Geelong are the AFL's model of consistency, with their ability to stay up the top-end of the ladder for over a decade now.
The Cats have made the preliminary final an impressive 11 times in the past 15 seasons, including last season, however, their latest attempt ended badly when suffering an 83-point thrashing at the hands of eventual premiers Melbourne.
Chris Scott's side boasts the most experienced team in the competition, and their premiership window continues to remain open despite their recent poor finals record - a mere 6-13 under Chris Scott since the 2011 flag.
Tom Stewart continues to impress as one of the best defenders in the competition, whilst the cattery also boasts a strong engine room with the likes of Brownlow medallist Patrick Dangerfield, Joel Selwood, Cameron Guthrie and Mitch Duncan.
Down forward is where the Cats are at their most dangerous with the twin towers in Tom Hawkins and Jeremy Cameron still in great form and will look to continue their heavy scoring and assisting outputs in 2022.
The lack of youth throughout the side is a particular concern, with the exception of recent draftees in ruckman Toby Conway and hard-running midfielder Mitch Knevitt, but the star talent is hard to ignore in this side, and it should find the Cats up the top-end of the ladder once again in 2022.
Off-Season Moves
Ins: Jonathon Ceglar [Hawthorn], Tyson Stengle [Woodville-West Torrens], Toby Conway [pick 24], Mitch Knevitt [pick 25], James Willis [pick 32], Flynn Kroeger [pick 48], Cooper Whyte [pick 64], Oliver Dempsey [Rookie Draft pick 15]
Outs: Jordan Clark [Fremantle], Charlie Constable [Gold Coast], Darcy Fort [Brisbane], Lachie Henderson [retired], Oscar Brownless [delisted], Josh Jenkins [retired], Ben Jarvis [delisted], Nathan Kreuger [Collingwood], Stefan Okunbor [delisted], Cameron Taheny [delisted]
Defining Period
The defining period for the Cats will definitely come in the back end of the season as they look to gain some good form and momentum heading into what is expected to be yet another finals campaign at the cattery.
Rounds 15 to 20 will be very important for the Cats as they face some quality sides with a couple of danger games in the mix as well.
During that period, the Cats face Richmond [H], North Melbourne [H], Melbourne [H], Carlton [A], Port Adelaide [A], Western Bulldogs [H].
Four out of these six games are against genuine premiership fancies in Richmond, Melbourne, Port Adelaide and the Western Bulldogs, and will be a good indicator as to how far the Cats can go in 2022.
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The danger game is the Carlton game at the MCG, as the Blues will be competitive and could upset the Cats at home.
This stretch will likely be the defining period as to whether the Cats make the top four or slide into the 5-8 bracket.
