Geelong goes down to Richmond without midfield power

Heading into the centre square for the first bounce on Friday night Mark Blicavs would have had his head on a swivel as his old guard teammates weren’t there alongside him.

None of those stalwarts like Patrick Dangerfield, Joel Selwood, Cam Guthrie or Rhys Stanley were next to Blicavs in the guts and as the game wore on they were missed more and more.

The most anonymous midfield the Cats have fielded in near on 20 years couldn’t find the answer in the second half as Richmond slowly and surely eased up the dial on the pressure in what could be a season-starting win.

It may not have been the Geelong of old but it was the Richmond of old.

Early on the Tigers seemed to be well beaten in general play but somehow snagged a series of early goals to keep their heads in front before pressing on that gas and running over the Cats.

As the game wore on, no star stood up for the Cats.

Tom Hawkins appeared set to rip the game apart after a powerful first 15 minutes but ended the night well beaten by Noah Balta.

So dominant all year, Jeremy Cameron didn’t hit the scoreboard until near time-on in the final term

The attacking half appeared lost after halftime, after doing most things right in the first half.

The Cats had the game on their terms, dominating field position in the second quarter and collecting 23 more marks.

But Geelong entered halftime with 5.11 on the scoreboard, an excellent first half worth little as Richmond led by 10 points with five less scoring shots.

There was no takeover to come for Geelong, and instead it was Richmond’s star power of Shai Bolton and the ever-present Dustin Martin that dominated the final stages.

There should be little cause for concern for the Cats out of this one – on another night they would have kicked a winning score and on almost every other night they should have the firepower to push through the early wastefulness.

Despite a quiet crowd by the standards of their club in recent times, it was a night Richmond showed it still had some of that irresistible run and verve.

Daniel Rioli’s single-minded will to move the ball forward, Trent Cotchin’s inventiveness and some old nightmare fuel for Geelong fans from a resurgent Martin built a resounding win.

For those in yellow and black at least, it was a night for the old guard.

Originally published as Geelong goes down to Richmond without midfield power