Calamitous final quarter sees Cats cough up top spot, consigned to first final in Adelaide

Geelong Cats v Melbourne Demons, AFL 2021 round 23, Ben Jensen GEELONG led by over 40 points and was seemingly destined to slingshot into first position on the AFL ladder but instead lost to the Demons after the siren, instead consigned to third and an away final in Adelaide under tough Covid conditions.

Truth be told the Cats didn’t deserve to escape with the win but when Cameron Guthrie had the ball in his hands 55m from Melbourne’s goal courtesy of a generous deliberate out of bounds call it looked on the cards, 33 seconds on the clock. But Guthrie’s kicked sailed out of bounds and Brad Close thumped the ball into the stands – the Dees awarded a fifty metre penalty, still 27 seconds left. Jake Lever took the free kick right on the fifty metre line and found Max Gawn 15m from goal just before the final siren. Gawn made no mistake and it was the Demons who took out the minor premiership.

AFL ROUND 23 2021
GEELONG CATS V MELBOURNE DEMONS
SATURDAY 21 AUGUST, 19:25 AEST
GMHBA STADIUM

MELBOURNE DEMONS: 2.3, 3.5, 6.7, 12.9 (81) DEFEATED
GEELONG CATS: 2.1, 10.2, 12.3, 12.5 (77)

GOALS
MELBOURNE DEMONS: Pickett 3, Brown 2, Oliver 2, Spargo 2, Fritsch, Gawn, Viney
GEELONG CATS: Hawkins 4, Cameron 2, Rohan 2, Close, Dahlhaus, Dangerfield, Selwood

BEST
MELBOURNE DEMONS: Oliver, Petracca, Gawn, Salem, Lever, Pickett
GEELONG CATS: Selwood, Dangerfield, Hawkins, Smith, Henderson, Guthrie

INJURIES
MELBOURNE DEMONS: Nil reported
GEELONG CATS: Nil reported

CHANGES
MELBOURNE DEMONS: Nil
GEELONG CATS: Nil

SUBSTITUTES
MELBOURNE DEMONS: Jordon (not used)
GEELONG CATS: Higgins (not used)

REPORTS
MELBOURNE DEMONS: Nil
GEELONG CATS: Nil

CROWD: 0 at GMHBA Stadium, Geelong

UMPIRES
FIELD Matt Stevic, Craig Fleer, Jacob Mollison EM: Alex Whetton
BOUNDARY Christopher Gordon, Ben MacDonald, Matthew Tomkins, Ian Burrows
GOAL Matthew Dervan, Dylan Benwell EM: Callum Leonardo

GEELONG CATS – SELECTED SIDE
IN: Rohan, Miers, Atkins
OUT: Ratugolea, Zach Guthrie (both omitted), Higgins (managed), Narkle (substitute)
B: Henry, Henderson, Kolodjashnij
HB: O’Connor, Blicavs, Bews
C: Menegola, C.Guthrie, Smith
HF: Parfitt, Cameron, Rohan
F: Close, Hawkins, Miers
FOLL: Stanley, Selwood, Dangerfield
INT: Atkins, Simpson, Holmes, Dahlhaus
EMER: Narkle, Higgins, Ratugolea, Z.Guthrie

MELBOURNE DEMONS – SELECTED SIDE
IN: May, Viney, McDonald
OUT: Jordon, Melksham, Hibberd (all omitted), vandenBerg (sub)
B: Smith, May, Petty
HB: Rivers, Lever, Salem
C: Harmes, Petracca, Langdon
HF: Viney, McDonald, Brayshaw
F: Neal-Bullen, Brown, Fritsch
FOLL: Gawn, Oliver, Sparrow
INT: Jackson, Spargo, Bowey, Pickett
EMER: Hibberd, Melksham, Jordon, Chandler