Almost 12 months to the day before Saturday's home opener, the Cats commenced their 2025 campaign in nearly identical fashion as they took on Fremantle at GMHBA Stadium.
The weather was hot, but Geelong were even hotter as they piled on a whopping 23 goals to storm to a dominant 78 point victory.
A blistering opening half set up the season opening win, Bailey Smith impressed in his club debut while the Cats found numerous avenues to goal, recording 13 individual goal kickers across the afternoon.
Jeremy Cameron led the way with four majors, Sam De Koning impressed in the ruck while the defensive duo of Jack Henry and Tom Stewart were impenetrable all afternoon.
The game got off to a balanced start as both teams attempted to adapt to the conditions, Gryan Miers slotted a pearler from hard against the boundary to open proceedings.
Late goals to Ollie Dempsey and Patrick Dangerfield provided a nice buffer for the Cats, extending their lead to 27 points at quarter time.
Geelong continued their momentum and put the foot down in a big way after the first break, slamming through seven of the next eight goals to push the margin out to 54 points at half time.
The tackle pressure was telling for the Cats, laying 23 more tackles than the Dockers in the opening half while Bailey Smith and Max Holmes ran amok and proved very hard to stop.
Fremantle opened the second half with two quick goals but Geelong steadied through Dempsey, maintaining a seemingly unassailable 47 point buffer 20 minutes into the third quarter.
But in a heartbeat, the game was flipped on its head as Murphy Reid produced a stellar burst for the Dockers, kicking four goals in just six minutes of game time and pulling his side back within 21 points at three quarter time.
Just as it looked like the match might be headed for a grandstand finish, Geelong regained their composure and put together a barnstorming fourth quarter.
Tom Atkins and Shannon Neale started the onslaught, Jeremy Cameron and Ollie Henry followed suit and the Cats piled on 10 goals in the final term alone, kicking away to record an impressive 78 point victory.
2025 AFL Season - Round 1
GEELONG 5.4 12.4 13.6 23.9 (147)
FREMANTLE 1.1 3.4 9.9 10.9 (69)
GOALS
Geelong: Cameron 4, O.Henry, Stengle 3, Dangerfield, Dempsey, Holmes 2, Atkins, Bowes, Close, De Koning, Miers, Neale, Smith 1
Fremantle: Reid 4, Frederick 2, Banfield, Brayshaw, Cox, Treacy 1
BEST
Geelong: Smith, Dangerfield, Humphries, De Koning, Stengle, Holmes
Fremantle: Johnson, Reid, Brayshaw, O'Meara
CROWD: 25,372 @ GMHBA Stadium
