Friday Fallout: Dockers withhstand Cat surge on shoulders of Jackson

The scenes during the third term when Jeremy Cameron kicked his second goal to put Geelong up by 10 points were familiar and worrying as Justin Longmuir began to look increasingly bemused.

On top of that, the anxiety of the stadium was palpable and you wondered how far away a Wharfie Time return may be.

Enter Luke Jackson and the tall forward posy of Freo.

Four goals in a row top end the third term which has been dominated by the Cats for the best part of 25 minutes showed how far this side had come since their abysmal showing against Hawthorn last weekend.

Jackson, however, was the most influential during this passage. Slotting two clutch goals and setting one up with a masterful display of ruck craft was poetry in motion as “Dogga” brought the crowd back to life.

A chaotic last term saw the Dockers stretch their lead slightly, but the Cats refused to go down without a fight and the likes of Patrick Dangerfield and Bailey Smith shone through as disciplined workhorses.

But it would prove futile as Freo saluted their Optus Stadium faithful for the last time in 2026, where they only lost once, in pursuit of victory against the emotionally charged Swans at the SCG.

Geelong would feel they let this one slip in the first half. Letting the fans get so involved early as Shai Bolton slotted the first two goals in quick succession would have been rage inducing for Chris Scott and it meant they were chasing tail for the rest of the game.

Alas, what we saw was a high-scoring, star-dominated clash of two brilliant sides and we can only hope the remaining games this season share some of that recipe.

Ethan Clark