Finals Lessons Learnt?

[WE Are Geelong]

I guess its up to the individual if you enjoyed watching the game last night between Port and West Coast as a spectacle but no one can deny it was a great contest.

In the last few seasons this seems to be the norm. Largely on the back of the West Coast v Sydney rivalry..whilst Adelaide have been fairly competitive also in that time.

Last night was no different. I went into the game tipping Port by less than a kick...at half time thought West Coast would win by less than a kick...with the game ending Port 3 pts in front as we know.

I think we have to get ready for anything this finals experience. Its been a long time since any side just waltzed through the finals without hitting some bumps along the way. West Coast would be considered a powerhouse of the modern era...yet they have had their share of soul destroying losses in that time. IN 2005 Sydney were returning from a heartbreaking loss in Perth...yet still managed to rally from 4 goals down in the wet to snatch victory from us at the last gasp...and take the flag as a result 2 weeks later.

Have we learnt our finals lessons yet? Geelong need to keep their eye on the big picture as well as just taking it from week to week, and quarter to quarter really. If North get off to a flyer we cant panic. If something/anything happens we are not expecting...we need to ride it out and fight our way out of whatever hole it might be.

The reason West Coast and Sydney have won flags in this cut throat and highly competitive football environment in the last 2 seasons is because they have learnt to deal with adversity and hit back hard and recover their respective seasons. Whilst Geelong didnt make the finals last season 2006...recalling 2005...3 seconds to go...is no doubt lingering somewhere in the players psyche right about now. Can they turn it into a positive...or will it come back to haunt them?

The key to winning the flag will be about have we learnt those finals lessons? Have we learnt to deal with adversity and press on regardless. Have we learnt to eek out a win even if we really didnt play to our potential on that day or night?

I hope so because there is no getting around what is expected of the premiership side these days in being good enough to hold up the Cup GF day.

 

[FTW_]

The thing is, we have only been tested in the depth area againt Port (we all know what happened) and in the finals I believe depth is important because we're going to get some injuries.
We also take our foot of the pedal and sometimes that can result in a loss.
Those are my only real worries about the finals... So far.
Though I still hope we continue the whole 'one game at the time' thing because they'll feel more pressure if they start thinking 'if we win this we're close to the grand final' or something like that.