Geelong GM of Football Andrew Mackie has backed the club's approach of spirited character Bailey Smith amid reports he has been absent over the past few days.

Mackie was quizzed a week after the Cats' Mad Monday saga that saw the club issue an apology for the "inappropriate" costumes donned by the players.

Several Cats players have earned external criticism for their selection of dress-ups for their 'Mad Monday' celebrations, which have become famous over the past decade and a half.

The club has put an end to the post-season celebrations "in this current form".

SEE MORE: Cats release statement following ‘Mad Monday' costume controversy

"Obviously, we're not perfect. We don't stand here and pretend to be," Mackie said at Monday's trade period open day.

"When you've got a playing list and staff like us, there's no finished product.

"We're a work in progress all across the board as a club, like everyone probably should be. We're no different.
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"Every now and then, there's things that pop up that ideally don't, but we can only learn and educate from here our players and our people."

The report regarding Smith's whereabouts suggested that the club was unaware where the 24-year-old was in the past few days, which Mackie strongly rejected.

"No, that wasn't all factual - I was aware what he was up to," he said.

"But, like I said, I get the interest in Bailey. But him playing footy this year is a real success story for the game.

"As I said, we're all not perfect. We've just got to continue to keep working together, and those little moments that might bubble away, we've just got to keep on educating."
Mackie refused to provide insight into the conversations between Smith and the powerbrokers at Kardinia Park, saying they'd prefer to keep it in-house.

"It's not our style to communicate to media about how we talk to our players and work through that stuff.

"So once again, I get the interest, but that's not something that we're willing to talk about publicly, about how we go about that."

Last month, Smith was involved in an altercation with a Geelong Advertiser photographer Alison Wynd, during a club's training session.