Cats ready to quell star Lions to reach AFL grand final

Geelong will be out to keep the Lions' brilliant Lachie Neale in check and reach the grand final. (Jason O'BRIEN/AAP PHOTOS)

Geelong know they need to shut down Lachie Neale.

Brisbane are ready and waiting for the Cats to try to keep their star mover quiet - and some of his mates in maroon too.

Doing so is another matter altogether.

Geelong midfielder Tom Atkins has had some run-with roles at times and could yet get to grips with Neale in Saturday evening's AFL preliminary final at the MCG.

"Yeah, we'll see what happens. We'll talk about that during the week," a coy Atkins told AAP.

"But he's obviously a superstar, so any time you can curb his influence, I think it will go well to helping the team."

Two-time Brownlow medallist Neale, who is managing a lingering heel issue, was tagged with effect by GWS stopper Toby Bedford in Brisbane's thrilling semi-final win last week.

Veteran Dayne Zorko expected him to attract similar attention from the Cats.

"He cops it every week. So it'd be nothing new," Zorko said.

"We certainly plan for it."

Zorko, who has delivered drive and poise off half-back, also had to get to grips with attention, as GWS's James Peatling played a defensive forward role on him in the semi-final.

"Doesn't bother me either way," the 35-year-old shrugged.

"We saw last week, there were three or four of us who got a little bit of run with roles.

"But ultimately we do the same to the opposition. It's finals football, you've got to prepare for everything, and we're no different."

The Cats will also need to get to grips with Brisbane's ability to put the foot down and deliver a scoring blitz, after the Lions fought back from 44 points down against GWS.

"We've seen how good they played towards the end of the game last week, so we just really need to get the job done early, bring the right attitude and match them in the contest," Atkins said.

"They can get a run on. They're obviously a really strong attacking team. They've obviously got some some firepower forward. 

"We as a mid group, need to figure out how we can help out our defenders best around the park."

After missing out on finals last year, Atkins was confident the Cats were well placed to do something special again.

"It's been a really fun year," he said.

"We had a great start to the year, and then throughout the middle of the year we had a bit of low patch and some challenges. 

"We were able to work through that and I feel like now we've really found our stride as a team, and we're really clear on each other's roles and what we expect of each other. 

"So very, very lucky and grateful to be challenging again."

License this article

What is AAPNews?

For the first time, Australian Associated Press is delivering news straight to the consumer.

No ads. No spin. News straight-up.

Not only do you get to enjoy high-quality news delivered straight to your desktop or device, you do so in the knowledge you are supporting media diversity in Australia.

AAP Is Australia’s only independent newswire service, free from political and commercial influence, producing fact-based public interest journalism across a range of topics including politics, courts, sport, finance and entertainment.

What is AAPNews?
The Morning Wire

Wake up to AAPNews’ morning news bulletin delivered straight to your inbox or mobile device, bringing you up to speed with all that has happened overnight at home and abroad, as well as setting you up what the day has in store.

AAPNews Morning Wire
AAPNews Breaking News
Breaking News

Be the first to know when major breaking news happens.


Notifications will be sent to your device whenever a big story breaks, ensuring you are never in the dark when the talking points happen.

Focused Content

Enjoy the best of AAP’s specialised Topics in Focus. AAP has reporters dedicated to bringing you hard news and feature content across a range of specialised topics including Environment, Agriculture, Future Economies, Arts and Refugee Issues.

AAPNews Focussed Content
Subscription Plans

Choose the plan that best fits your needs. AAPNews offers two basic subscriptions, all billed monthly.

Once you sign up, you will have seven days to test out the service before being billed.

AAPNews Full Access Plan
Full Access
AU$10
  • Enjoy all that AAPNews has to offer
  • Access to breaking news notifications and bulletins
  • Includes access to all AAPNews’ specialised topics
Join Now
AAPNews Student Access Plan
Student Access
AU$5
  • Gain access via a verified student email account
  • Enjoy all the benefits of the ‘Full Access’ plan at a reduced rate
  • Subscription renews each month
Join Now
AAPNews Annual Access Plan
Annual Access
AU$99
  • All the benefits of the 'Full Access' subscription at a discounted rate
  • Subscription automatically renews after 12 months
Join Now

AAPNews also offers enterprise deals for businesses so you can provide an AAPNews account for your team, organisation or customers. Click here to contact AAP to sign-up your business today.

SEVEN DAYS FREE
Download the app
Download AAPNews on the App StoreDownload AAPNews on the Google Play Store