Last year, Geelong was a bright side, but not a tight side. Indications are that all that might change under new captain Tom Harley. The Cats proved they could be brilliant in ’06, but injuries blighted their season. Various sackings have riven the club during the break, leading coach Mark Thompson to publicly voice his disapproval of the club’s methods. He should be careful. At times, the Geelong boardroom has proved to be not unlike Carlton’s.

“Choco” Williams has around 12 relatively new players to work with this season, and despite the presence of Warren Tredrea, Shaun Burgoyne and Daniel Motlop, the team is beset by fitness worries. They managed to beat most of the top-eight sides last year, but getting Port up to finals standard is a big ask. This side barely resembles the premiers of ’04.

The Hawks have instituted one of the more intelligent rebuilding strategies this season, and regardless of the success of the young men they drafted, their approach will reap success. They’ve redrafted tall defender Josh Thurgood, plus a mixture of athletic utility types who make the drafting policies of certain other clubs look positively aimless. They’ll improve, but won’t make the eight.

Alan Didak has been debilitated by injury. Nathan Buckley looks as though his hammies might pack it in. The Maggies get their usual scheduling leg-up, with 18 games in Melbourne, 15 at the MCG, with only one trip each to Adelaide and Perth. They might finish a lot higher, as Malthouse is a much better coach than results have indicated. He got them to two grand finals before their time, and in today’s competition, that’s an incredible achievement.

The Tigers are developing a strong engine room and forward structure with the inclusion of Graham Polak, added to guys like Troy Simmonds, Brett Deledio and Trent Knobel. Jack Riewoldt looks as though he could be a great ruckman in the future and, perhaps, key-position forward in the short-term. They’re starting to look like a more established side. The addition of experienced, tall, goal-kicking forward Kent Kingsley should ease the burden on Matthew Richardson, but this is Kingsley’s third club. With any luck, he’s not an incorrigible nomad.

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