Formed in 1859, the Geelong Cats are the second oldest club still playing in the AFL today. A foundation member of both the Victorian Football Association (VFA) in 1877, and of the Victorian Football League (VFL) in 1897, the Cats are a club with a proud history and have long been entwined with the game of Australian Rules Football.
Despite winning 6 VFL premierships, the last of which was in 1963, Geelong’s identity as a football club today is very much informed—not by their premierships—but by the great players who have graced the turf at Kardinia Park. One of these players was Graham ‘Polly’ Farmer. Considered as the greatest ruckman of all time, Farmer was the driving force behind Geelong’s 1963 premiership.
However, the one player who stands head and shoulders above the rest (often where he did literally stand incidentally) was Gary Ablett Sr. The flying forward booted over 1000 goals during his time with the Cats, and is so revered by Geelong natives to this day that he is referred to simply as God.
Since 1963, the Cats were a club characterized by always having amazing talent on their list, but often disappointing on the park. That was until 2007, when with Gary Ablett Jr. or ‘Son of God’ in the midfield, and an electric, handball-based style of play that was masterminded by coach Mark Thompson, the Cats were imperious. They took out the minor premiership before embarrassing Port Adelaide in the big dance by 119 points: the biggest grand final win in history.
Since then, the Cats have continued to demonstrate their quality. With two more flags in 2009 and 2011, as well as making the top eight in 10 out of their last 11 seasons, Geelong have shed their tag as underperformers. With Ablett Jr. returning to the club after a sojourn on the Gold Coast, the situation is as rosy as ever at Kardinia Park.