page_title: 2018 Geelong Football Club season
section_title: Season summary
hierarchical_section_title: 2018 Geelong Football Club season / Season summary
caption_attribution_description: English: Tim Kelly of Geelong during the 2018 AFL round 20 match between Richmond and Geelong at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday, 3 August 2018 in Melbourne, Victoria.
context_page_description: The 2018 season is the Geelong Football Club's 119th completed season in the Australian Football League, the eighth with Chris Scott as senior coach and the seventh with Joel Selwood as club captain.
  Geelong participated in both the inaugural AFLX competition and the 2018 JLT Community Series as part of its pre-season schedule, and the club's regular season began on 25 March against Melbourne at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. The club finished the regular season with a 13–9 win-loss record and placed eighth on the league's ladder, qualifying for the 2018 finals series as a result. Geelong was subsequently defeated in an elimination final against Melbourne by 29 points, and therefore did not progress past the first finals week.
  Geelong's best and fairest award, the Carji Greeves Medal, was won by Mark Blicavs who received 234 votes to narrowly relegate Patrick Dangerfield and Tim Kelly to joint second place with 233.5 votes apiece. It was Blicavs' second Carji Greeves Medal, having previously won the award for the 2015 season.
context_section_description: The fixture for the 2018 season was confirmed by the AFL in October 2017, with clubs playing 22 matches during the regular season and receiving a mid-season bye. Geelong was scheduled to play nine games at GMHBA Stadium, the most they have played at the ground in a single season since 1999. The inaugural AFLX competition was played in February 2018, with games following AFLX rules (which is a modified version of Australian rules football). For this competition, clubs were split into three groups consisting of two pools in each; the top team in each pool played off in a grand final for that group. Geelong won both their pool matches, against Port Adelaide and Fremantle, before losing to Adelaide by eight points in the group grand final; the Cats also participated in the 2018 JLT Community Series as part of their pre-season schedule, playing in two games against Gold Coast and Essendon.
  Geelong began the regular season on 25 March against Melbourne at the MCG, with the Cats narrowly winning the game by three points. Midfielders Joel Selwood and Gary Ablett each garnered 39 disposals in the win; Selwood was playing his 250th game and it was Ablett's return game for the Cats. In the lead up to the following week's match against Hawthorn on Easter Monday, there was anticipation about Ablett, Selwood and Patrick Dangerfield taking the field together for the first time, with the midfielders labelled the "holy trinity". Dangerfield collected 31 disposals in his first game back from injury, with Ablett (35) and Selwood (29) also featuring prominently. Despite the impact of this trio, Hawthorn secured a one-point win—although their lead was as much as 25 points early in the final quarter. Travelling to newly-opened Optus Stadium in round 3, the Cats lost to West Coast by 15 points; the crowd of 54,535 was the highest attendance for a sports event in Western Australia. Selwood captained his 143rd match in round 4, surpassing Reg Hickey's 78-year-old record of most games as Geelong captain; the Cats defeated St Kilda in their first game at GMHBA Stadium for the season. 
  Geelong won three of their next five matches, with the round 6 game against Sydney their sole loss at GMHBA Stadium for the season. Playing against Carlton in round 10, debutant Jamaine Jones scored his first goal with his first kick and the Cats won by 28 points; it was Carlton's first game at GMHBA Stadium since 1997. Geelong won their next two games, including an 85-point win against Gold Coast; the Cats subsequently recorded an 18-point loss in round 13 by reigning premiers Richmond. Heading into their bye in round 14, Geelong were placed fifth on the league's ladder with an 8–5 win–loss record.
  Geelong were defeated by Western Bulldogs in their first match following their week off, losing by two points after Cats defender Harry Taylor missed a goal after the siren; it was the seventh consecutive year the Cats had lost after a mid-season bye. Three weeks later Geelong had another opportunity to win after the siren against Melbourne in round 18, this time Zach Tuohy scored a goal for the Cats to win by two points. Geelong recorded a 42-point against Brisbane in round 19, with Tom Hawkins scoring seven goals for a second consecutive game. Geelong's loss in round 20 was the first time Richmond had defeated the Cats twice in a single season since 1982. Geelong's score of 24.14 (158) against Fremantle in round 21 was their highest of the season, with the Cats recording a VFL/AFL record of 23 unanswered goals; the 133-point margin was Fremantle's biggest defeat in the club's history. This dominance was repeated the following week, with the Cats finishing the regular season with a 102-point win over Gold Coast. These final two wins helped the Cats place eighth on the league's ladder with a 13–9 win–loss record, qualifying for the 2018 finals series. Geelong was subsequently defeated in an elimination final against Melbourne by 29 points, and therefore did not progress past the first finals week; it was Melbourne's first finals appearance since 2006.
caption: Tim Kelly played his debut game in round one, and finished joint runners-up for the Carji Greeves Medal.
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