The Bendigo Bank Cats have experienced their third loss of the VFL season, going down to the in-form Williamstown Seagulls at Burbank Oval. Following a rocky start, the Cats had only a glimpse of victory before being overrun by the relentless pursuit of the newly formed stand-alone side.

Williamstown initially shocked the Geelong contingent with their pressure both in their own forward half and defence, leaving the kittens feeling a little stunned for much of the first quarter.

The boys returned in the second prepared to compete after a quarter time pump up from stand in coach Paul Hood, increasing their own influence in the contest by returning the pressure that was lacking in the first term.

‘The game was a little bit disappointing for us because in the first 15 minutes it looked like Williamstown were prepared to embrace the contest, and we took a bit too long to match that. From there on in it was a bit more of an arm wrestle as to which club could take their chances a little bit better.’

The Bankers did finally manage to wrestle back the control from Williamstown, at times appearing have the game marginally back on their own terms which culminated in a narrow lead halfway into the third quarter.

However Geelong’s game-long struggle to convert in the forward 50 became an obvious flaw as the match wore on. Though the Bankers won the count with 57 Inside 50s to Williamstown’s 45, the Cats inability to break through the Seagulls’ defence was an unfortunate cornerstone of the game. The Cats were also unable to shut down the resulting Williamstown run through the middle, and as a result constantly found themselves victim to the Williamstown attack.

Though disappointed with the end result, Hood was quick to point out the positives that the match provided for the team.

‘While Williamstown were able to score a little bit more easily then we were, our attitude and effort for most of the day was good. It’s just that first 15 minutes we have to rectify.

‘I thought our defensive play in general was a real feature of the day. We made it difficult for Williamstown to move the ball from slow play situations and difficult for them to get it out at stoppages. Unfortunately they were able to rebound and score too easily in those fast play situations, but we took some steps forward in our slow play defence in denying them the marks.’

While the match lacked any real standout performances, Hood acknowledged the small successes of individual players.

‘Dom Gleeson (24 disposals) had a really good day. He was a good match up with Ben Jolly as Williamstown’s best midfielder, and probably beat him which was great for Dom. It just gave him more of a focus for his performance.

‘Josh Walker (4 marks, 3 Inside 50s) had another strong performance up forward today too, and Jack Hollmer did a really great job as winger. Jackson Thurlow (15 disposals, 7 rebound 50s) probably had one of his better games as a defender.’

Tom Maas was named best on ground for the match, with 16 disposals, 4 clearances and 3 inside 50s, pleasing the coaches with his attitude and work around the packs.

First year recruit Nick Bourke also warranted a mention after performing solidly in his return from injury.

‘Bourkey took some good steps today. He’s a really intelligent player and he did really well today with his organising and setting up in the right positions, and he used the ball quite well.

After the loss of key players from the 2013 Geelong team, Hood has been impressed with the emerging leaders this season despite the relative inexperience of the team at large.

‘It’s been really pleasing to see Tom Maas take on a more prominent role in the team this year which was something that we saw play out today.

‘Mitch Herbison too is really growing in his playing ability and leadership every time he plays, and we believe he’ll be a really valuable player for us. Jimmy Linton’s also been a consistent performer and we’re looking forward to seeing more of what he can do.

‘Overall the guys are still learning. They’re doing their core roles and playing their strengths really well; it’s just a case of improving the little things to become more well-rounded players, but that will come with experience. Being an inexperienced team it’s difficult for us to execute all of our structures every time. If we don’t get things close to perfect we can get scored against. Our aim really is to just keep striving and from that we’ll keep improving.

‘Today was a big step forward after last week. We’ve gone from having a period of the game that was really costly to having a period of the game where we were at least able to get back in the game. Our focus now will be on completing a solid four quarter performance.’

After two consecutive losses, Geelong’s next challenge will be conquering Collingwood’s VFL side at Victoria Park on Saturday the 24th of May, kicking off at 12:00pm. For those unable to attend the match, be sure to follow @GeelongVFL on Twitter for live match updates.

Williamstown Seagulls 18-15-(123) def. Bendigo Bank Cats 14-14-(98).
Goals: Walker, Stringer, Brown, Atkins, Maas 2, Linton, Luxford, Hollmer, Gibbs.
Best: Maas, Walker, Hollmer, Gleeson, Thurlow, Bourke. Injuries: Luxford (calf).
Reports: Nil @ Burbank Oval, Williamstown.