Richmond assistant coach Blake Caracella provides ‘Roar Vision’ with a snapshot of Geelong’s main on-field attributes ahead of Friday night’s qualifying final at the MCG. 

Potential dream key match-up: Martin v Dangerfield

“It would be good to see. Last time they sent (Cam) Guthrie to Dusty and he did an okay job. So we need to make sure Dusty plays a bit better than last time . . . Both Dustin and ‘Danger’ are so powerful, it’s very hard to control them with just one player, but you try and negate the influence they have with their possessions. They can both go forward, and when they do, they normally get a one-on-one match-up, which is a bit hard to control.” 

Countering Geelong’s aerial strength

“Across the season, they’ve been a very good contested-marking team. I think their (marking) differential is like 100 more than their opponents, and we’re minus 30. But we know that . . . we’re a small team. We’ve got to make sure they can’t mark the ball. And, if it rains, it helps us in that regard as well. So, they’ll outmark us, but when the ball hits the ground it’ll suit us . . . They’ve got a lot of backs who can take a mark, and their ruckmen can as well. Hopefully we can move the ball fast enough, so that doesn’t happen . . . It’ll be a hard job for our forwards. Jack (Riewoldt) will be there trying to do his best and ‘Towner’ (Jacob Townsend) and Toby Nankervis as well. And, we know if we get one-on-ones, our small guys can jump in the air, too, quite well.”

The possibility of Taylor going to Rance again

“I think it will happen. A little birdie told me in their match practice down there Harry was playing forward. They’d be silly not to try it again. I think Harry won the duel that day, but it was the first time ‘Rancey’ had played on him, and I think he learned a few things . . .”

Cats’ potent forward line

“You’ve got Hawkins and Menzel and Danger, at times, playing down there . . . Once again, it’s not so much a one-on-one (situation) it’s our team versus their team. Can we stop the ball going down there (to their forward line), and if it does go down there, can it be slow or under a bit of pressure.” 

Menegola’s significant improvement

“He’s taken quite a while, as a mature-age recruit, to come in and find his feet. But he’s a fantastic player . . . a really good runner, who knows how to find the footy, and uses it quite well, too. He’ll play in the forward half of the ground somewhere, whether it’s midfield or forward. We need to make sure we don’t let him get out of control.”