The VFLW Bendigo Bank Cats have fallen to Collingwood in their final home and away game of the season on Saturday afternoon.

Geelong fought hard all day in a highly contested game of football, but the undefeated Pies showed their class in the 0.4 (4) to 3.5 (23) defeat at Victoria Park.

The Cats will get the chance to turn things around this weekend, when they again face the Magpies in the Qualifying final. The Cats finished second on the ladder, after Hawthorn pulled off an upset win over third-placed Port Melbourne, to keep the Borough at bay.

Much of the opening quarter in Saturday's clash was played in Geelong’s forward half, as both sides started the game with high intensity. The Cats led by two points at the first break in muddy conditions.

Collingwood scored a breakthrough goal late in the second term to edge in front on the scoreboard at half-time.

The high-pressure contest continued in the third quarter, with plenty of stoppages across the ground. The Cats continued to keep the ball locked in their forward 50 but couldn’t capitalise on their chances in front of goal, as the Pies established a 12-point lead at the final break.

A goal to Collingwood halfway through the fourth quarter sealed the result, as the Cats finish the regular season with a 10-4 record.

VFLW Coach Andrew Bruce said that Collingwood’s ability to make the most of opportunities in front of goals was the biggest difference between the two sides.

“I thought it was similar to last week where we started really well and gave ourselves really good opportunities to score but we just didn’t execute it,” Bruce said.

“Then through the second quarter Collingwood had the ball in their forward half for well over half the time and they managed to score one goal.

“We were able to pressure them a lot of the time, but through the rest of the game they took some opportunities where we didn’t and I think that was really the difference.”

Olivia Fuller played an important role in the ruck, while Maddie Boyd continued her strong form in the backline.

“I thought Liv Fuller was outstanding in the ruck. She probably rucked for ninety percent of the time against a couple of players who are much bigger than her, and I thought she also played really well around the ground and competed really well,” Bruce said.

“Maddie did a really big job for us today as a defender against the league’s leading goal kicker and kept her goalless, so she was also very good.”

The group will quickly switch their focus to the upcoming finals campaign.

“As I just said to the team, they’ll get their recovery in over the next few days and we’ll find out who, when and where we’ll play. We look to be really positive with what we do this week,” Bruce said.

“We’ve done some really good things this year, and whilst it’s really disappointing to lose today it’s not the end of the world for us.”

The fixture for the first week of finals will be confirmed at the completion of Round 14.

VFL Women’s Round 14

Geelong Cats 0.4 (4) def by Collingwood 3.5 (23) 

Best: Fuller, Van De Heuvel, Boyd, Sheppard, Garing, Leonard

Injuries: Nil

At Victoria Park