disposals, one goal). 

It was an impressive finish from the Swans with Tom Papley busy in attack, veteran Josh Kennedy excellent in the midfield and Jordan Dawson also impactful with 22 disposals and a goal.  

Ablett's classy return

Ablett was back in style for the Cats after missing the past nine games while being back in Victoria and then in quarantine in Queensland. He set up the Cats' first goal in the opening term with a clean handball to Brandan Parfitt, and then booted his own later that quarter on the run in classically skilled fashion. Ablett looked sharp, was neat with his disposals and dangerous when he had the ball. He brought some customary class to Geelong's forward half, which struggled to hit its straps against the Swans.

Papley misses a big haul

Days after he publicly pledged his commitment, Papley was back in the scintillating form of his first half of the season. The only difference this time was that the livewire small forward couldn't convert his shots. Papley kicked 1.4 in the opening half, which included a mixed bag of misses, including a couple that the usually reliable goalkicker would expect to slot. He proved too much for Cats defender Mark O'Connor to handle, closing the game with 2.5, and will be ruing not finishing his excellent season with a bag of goals. 

Not all doom and gloom for Sydney

The Swans only won five games this season and finished the year third last on the ladder, but there is enough to be excited by when assessing the future. More of that was on show against the Cats on Sunday, with a group of younger Swans again prominent. Callum Mills was excellent in defence, Dylan Stephens had one of his best games on the wing, Dawson continues to impress, Justin McInerney excited with his run and dash and they'll have access to more young guns at the draft, including the No.3 pick and Academy duo Braeden Campbell and Errol Gulden.

SYDNEY          5.4      5.8      7.9    9.9 (63)
GEELONG      4.1       4.3      7.7    10.9 (69)

GOALS
Sydney: McInerney 2, Papley 2, Aliir, Blakey, Dawson, Kennedy, Reid
Geelong: Dangerfield 3, Hawkins 2, Parfitt 2, Ablett, Guthrie, Tuohy

BEST
Sydney: Kennedy, Dawson, Papley, Mills, Parker, Lloyd
Geelong: Menegola, Dangerfield, Guthrie, Stewart, Tuohy

INJURIES
Sydney: Bell (concussion) 
Geelong: Nil