For the third time in six years and for the 20th time in the club's history, the mighty Cats are Grand Final bound after a sensational victory over Hawthorn in Friday night's Preliminary Final.
With 99,597 packed into the MCG, two of the game's most dominant teams traded blows for much of the night in a see-sawing affair, the Cats bouncing back from a slow start to stamp their authority in a brilliant display.
There were heroes all across the ground for Geelong, but perhaps none were better than the Cats inspirational skipper, with Patrick Dangerfield winding back the clock and collecting 31 disposals, eight clearances, three goals and 13 score involvements.
Bailey Smith amassed a game-high 36 disposals in another dominant performance, Gryan Miers was instrumental with 27 disposals and four goal assists, while Tyson Stengle's skill shone through finishing with three goals and nine score involvements from his 15 disposals.
Tom Atkins (25 disposals, 11 tackles) was at his brilliant best through the middle, Zach Guthrie (21 disposals, 10 intercepts) stood tall down back, while Mark Blicavs (12 disposals, 29 hit-outs) and Jeremy Cameron (16 disposals, three goals) were both heavily influential.
The opening term was far from ideal as the Cats struggled to get the game on their terms, but a late goal from Patrick Dangerfield pulled his side back within 13 points at the first break after conceding the first three goals of the game.
Sam De Koning picked off four intercept possessions down back and Bailey Smith found plenty of the footy with nine disposals, but Geelong's issues were compounded when Tom Stewart was subbed off just before quarter time.
Needing to gather some momentum in the second term, Shannon Neale gave the Cats a perfect start with a big contested mark over his opponent, going back and making no mistake on the set shot to cut the deficit early.
The heavyweight contest then started to produce what the blockbuster crowd came to see, with the two sides trading blows in a fascinating period of football.
Geelong trimmed the margin to three points after a Mark Blicavs goal, Hawthorn hit back with three of the next four majors to re-establish a handy buffer, but the Cats continued to fight with the final two goals of the term, hitting the lead by the narrowest of margins at the main break.
Centre clearances were a big factor for the Cats in the first half (8-3), their tackle pressure inside 50 was also off the charts laying 10 tackles to the Hawks six in their forward arc.
Smith (16 disposals, four inside 50s) continued to impose himself around stoppages, Patrick Dangerfield (14 disposals, seven score involvements) willed himself into the contest, while Zach Guthrie (16 disposals, five intercepts) stood tall down back in Stewart's absence.
It took just 30 seconds for the Cats to strike after the main break, Tyson Stengle weaving some magic and curling home his first goal of the match to continue his strong performance.
Dangerfield snapped through his second major, Max Holmes hit the scoreboard and Jeremy Cameron kicked his second, in the blink of an eye the Cats had six unanswered goals and a 26 point lead.
But in a colossal clash between two of the games best teams, it was never going to be one way traffic and the Hawks responded in a big way, kicking three consecutive goals of their own to cut the margin back to single figures.
The 2025 Geelong Cats team has shown time and time again that they know how to handle adversity, and once again they stepped to the plate. A late goal to Jack Martin was followed by a brilliant pair of finishes from Jeremy Cameron and Shaun Mannagh, the Cats pushing the lead back out to 28 points heading into the final quarter.
Patrick Dangerfield's heroic performance continued to get even better into the last term, with the captain capitalising in a monumental moment to snap through his third goal of the game.
Gryan Miers followed suit shortly after with a brilliant finish to put the first nail in the coffin, before Tyson Stengle and Bailey Smith put the cherry on top of a brilliant performance and sealed the deal late.
Geelong will now progress to the 2025 AFL Grand Final and will face the winner of tomorrow's Preliminary Final between Collingwood and Brisbane.
The 2025 Toyota AFL Grand Final Member ballot for Geelong will be processed on Saturday 20 September, with results released on Monday 22 September. Ballot outcomes will be communicated to members via email on Monday 22 September.
2025 AFL Season - Preliminary Final
GEELONG 1.3 6.7 13.11 17.13 (115)
HAWTHORN 3.4 6.6 9.7 13.7 (85)
GOALS
Geelong: Stengle, Dangerfield, Cameron 3, Mannagh 2, Smith, Neale, Miers, Martin, Holmes, Blicavs 1
Hawthorn: Lewis, Gunston 3, Watson, Nash, Moore, Macdonald, Impey, Ginnivan, Chol 1
BEST
Geelong: Dangerfield, Smith, Atkins, Holmes, Miers, Guthrie
Hawthorn: Amon, Gunston, Nash, Chol, Sicily
INJURIES
Geelong: Henry (ankle), Stewart (concussion)
Hawthorn: Ginnivan (finger/hand)
SUBSTITUTES
Geelong: Jhye Clark (replaced Tom Stewart in the first quarter)
Hawthorn: Changkuoth Jiath (replaced Sam Butler in the third quarter)
CROWD: 99,597 @ MCG
