2026 Geelong Football Club season

The 2026 Geelong Football Club season is the club's 162nd season playing Australian rules football, with the club competing in their 127th season in the Australian Football League (AFL). Geelong continues to field a women's team in the AFL Women's (AFLW) competition, and men's and women's reserves teams in the Victorian Football League (VFL) and the VFL Women's (VFLW) respectively.

Club news

Further information: 2026 AFL Origin

Club captain Patrick Dangerfield, as well as Jeremy Cameron,[1] Bailey Smith and Max Holmes were chosen to represent Victoria in the return of State of Origin. Cameron would be forced to withdraw from the squad due to injury. Lawson Humphries was selected to represent Western Australia in the match, while Geelong coach Chris Scott was asked to coach the Victoria squad.[2][3]

AFL team

Geelong Football Club
2026 AFL season
PresidentGrant McCabe
CoachChris Scott
(16th season)
CaptainsPatrick Dangerfield
(4th season)
Home groundGMHBA Stadium

Season summary

It was the club's 16th AFL season under senior coach Chris Scott, with Patrick Dangerfield continuing as club captain.

Pre-season

Geelong started the season with a match simulation game against Hawthorn at the Kennedy Community Centre on 16 February, losing 14.10 (94) to 16.15 (117), with Shannon Neale kicking four goals.[4]

Geelong played an official practice match as part of the AFL's Community Series against Carlton at Ikon Park on 25 February. Carlton led for most of the contest, defeating Geelong by 15 points with the Blues scoring 13.8 (86) to the Cats 11.5 (71). The match was Tanner Bruhn's first match since early in 2025 after he was unavailable during the entire 2025 premiership season.[5]

Coaching staff

Chris Scott continued as the club's men's senior coach for a 16th season, having signed a contract extension until the end of the 2026 season.[6]

2026 Geelong coaching staff
Role Name
Senior coach Chris Scott
Assistant coach Nathan Buckley
Assistant coach James Kelly
Assistant coach James Rahilly
Head of player development Nigel Lappin
Ruck coach Brad Ottens
Development coach Aaron Black
Development coach Shaun Higgins

Playing list

Changes

Statistics

Key
^ Denotes player who was on the club's standard rookie list, and therefore eligible for senior selection.
# Denotes Category B rookie where player needed to be elevated to club's senior list during this season to be eligible for senior selection.
Playing list and statistics[13][14]
Player No. Games Goals Behinds Kicks Handballs Disposals Tackles Marks Hitouts Milestone(s)
Tom Atkins 30 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Harley Barker 26 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Jed Bews 24 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Mark Blicavs 46 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Jack Bowes 12 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Tanner Bruhn 4 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Cillian Burke# 41 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Jeremy Cameron 5 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Jhye Clark 13 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Brad Close 45 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Toby Conway 6 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Patrick Dangerfield 35 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Sam De Koning 16 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Oliver Dempsey 28 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Nick Driscoll^ 27 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Mitchell Edwards 11 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a AFL debut
(round 1)
Zach Guthrie 39 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Jack Henry 38 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Oliver Henry 36 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Lennox Hofmann 23 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Hunter Holmes 22 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Max Holmes 9 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Lawson Humphries 17 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Mitch Knevitt 10 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Jake Kolodjashnij 8 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Shaun Mannagh 7 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Jack Martin 19 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Keighton Matofai-Forbes^ 31 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Jesse Mellor# 25 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Gryan Miers 32 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Jacob Molier 20 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Oisín Mullin 34 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Shannon Neale 33 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Mark O'Connor 42 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Connor O'Sullivan 14 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Joe Pike^ 37 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Jay Polkinghorne 2 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Bailey Smith 3 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Rhys Stanley 1 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Tyson Stengle 18 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
George Stevens^ 15 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Tom Stewart 44 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Oliver Wiltshire 21 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
James Worpel 29 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a Club debut
(Opening round)

Results

Key
H Home game
A Away game
N Neutral venue game
Table of 2026 AFL season results[15]
Round Date Result Score Opponent Score Ground Attendance Ladder
G B T G B T
OR 6 March Lost 10 9 69 Gold Coast 19 11 125 People First Stadium A 19,859[16] 9th
1 14 March Won 16 14 110 Fremantle 14 16 100 GMHBA Stadium H 27,815 9th
2 Bye 14th
3 26 March Adelaide GMHBA Stadium H
4 6 April Hawthorn Melbourne Cricket Ground A
5 12 April West Coast Norwood Oval N
6 17 April Western Bulldogs GMHBA Stadium H
7 25 April Port Adelaide Adelaide Oval A
8 2 May North Melbourne GMHBA Stadium H
9 9 May Collingwood Melbourne Cricket Ground H
10 14 May Brisbane Lions The Gabba A
11 23 May Sydney GMHBA Stadium H
12 29 May Carlton Melbourne Cricket Ground A
13 4 June Adelaide Adelaide Oval A
14 12 June Gold Coast GMHBA Stadium H
15 18 June Fremantle Optus Stadium A
16 Bye
17 Brisbane Lions GMHBA Stadium H
18 Greater Western Sydney Engie Stadium A
19 St Kilda GMHBA Stadium H
20 Melbourne Melbourne Cricket Ground A
21 Collingwood Melbourne Cricket Ground A
22 Essendon GMHBA Stadium H
23 North Melbourne Marvel Stadium A
24 Richmond GMHBA Stadium H

Ladder

Updated to the end of round 2.

Pos Team Pld W L D PF PA PP Pts Qualification
1 Gold Coast 3 3 0 0 384 201 191.0 12 Finals series
2 Western Bulldogs 3 3 0 0 339 247 137.2 12
3 Sydney 3 2 1 0 318 228 139.5 8
4 Hawthorn 3 2 1 0 339 287 118.1 8
5 Fremantle 2 1 1 0 218 180 121.1 4
6 North Melbourne 2 1 1 0 207 178 116.3 4
7 Port Adelaide 2 1 1 0 200 183 109.3 4
8 Adelaide 2 1 1 0 181 173 104.6 4
9 Collingwood 2 1 1 0 157 159 98.7 4
10 St Kilda 3 1 2 0 251 272 92.3 4
11 Melbourne 2 1 1 0 190 225 84.4 4
12 West Coast 2 1 1 0 183 225 81.3 4
13 Greater Western Sydney 3 1 2 0 249 307 81.1 4
14 Geelong 2 1 1 0 179 225 79.6 4
15 Carlton 2 1 1 0 144 203 70.9 4
16 Brisbane Lions 2 0 2 0 166 215 77.2 0
17 Richmond 2 0 2 0 131 203 64.5 0
18 Essendon 2 0 2 0 153 278 55.0 0
Source: afl.com.au
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) percentage; 3) number of points for

VFL team

Geelong Football Club
2026 VFL season
PresidentGrant McCabe
CoachMark Corrigan
(4th season)
Home groundGMHBA Stadium

Season summary

Mark Corrigan continued as coach of the club's VFL program for a fourth season.

Results

Key
H Home game
A Away game
Table of season results
Round Date Result Score Opponent Score Ground
G B T G B T
1 20 March Won 24 19 163 Essendon 12 6 78 GMHBA Stadium H
2 27 March Box Hill GMHBA Stadium H
3 4 April Werribee Avalon Airport Oval A
4 17 April Footscray GMHBA Stadium H
5 Bye
6 2 May North Melbourne GMHBA Stadium H
7 9 May Collingwood Victoria Park A
8 15 May Brisbane Brighton Homes Arena A
9 23 May Sydney GMHBA Stadium H
10 30 May Carlton Ikon Park A
11 6 June Sandringham Trevor Barker Beach Oval A
12 13 June Gold Coast GMHBA Stadium H
13 20 June Southport Fankhauser Reserve A
14 Bye
15 Frankston TBC A
16 Richmond TBC H
17 St Kilda TBC A
18 Casey TBC A
19 Collingwood TBC H
20 Bye

Ladder

Further information: 2026 VFL season
Pos Team Pld W L D PF PA PP Pts Qualification
1 Geelong (R) 1 1 0 0 163 78 209.0 4 Finals series
2 Richmond (R) 1 1 0 0 100 60 166.7 4
3 Greater Western Sydney (R) 1 1 0 0 118 74 159.5 4
4 Box Hill 1 1 0 0 107 71 150.7 4
5 Footscray (R) 1 1 0 0 135 92 146.7 4
Updated to match(es) played on 22 March 2026. Source: AFL.com.au
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) percentage; 3) number of points for
(R) Club is the reserves team of a senior club of the Australian Football League

AFL Women's team

Geelong Football Club
2025 AFL Women's season
PresidentGrant McCabe
CoachMichael Stinear
(1st season)
Home groundGMHBA Stadium

Season summary

Coaching staff

2026 Geelong coaching staff
Role Name
Senior coach Mick Stinear
Assistant coach Sam Simpson
Assistant coach Ryan Pendlebury
Assistant coach Elise Coventry

Playing list

Statistics

Key
# Denotes player who was on the club's rookie list.
^ Denotes player who was on the club's inactive list.
Playing list and statistics
Player No. Games Goals Behinds Kicks Handballs Disposals Marks Tackles Hitouts Milestone(s)
Mikayla Bowen 1 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Bella Smith 2 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Amy McDonald 3 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Caitlin Tipping 4 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Jacqueline Parry 5 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Julia Crockett-Grills 6 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Kate Surman 7 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Nina Morrison 9 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Georgie Rankin 10 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Kate Kenny# 12 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Sienna Tallariti 13 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Chloe Scheer 14 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Shelley Scott 15 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Chantel Emonson^ 16 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Erica Fowler 17 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Zali Friswell 20 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Rebecca Webster 21 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Rachel Kearns 22 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Bryde O'Rourke 23 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Chantal Mason 24 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Claudia Gunjaca 26 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Emma Kilpatrick 27 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Lexi Gregor 30 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Piper Dunlop 38 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Georgie Prespakis 41 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a
Aishling Moloney# 45 N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a N/a

VFLW team

Geelong Football Club
2026 VFL Women's season
PresidentGrant McCabe
Home groundDeakin University Elite Sports Precinct

Season summary

Results

Key
H Home game
A Away game
Table of season results[17]
Round Date Result Score Opponent Score Ground
G B T G B T
1 16 May Williamstown Deakin University Elite Sports Precinct H
2 23 May Essendon Windy Hill A
3 30 May Box Hill Deakin University Elite Sports Precinct H
4 6 June Sandringham Trevor Barker Beach Oval A
5 12 June Western Bulldogs Mission Whitten Oval A
6 20 June Darebin Deakin University Elite Sports Precinct H
7 Bye
8 North Melbourne Werribee TBC A
9 Tasmania TBC A
10 Carlton TBC H
11 Casey TBC A
12 Collingwood TBC H
13 Bye
14 Tasmania TBC H
15 Carlton TBC A
16 Port Melbourne H

Ladder

Further information: 2026 VFL Women's season
Pos Team Pld W L D PF PA PP Pts
9 Western Bulldogs 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0
10 Carlton 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0
11 Geelong Cats 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0
12 Casey 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0
13 Tasmania 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0
Updated to match(es) played on 1 January 2026. Source: AFL.com.au
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) percentage; 3) number of points for.

Notes

References

  1. ^ "First batch of eight players unveiled for AFL Origin return". AFL Media. 14 November 2025. Retrieved 17 November 2025.
  2. ^ Noakes, Cameron (4 February 2026). "AFL State of Origin full squads confirmed as West Coast scratches Brandon Starcevich". Seven Network.
  3. ^ Twomey, Callum (8 February 2026). "Geelong superstar ruled out of AFL Origin". AFL.com.au. 1116 SEN.
  4. ^ Gabelich, Josh (16 February 2026). "Young Cats forward stakes his claim as Hawks impress". afl.com.au. Retrieved 27 February 2026.
  5. ^ Beveridge, Riley (25 February 2026). "AAMI Community Series Match Report". Geelong Football Club. Retrieved 27 February 2026.
  6. ^ Robinson, Mark (19 September 2023). "Chris Scott extends his tenure as Geelong coach until at least the end of 2026". Code Sports. Melbourne, Victoria: News Corporation Australia. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  7. ^ "Dual premiership Cat to hang up the boots at season's end". afl.com.au. 29 August 2025. Mitch Duncan has announced his retirement at the end of the 2025 AFL season
  8. ^ "Tigers swoop to snare rookie Cat for a late pick". afl.com.au. 15 October 2025. Retrieved 27 February 2026.
  9. ^ "Cats farewell Premiership Player and dual Carji Greeves Medallist". geelongcats.com.au. 20 October 2025.
  10. ^ "Geelong Cats Announce Further List Changes". geelongcats.com.au. 22 October 2025.
  11. ^ "Cats delist untried rookies in first wave of list changes". afl.com.au. 2 October 2025.
  12. ^ "'Worpedo' Geelong-bound: Paperwork lodged for Hawks mid to join Cats". afl.com.au. 3 October 2025.
  13. ^ "2026 Stats – Player Lists – Geelong". AFL Tables. Retrieved 27 February 2026.
  14. ^ "2026 Player Stats (Geelong)". australianfootball.com. Retrieved 27 February 2026.
  15. ^ "2026 Season Scores and Results". AFL Tables. Retrieved 27 February 2026.
  16. ^ Whiting, Michael (6 March 2026). "Petracca stars as red-hot Suns torch sluggish Cats". afl.com.au. Retrieved 8 March 2026.
  17. ^ "AFL Fixtures and Results – VFLW 2026". afl.com.au. Retrieved 27 February 2026.
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