Geelong stars Tom Hawkins and Travis Varcoe celebrate their victory over Hawthorn with the fans. Picture: Getty Source: Getty Images
IF FOOTY was five a side, Geelong would have the ideal set-up.
Skipper Joel Selwood in the middle and the quartet of Mathew Stokes, Allen Christensen, Travis Varcoe and Steven Motlop on the perimeter.
That's grunt and leg speed, although the Fab Four aren't averse to getting their knees dirty.
Speed is symbolic. The Cats have always moved the ball quickly and had composure, and now they have leg speed to complement the lot.
They used it again against Hawthorn, which was brave enough but not good enough and the Hawks will kick themselves for giving up a game they should have won.
Up by 30 points late in the second quarter and dominating possession and clearances - they led 21-11 at the half - the Hawks could not drive the dagger deeper into a Geelong team which maybe, just maybe, might have thought the streak was over.
Two goals just before the siren, however, to Tom Hawkins and Varcoe, and the difference at halftime was only 20 points.
That was the momentum swing.
A kick there, a handball here, and the Hawks could easily have been seven or eight goals in front.
Gee, you've got to love the Cats.
They took the lead at the 15th minute of the third quarter and were never headed. That's 10 in a row against a team many believe is about 2cm off a premiership.
Don't know how curses work, or myths, or karma, but it's got to be more than bad luck.
For whatever reason, the Hawks choke against the Cats.
Be it kicking for goal, disposal under pressure, nerves, or fear of taking responsibility ... the Hawks somehow find a way to fail.
Yesterday, they had poor performers in Jarryd Roughead, Jack Gunston, Liam Shiels, David Hale and Shane Savage; Luke Breust who kicked three behinds; and a midfield that won plenty of the ball that wasn't reflected on the scoreboard.
The Cats hung and hung and, on the back of Joel Selwood, Paul Chapman after quarter-time, and Andrew Mackie, Harry Taylor and newbie Jared Rivers at the back, they wrested control.
The Fab Four and a rebuilt group of flankers, which includes Jordan Murdoch, Josh Caddy, Billie Smedts and star in the making, Mitch Duncan, all played a role.
"It's different isn't it?" coach Chris Scott said of his speedy midfield.
"(Josh) Caddy is a very hard runner as well and we've injected some speed in the last couple of years that hasn't played together all that often.
"Varcoe was obviously a big loss for us last year, but it was more the combination of Varcoe, Motlop Murdoch, Smedts, Caddy, Taylor Hunt that makes us look a little bit different."
Yep, the contested ball is there and it's always welcomed in a footy team, yet it is the speed of the Fab Four that gives the Cats an edge.
Time and again, Christensen, Varcoe and Motlop dazzled the opposition. They opened up space, which creates overlap, which in turn draws defenders, which in turn leaves their forwards, at worst, in one-on-one contests.
That's what leg speed does.
Stokes is the more mature and rounded performer and had 29 possessions. Motlop and Christensen had 18 each and Varcoe 13.
But this isn't about numbers. It's about impact. And they had plenty.
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