The AFL footy landscape never learns but Geelong is once again priming itself for an all-out attack on premiership No.11.
Interesting to say after they were dismantled by Brisbane.
But the mastermind that is Chris Scott, and his coaching group, always appear to be playing chess while everyone is playing checkers.
He alluded to himself following the nine-point loss to Fremantle he didn't show all the Cats' cards in anticipation of a September match-up.
In the last eight weeks of the season, Geelong versus one team above them on the ladder (Melbourne, 6th).
They'll face cellar dwellers Essendon and Richmond in two of the final three fixtures of the year, while North Melbourne, a team historically easily accounted for, is sandwiched in between.
Admittedly, the Cats have slipped from their season-high third placing after Round 11, winning only one game since against a middling Gold Coast outfit.
But again, there's no reason to be alarmed.
Those losses were against Carlton (four points), Adelaide (one point), the Dockers (nine points) and Brisbane (22 points). Three of the four defeats were against last year's minor premiers, this year's ladder leaders and the back-to-back reigning premiers.
Aiding the contention Geelong will there when the whips begin cracking is the fact they leave Victoria once more - this weekend against GWS - for the remainder of the year.
Games at the MCG, Marvel Stadium and the fortress that is GMHBA Stadium are waiting Scott and his men once they travel to New South Wales.
The Cats' stirring run to its 2022 flag was not linear, as the club slumped to 5-4 at Round 9 after a loss to the Saints. And as they say, the rest is history, with Scott's men going on a 16-game win streak.
Last year yielded a near identical result with a favourable run home. The Cats, from Round 13 when they played Gold Coast in Geelong, left Victoria on two occasions, both to New South Wales to take on the Giants (Round 18) and Sydney (Round 23).
Including the Suns victory, they played at GMHBA Stadium on six occasions in the final 11 weeks, and were filtered through the MCG and Marvel Stadium in the back half of the season.
It might be a different look this year, but Geelong, as they have done for two decades, have planned their season well to within an inch of its list, and could be set up to right the wrong of the 2025 grand final downfall.
7. Geelong Cats
Current position: 7th, 36 points, 117.1%
Remaining games
Round 18: GWS Giants (away)
Round 19: St Kilda (home)
Round 20: Melbourne (away)
Round 21: Collingwood (away)
Round 22: Essendon (home)
Round 23: North Melbourne (away)
Round 24: Richmond (home)
