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Geelong is an existing club that plays in the Australian Football League, and has previously played in the Victorian FL and the Victorian FA. The club was formed in 1859 and has won seventeen premierships.
Formation[]
The club was formally established at a meeting held in the Victoria Hotel on July 18, 1859. It was the thirteenth of fourteen clubs formed before 1860 of the worldwide football codes, and the fourth oldest Australian rules football still active today with only Melbourne, Castlemaine and Melbourne University older.
Early years[]
Geelong's first match was in 1860 against Melbourne at Argyle Square, to the west of the city of Geelong. The game was a draw. In 1863, Geelong defeated Melbourne to claim the Caledonian Society Challenge Cup. They then defeated University and South Yarra in 1864 to permanently retain the cup. The next cup was the Athletic Sports Committee Challenge Cup, and in 1865 Geelong were beaten by Melbourne. Geelong didn't get to challenge the holder for the remainder of 1865 and no challenges were made in 1866 when the cup was won permanently by South Yarra.
In 1870 a new Cup was created and again Geelong did not challenge over the years. They established themselves as the strongest provincial team, and even established a Western District Challenge Cup in 1874 and dominated over Ballarat and the rest of the western area. That dominance ended in 1876 with the rise of the original Barwon club, a club that was later absorbed by the Chilwell club.
VFA[]
After Barwon won the provincial competition again in 1877, Geelong joined the VFA and promptly controlled the competition. They won three premierships in their first three seasons from 1878 to 1880 before they finished second in 1881 with South Melbourne winning the premiership. Geelong responded by winning another three premierships in a row and were showing the rest of competition a clean pair of heels. Finally in 1885 they dropped to third behind South Melbourne and Essendon. Geelong rebounded for another premiership in 1886, but that would be their last VFA flag. Two second place finishes in 1887 to Carlton and 1888 to South Melbourne preceded a lean period over the next three years - finishing 5th, 7th and then 5th. In 1892 and 1893 Geelong rose to third but dropped again to 7th in 1894. Another rise to second behind Fitzroy in 1895 only led to Geelong having it's worst VFA season finishing 11th with only Carlton and Richmond below them.
Start of the VFL (1897-1907)[]
Upon the commencement of the VFL, Geelong set to work and finished on top of the ladder in 1897. In previous years this would have meant the premiership but the VFL had a round robin finals series for the top four and Geelong were beaten in the first match by Essendon who would go on to be undefeated in the round robin and win the flag. In 1898 the finals system changed with Geelong finishing second in their section as they did in 1899 and third on percentage in 1900. The finals system then changed again in 1901 and Geelong finished on top, only to lose their semi final. For this year only the minor premier didn't have the right of challenge (this would be restored in 1902) so Geelong's season ended at the hands of Collingwood. Geelong slid down the ladder to seventh although it was only by percentage amongst three teams on seven wins.
A return to the finals in 1903 was stopped by Fitzroy in the semi final after finishing fourth and this was followed by their worst season to this point with only four wins and a draw in 1904 and consequently no finals over the next three years finishing sixth, seventh and sixth respectively.
To World War 1 (1908-1915)[]
Geelong hit rock bottom in 1908 just when two new clubs were admitted, winning their first ever wooden spoon. 1910 wasn't much better finishing in ninth spot. Things did improve though with Geelong being in the middle of the road for the next few years. They rose to fifth in 1910 and then sixth in 1911. In 1912 they returned to the finals for the first time since 1903 finishing fourth. Carlton though would end their season in the semi final. In 1913 and 1914 Geelong finished fifth both times before managing another fourth place finish in 1915. Again however they would lose the semi final - this time to South Melbourne.
Post War (1916-1924)[]
Geelong went into recess for a season due to World War 1 before returning to the field in 1917. They missed the finals by half a game. In 1918 they barely avoided their second ever wooden spoon by percentage ahead of Essendon. Another second last finish followed in 1919. A slight improvement to seventh in 1920 led to a return to the finals in 1921, but another semi final exit followed at the hands of Richmond. In 1922 Geelong slid back to second last just half a game away from the bottom, and a poor start with only three wins in the first half of the 1923 season prompted a cartoonist to claim that Geelong needed a black cat for good luck. The second half of the season was better and they got back to fourth - only to be eliminated again, this time by Fitzroy. The cartoonist ended up being held responsible for the club to be nicknamed the Cats. A frustrating fifth place in 1924 followed.
To World War 2 (1925-1942)[]
In 1925 three new clubs were admitted and Geelong leapt up to win the minor premiership for the first time since 1901, and this time they had the right of challenge. They needed it as Melbourne upset them in their semi final. Melbourne were beaten by Collingwood in the final setting up Geelong's first ever grand final. And the Cats did it. After waiting for so long, for the first time in VFL history a non Melbourne based club were premiers.
In 1926 Geelong finished second but were eliminated by Essendon. In 1927 the Cats finished third but Collingwood ended their season but in 1928 they slid down the ladder again and finished ninth. In 1929 they finished seventh but in 1930 they were back in the finals finishing fourth. An upset win over Carlton set them up for the final against Collingwood and the Cats caused another upset to force a grand final. Collingwood though would not be denied their fourth straight premiership.
In 1931 the finals system changed and Geelong finished on top of the ladder. There was no right of challenge any more like 1901, but the layout allowed for a second chance if the top side lost the second semi final. The Cats needed it as they were defeated by Richmond, and they scrambled home over Carlton in the preliminary final for their second premiership decider in a row. And they wouldn't be denied a second time defeating Richmond for their second VFL flag. A slide to fifth followed in 1932, but in 1933 Geelong finished fourth and won the first semi final over Carlton. Richmond though ended their season in the preliminary final. The Cats rose to second in 1934 but lost two finals straight to Richmond and South Melbourne. In 1935 Geelong slid down to ninth, but a rise to fifth followed in 1936.
In 1937 the Cats finished on top of the ladder and this time they made no mistake in the second semi final dealing with Melbourne. In the grand final they were faced with Collingwood and Geelong won their third flag in what is regarded as one of the great grand finals of it's time. The Cats finished second in 1938 but like 1934 it was a straight sets exit courtesy of Carlton and then Collingwood. That was followed by seventh in 1939 but they were back up to fourth in 1940 only to be beaten in the first semi final by Essendon. In 1941 Geelong were forced out of it's home at Corio Oval due to the military taking over it, and they moved to Kardinia Park where they would stay. The Cats dropped to tenth that season before World War 2 travel restrictions forced the Cats into recess from 1942.
Post War (1943-1959)[]
Upon the ending of travel restrictions in 1944 Geelong returned to competition and unfortunately won it's second wooden spoon winning only one game. In 1945 they escaped a second in a row by percentage, finishing eleventh. In 1946 the Cats finished tenth before rising to seventh in 1947 only to slip to ninth in 1948. An eighth place finish followed in 1949.
In 1950 Geelong made the finals for the first time since 1940 finishing fourth and they defeated Melbourne in the first semi final only to be stopped by North Melbourne in the preliminary final. But that would be the beginning of a strong period for the Cats. In 1951 they finished on top of the ladder and thrashed Collingwood in the second semi final. Essendon came through to the grand final but Geelong managed to defeat them and win their first flag since 1937. In 1952 they finished on top again and dominated Collingwood both in the second semi final and the grand final to win their second flag in row. In 1953, on the back of the 1952 season, the Cats amassed 23 wins of the trot and 26 games without a loss (a draw in 1952 was included in this) - before Collingwood stopped their run in round 14 at Kardinia Park in a massive upset. It didn't stop Geelong from finishing on top again, but Collingwood beat them again in the second semi final. The Cats defeated Footscray in the preliminary final but Collingwood defeated them again to deny them a third flag in a row.
Geelong had another crack in 1954 finishing on top yet again, but a straight sets exit followed courtesy of Footscray and then Melbourne. In 1955 the Cats remained relatively strong finishing third and defeating Essendon in the first semi final only to be eliminated by Collingwood. In 1956 it was also third, but Footscray eliminated them in the first semi final. That ended the period of strength as the bottom dropped out for Geelong and they got the wooden spoon in 1957 despite five wins and a draw. A second wooden spoon in a row followed in 1958 with four wins before a rise to tenth in 1959.
1960's[]
It didn't get much better in 1960 finishing ninth, but then a leap up the ladder followed in 1961 and if the Cats hadn't lost to Footscray in the last round they would have played finals. As it was they finished sixth missing by half a game. They made no mistake in 1962 finishing second. A loss to Essendon in the second semi final set them back to a preliminary final against Carlton. That game would finish in a draw and a replay was needed. Cats fans were furious when full forward Doug Wade took a mark only for the umpire to pay a free kick to the Carlton full back Peter Barry and the Blues would win by five points. Television replays though showed the decision was correct as Wade had Barry by the shorts.
Geelong though took that in their stride and finished second again in 1963, holding that spot with a huge win over top side Hawthorn at Glenferrie in the final round. The Cats would repeat that victory in the second semi final to get to their first grand final since 1953. Hawthorn came back but Geelong got away in the final quarter to score their first flag since 1952. However it would be some time before another flag arrived at Kardinia Park.
In 1964 the Cats finished fourth and eliminated Essendon only to be eliminated themselves by Collingwood. In 1965 they finished third but Essendon thrashed them in the first semi final, a result that would be repeated albeit by a much narrower margin in 1966. It was third again in 1967 but this time they won the first semi final, over Collingwood. A strong preliminary final victory over Carlton put Geelong into the grand final against Richmond. In one of the great grand finals the Cats couldn't hold the Tigers down and were beaten by 9 points in what would be their last grand final for many years.
In 1968 the Cats held second spot with a round to go, but a loss to St Kilda at Moorabbin combined with Carlton's win over North Melbourne dropped them to third. Geelong would get their revenge on the Saints in the first semi final but Essendon ended their season in the preliminary final. It was third again in 1969 and a first semi final exit courtesy of Richmond who would go on to win the flag.
1970's[]
In 1970 the Cats finished fifth after playing the first ever game at VFL Park against Fitzroy but a period of struggle would follow. It started with a slide to tenth in 1971, a position maintained in 1972. A drop to eleventh followed in 1973. A better season in 1974 led to a sixth place finish but it was followed by another drop to eleventh in 1975.
In 1976 Geelong returned to the finals finishing fourth, and defeating Footscray in the elimination final. But they would lose to North Melbourne in the first semi final. In 1977 the Cats dropped down to eighth despite a huge upset victory over Collingwood in Round 16. In 1978 Geelong regained a place in the finals finishing fifth, but they were eliminated by Carlton. In 1979 the Cats finished sixth thanks to two losses in the last four rounds - one of which was to Essendon who would finish fifth.
1980's[]
1980 promised so much for the Cats, finishing on top of the ladder for the first time since 1954. But just like 54, Geelong went out in straight sets, courtesy of Richmond and Collingwood. Geelong were back in 1981 finishing third and they defeated the Magpies in the qualifying final only to be beaten by Carlton in the second semi final. Collingwood would end their season in the preliminary final for the second year running. A slide to ninth followed in 1982, a finish repeated in 1983.
In 1984 the Cats were fifth with a round to go, but they had to beat Hawthorn to keep it and they didn't. Fitzroy won to take their spot in the five leaving Geelong sixth. This would also be their finishing position in 1985. In 1986 though the Cats slipped back to ninth. In 1987, it happened again as it did in 1984. Geelong again had to defeat Hawthorn to hold their place and they didn't. Melbourne defeated Footscray in a game that the winner would replace the Cats if they lost, and that was the Demons.
In 1988 Geelong slipped again to ninth, but they roared back in 1989 finishing third. A thrashing at the hands of Essendon didn't inspire much confidence. The Cats bounced back with a belting of Melbourne, before returning the thrashing to the Bombers - and Geelong had made the grand final for the first time since their last flag in 1963. They went hard early but Hawthorn came back with goals leaving the Cats in bother. Geelong fought back in one of the great season deciders but feel short by 6 points. The premiership drought would go on.
1990's[]
As the VFL became the AFL in 1990 the Cats suffered a hangover and slid to tenth. But they were back in 1991 finishing third in the first year of the final six. A win over St Kilda had them in the second semi final where they ran into Hawthorn and lost narrowly by two points. Their season ended in the preliminary final at the hands of West Coast in a sign of things to come.
In 1992 Geelong finished on top of the ladder on percentage and played the qualifying final against Footscray winning strongly. West Coast though set them back in the second semi final forcing the Cats to meet the Bulldogs again in the preliminary final. Geelong won well again, but the Eagles were too good on grand final day further extending the premiership drought. Another slip followed in 1993 but the Cats only missed the finals after Adelaide won in the last round to deny them a finals place on the back of a needed win over West Coast.
In 1994 Geelong returned to the finals finishing fourth. It was now a final eight and the Cats won their first final defeating Footscray. It meant a semi final against Carlton which they also won in order to face North Melbourne in their preliminary final. In one of the classic finals that looked like being the second instance of extra time in AFL history, club legend Gary Ablett Senior managed to claim a last second mark and kicked the after the siren goal to put the Cats into their second grand final in three years. But West Coast were again way too good on the day denying Geelong a second time.
In 1995 the Cats finished second on the ladder but four games behind top placed Carlton. The Cats claimed a week off thanks to a strong win over Footscray and then smashed Richmond in the preliminary final to offer something of a threat to the Blues. But again on grand final day Geelong couldn't get it done and it was only a foot off the accelerator in the last quarter by Carlton that prevented a pounding.
The Cats finished seventh in 1996 and were eliminated by North Melbourne in the first week of the finals. But in 1997 they were back again finishing second. However a nightmare followed with a straight sets exit courtesy of North Melbourne and eventual premiers Adelaide. That was followed by a plummet to twelfth in 1998 and eleventh in 1999 although only one game outside the eight.
2000's[]
Geelong were back in the finals as the new millenium began in 2000. Finishing fifth under a revmaped final eight, the Cats played an elimination final against Hawthorn only to be beaten for a premature season closure. That lead to another drop to twelfth in 2001. In 2002 Geelong were in the eight with a round to go but a loss to Hawthorn in the last round let West Coast in and the Cats finished ninth. It was twelfth again in 2003.
In 2004 Geelong finished fourth meaning the double chance, which they needed after losing the qualifying final convincingly to Port Adelaide. The semi final was against Essendon with the Cats winning to make the preliminary final against Brisbane. The game was played at the MCG and not the Gabba due to an agreement with the MCC, but it made no difference as the Lions got up to end the season for Geelong.
In 2005 the Cats finished sixth and took on Melbourne in the elimination final, winning comfortably. But Sydney pipped them by three points in the semi final and another season was done. Geelong dropped their bundle again falling to tenth in 2006.
But in 2007 the Cats rebounded big and finished on top of the ladder for the first time since 1992. A smashing win over North Melbourne gave Geelong the week off before they faced Collingwood in the preliminary final. The Cats had to battle and took the win by just five points to enter their first grand final since 1995. Their opponents were Port Adelaide, and this time there would be no disaster. It was a rout - the Cats were never in danger and won the grand final and their first flag since 1963 by a record margin; 119 points.
Not prepared to rest on their laurels, Geelong finished on top again with a magnificent season losing only one game in round 9 to Collingwood. The Cats started the finals with a strong win over St Kilda to again earn the week off. In the preliminary final Geelong met the Western Bulldogs and got a good win to enter the grand final against Hawthorn, the team they conquered in 1963 but lost to in 1989. The Hawks rushed behinds and threw the Cats off, causing a loss by 26 points and preventing the equalling of the existing one loss in an entire season record.
In 2009 Geelong finished second two games off the top of the ladder. They defeated the Western Bulldogs for the week off for the third year in a row and met Collingwood in the preliminary final. An emphatic victory put the Cats into the grand final against top side St Kilda. The two sides had gone through the first fourteen rounds without a loss before meeting each other - a game that the Saints won. In a tough but fair grand final that was too close to call, a post siren goal gave Geelong their second flag in three years by 12 points; an unfair margin under the circumstance. 1963 premiership coach Bob Davis presented the cup and refused to let it go, such was his pride in the effort by his precious Cats.
2010's[]
In 2010 the Cats finished second, but this time didn't get the week off as St Kilda pipped them by 4 points in the qualifying final. Geelong bounced back and thrashed Fremantle in the semi final, but they ran into top side Collingwood in the preliminary and were beaten in the preliminary final. The Cats missed the grand final for the first time since 2006.
But Geelong came back with another second place finish. A strong 31 point win over Hawthorn in the qualifying final gave the Cats the week off and then a strong win over West Coast in the preliminary final put geelong into the grand final against reigning premiers Collingwood. The Magpies had only lost two games, but Geelong weren't worried as both of the losses were to the Cats, with the second being a 96 point squash in the last home and away round. While Collingwood tried, the Cats got away in the final term to win their third flag in five years.
A slip to sixth followed in 2012, and amazingly Geelong's season ended in the first week with a 16 point loss to Fremantle. The Cats reacted to that in 2013 by finishing in second place again. This earned them their first final at Kardinia Park against the poor drawing Dockers, but Fremantle repeated their victory the previous year. Geelong had the double chance this time and bounced back over Port Adelaide, but their season ended in the preliminary final when they were beaten by Hawthorn by just 3 points.
In 2014 the Cats finished third and were beaten again by Hawthorn in the qualifying final, this time comfortably. The rebound in the semi final didn't come this time with the straight sets exit confirmed by a 6 point loss to North Melbourne. Geelong reacted with a drop to tenth in 2015, the first miss of the finals since 2006. A quick revival followed in 2016 finishing second and a win over Hawthorn in the qualifying final gave the Cats the week off. But the season stopped in the preliminary final with a loss to Sydney.
In 2017 Geelong finished second again, but they lost the qualifying final convincingly to Richmond. They came back with a belting of Sydney in the semi final but Adelaide ended their season in resounding fashion. In 2018 the Cats only finished eighth and exited in the first week courtesy of Melbourne. But in 2019 they jumped back and finished on top of the ladder for the first time since 2008. However Collingwood set them back winning the qualifying final and Geelong had to rebound again. This time they scored a good win over West Coast, but Richmond ended the Cats season with a good win.
2020[]
The 2020 season started in ordinary fashion with a loss to West Sydney before the season was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. the return though augered well with a big first up win over Hawthorn. The Cats were coping better than most Victorian clubs with the arrangements, highlighted by a round 12 belting of Port Adelaide. A narrow win in the final round over Sydney kept Geelong in fourth place come finals time.
The finals campaign again began with a loss in the qualifying final, with Port Adelaide avenging their home and away season loss. The Cats again rebounded in the semi final, belting Collingwood to enter the preliminary final where they met Brisbane. Despite playing in Brisbane, Geelong won well and made the grand final for the first time since 2011. They met Richmond at the Gabba in the first grand final not played in Victoria, and despite a battle the Cats just weren't good enough.
2021[]
Geelong started the new season with a loss to the previous year's wooden spooners Adelaide, but they were soon back on the winner's list only to lose again in round 4 to a rampaging Melbourne. Another two wins - including a 97 point hiding of West Coast led to a narrow loss to Sydney. However the Cats won the next six games in a row and sat third on the ladder before Brisbane brought them back to Earth. Then another five wins on the trot had Geelong second on the ladder with three rounds to go. An upset loss to West Sydney dropped them back to third but they were back second the following week and faced Melbourne in the last round to keep the top two spot. But a goal after the siren sent the Cats back to third spot going into the finals.
Geelong then put in a shocker in the qualifying final against Port Adelaide, reversing the previous season's result. The Cats then bounced back like they had in 2020 with a good victory over West Sydney in the semi final setting up a meeting with Melbourne in the preliminary final. But Geelong were thrashed by the eventual premiers.
2022[]
The Cats started 2022 with a smashing of Essendon to assume top spot. They didn't stay there though as this was followed by a loss to Sydney that featured Lance Franklin kicking his 1000th goal. But they were staying in the eight with a mixture of wins and losses going into round nine with a record of five wins and four losses putting them in seventh place on the ladder.
But then Geelong swung into gear. In an amazing run, the Cats didn't lose another game for the rest of the home and away season. Three wins before the mid season bye had them back in the top four although the bye itself pushed back to fifth. And then four more had them on top of the ladder - getting there with a good win over reigning premiers Melbourne. And there they stayed with only one reasonably close game, a two goal win over Port Adelaide.
Geelong went into the finals raging hot favourites despite being tagged "too old and too slow". Collingwood gave them a fright in the qualifying final but the Cats prevailed by 6 points for the week off. They met Brisbane in the preliminary final and thrashed them by 71 points to get to the grand final for the second time in three years. Back at the MCG, Geelong met Sydney and gave them a hiding too to the tune of 81 points to win their first flag since 2011 - and cause a hysterical mad Monday celebration with players making fun of the "too old and too slow" tag by arriving dressed as elderly gentlemen with walkers.
2023[]
A hangover showed itself early in the 2023 season with three straight losses, and the Cats were on the bottom of the ladder. That jolt caused them to follow with five wins on the trot and suddenly they were in the eight in sixth spot. But then they started losing again. Three losses in a row cost them their spot in the eight but a win going into the bye restored that. A loss to Port Adelaide after the bye had Geelong out of the eight again, but they got back again after three wins and a draw. However two more losses had them out of the eight again and they never recovered. After an avenging win over Port Adelaide, the Cats lost the three remaining games to finish twelfth.
Reserves[]
Geelong were a part of the VFL Reserves competition from it's formation in 1919. They won thirteen premierships (the most of any club), in 1923, 1924, 1930, 1937, 1938, 1948, 1960, 1963, 1964, 1975, 1980, 1981 and 1982. When the club moved it's reserves to the VFL they won another three flags - in 2002, 2007 and 2012.