AFL PREMIERSHIP SEASON 2008 ROUND 21; GEELONG V NORTH MELBOURNE; MATCH PREVIEW PLUS TV / RADIO BROADCAST DETAILS
Ben Jensen 22 August 2008

By Ben Jensen GEELONG V NORTH MELBOURNE THE MIGHTY GEELONG CATS take on top four aspirants North Melbourne Kangaroos at Skilled Stadium this Sunday in the penultimate round for 2008, a Fox Sports game starting at 1pm. All Australian backmen Darren Milburn and Matthew Scarlett return from injury, as does Paul Chapman. The unlucky trio to make way are Brent Prismall, Ryan Gamble and Travis Varcoe, who have all performed well this season.

MATCH RESULT AND REVIEW - CATS BOUNCE KANGAROOS

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UMPIRES

Darren James (of 3AW fame), Brendon Nicholls, Shane McInerney

TIP?

Geelong by 19 points

BETTING (As At 22/8/2008) (Check OnThePunt for latest odds)*

* This information does not constitute investment advice. And if you think it does, you may as well invest in Opus Prime or ABC Learning Centres.

GEELONG

IN: Matthew Scarlett, Darren Milburn, Paul Chapman
OUT: Brent Prismall, Ryan Gamble, Travis Varcoe

B: Tom Harley, Matthew Scarlett, Andrew Mackie
HB: Darren Milburn, Josh Hunt, Corey Enright
C: James Kelly, Max Rooke, Jimmy Bartel
HF: Steve Johnson, Cameron Mooney, Gary Ablett
F: Mark Blake, Tom Lonergan, Mathew Stokes
FOLL: Brad Ottens, Cameron Ling, Joel Corey
INT: Shannon Byrnes, Joel Selwood, Harry Taylor, Paul Chapman
EMER: Brent Prismall, Ryan Gamble, Travis Varcoe

NORTH MELBOURNE

IN: Nathan Thompson, Hamish McIntosh
OUT: Leigh Brown, Jess Sinclair

B: Gavin Urquhart, Lachlan Hansen, Josh Gibson
HB: Daniel Pratt, Shannon Watt, Michael Firrito
C: Daniel Wells, Adam Simpson, Leigh Harding
HF: Brent Harvey, David Hale, Matt Campbell
F: Lindsay Thomas, Nathan Thompson, Shannon Grant
FOLL: Drew Petrie, Daniel Harris, Brady Rawlings
INT: Hamish McIntosh, Sam Power, Corey Jones, Scott McMahon
EMER: Ed Lower, Jess Sinclair, Scott Thompson

CATS INJURY LIST

LATEST LIST

Updated 21/7/2008

Player (Injury) Onset; Estimated Return

Cameron Ling fractured cheekbone Rnd 15 Rnd 20 Unchanged
Gary Ablett ankle sprain Rnd 15 Rnd 17 Unchanged
James Kelly calf strain Rnd 14 Rnd 16 Unchanged
Kane Tenace knee injury Rnd 15 Rnd 16 Unchanged
Liam Bedford hamstring strain Rnd 14 Rnd 17 Unchanged
Matthew Egan navicular stress fracture Last season End of season

KANGAROOS INJURY LIST

TBA

LAST TIME

ROUND 11, 2008

FRIDAY 6 MAY 2008, 19:40 AEST, TELSTRA DOME

CATS PREVAIL OVER KANGAROOS IN NAIL BITER AT THE DOME
Ben Jensen 7 June 2008

By Ben Jensen GEELONG hung on the defeat a gallant and undermanned North Melbourne at Telstra Dome last night, thanks largely to Gary Ablett and Cameron Mooney. The Cats dominated the opening half but the Roos got right back into the game and trailed by only eight points at the main break. Unfortunately the win came at a cost, All Australian backman Matthew Scarlett twinging a hamstring, almost certain to miss at least a couple weeks.

Ablett Junior must surely be ahead in the Brownlow Medal by now; the boy wonder's star continues to rise. Ablett had 21 possessions and two goals to half time, finishing with 39. Fellow All Australian Mooney, in his first game back after missing last week due to injury, booted seven goals, including three by half time.

Ablett, dispatched to full forward five minutes from the final break, conjured up a miraculous goal thirty seconds before three quarter time that all but culled off the Kangaroo hopes. Leading by two goals, Steve Johnson's third goal barely three minutes in was crucial and gave the Cats breathing space that ultimately wouldn't be breached by the Kangaroos. David Hale provided heart palpitations as he kicked the Roos' only goals of the final term, while the Geelong players peppered the goals but produced only behinds, until the final goal of the match by Cameron Mooney. Mooney's seventh goal came with just under four minutes left on the clock, the margin now fourteen points.

GEELONG 7.0 11.6 17.7 19.13 (127) DEFEATED
NORTH MELBOURNE 3.2 10.4 15.7 17.12 (114)

GOALS
GEELONG: Mooney 7, S Johnson 3, Lonergan 2, Varcoe 2, Ablett 2, Byrnes, Ottens, Enright
NORTH MELBOURNE: Hale 4, Campbell 3, Harvey 2, Petrie 2, Thomas 2, Harding, Harris, Brown, Lower

BEST
GEELONG: Ablett, S Johnson, Mooney, Ling, Kelly, Enright
NORTH MELBOURNE: Harvey, Simpson, Gibson, Hale, Petrie, Harris

UMPIRES: McInerney, Wenn, Ryan

CROWD: 38,373 at Telstra Dome (Docklands), Melbourne

INJURIES: Geelong: Selwood (virus) replaced in selected side by Prismall. Scarlett (hamstring) North Melbourne: Pratt (shoulder)

Geelong coach Mark Thompson reflected on the game, admitting all that mattered was the four points. "It was a weird sort of a game. The last two times we've played North Melbourne we've beaten them by a lot and they never, ever give up and they didn't tonight. To walk away with the victory is really the only thing that matters."

VFL

VFL ROUND 20
NORTHERN BULLANTS V GEELONG
SATURDAY 23 AUGUST 2008, 14:00 AEST
NAB OVAL

GEELONG

TBA

LAST TIME

VFL ROUND 11
GEELONG V NORTHERN BULLANTS
SUNDAY 22 JUNE, 14:00 AEST
SKILLED STADIUM

NORTHERN BULLANTS 4.0 9.2 13.6 17.9 (111) DEFEATED
GEELONG 6.3 11.4 13.7 15 10 (100)

GOALS:
NORTHERN BULLANTS: C. Ackland 8, A. Hartlett 3, P. Colbert 2, J. Saddington, R. Jackson, J. Edwards, A. Joseph
GEELONG: T. Hawkins 7, S. Potter 2, R. Gamble 2, B. Moles, S. Simpson, J. Davenport, A. Donohue

BEST:
NORTHERN BULLANTS: J. Saddington, C. Ackland, J. Edwards, D. Davies, A. Hartlett, J. Anderson
GEELONG: T. Hawkins, J. Davenport, M. Firman, D. McKenna, B. Moles, J. Byrne

NORTHERN BULLANTS

TBA

TOM LONERGAN (CLICK IMAGE TO VISIT THE WEBSITE OF ZAIDEE'S RAINBOW FOUNDATION)