Geelong fell devastatingly short of a second premiership this decade on Saturday afternoon, sticking with the forming dynasty that is the Brisbane Lions for a good three quarters before rolling over as Fitzroy stamped their authority in the final term.
However, it was through no fault of four emerging stars on the Cats' roster, who excelled well past expectations on the AFL's grandest stage while the veterans around them failed to produce a full four-quarter effort.
Of course, this is hardly consolation for Geelong's diehards who will be left upset following yesterday's loss, but once the sting of a missed premiership subsides, it becomes extremely clear that Geelong have one of the more promising young crops of talent in the AFL, and that should be an incredibly exciting thought for the club going into 2026.
Brisbane have deservedly earned close to all the attention from the 2025 Grand Final, but it's time these four Geelong youngsters get some spotlight for their performances.
Ollie Dempsey
Dempsey was inarguably Geelong's best-on-ground in the Grand Final, with his speed along the wings setting up countless transitional attacks, and his poise inside forward 50 enabling him to capitalise on the scoreboard regularly.
He frustrated his direct opponent Bruce Reville on multiple occasions, drawing several clear holding free kicks to punish the Lions, particularly through the first three quarters. Dempsey finished the match with eight score involvements, a team high, and four goals, a game-high tally, highlighting his rapidly growing importance to Geelong's attack.
Connor O'Sullivan
Connor O'Sullivan had to shoulder much of the defensive load in Geelong's loss and the 20-year-old truly delivered despite facing such heavy lifting deep inside opposition 50.
O'Sullivan led Geelong in spoils, won four of his five contested defensive one-on-ones - which was the most one-on-one contests faced by a Geelong player - and generated five rebound 50s from his possessions in defensive 50, a career-high.
He also led the Cats with nine intercept possessions.
There were a couple of moments where O'Sullivan's youth, inexperience and perhaps nerves on the AFL's grandest stage got the better of him, but to suggest he was unimpactful for the Cats is severe misinformation.
O'Sullivan was the glue for Geelong's defence all day long and refused to roll over even in the final term as much of the Cats players did, recording his two score involvements in the final quarter and battling in a multitude of defensive contests strongly to prevent the match from turning into a rort.
Max Holmes
Another player who was clearly one of Geelong's best afield was the 23-year-old Max Holmes, who's ascension into one of the league's best ball-winners continued on the final day of the season.
Holmes won a match-best 33 disposals, 12 contested possessions, 10 ground ball gets and was the key to Geelong's attack, generating nine inside 50s and eight score involvements.
While Holmes looked shaky in moments, struggling with disposal efficiency in the opening stages of the match, he quickly clicked into gear and set up countless opportunities before the Brisbane final term blitz. It's a loss that will sting for Holmes, who missed out on the 2022 premiership, but he can hold his head high regardless for his efforts.
Lawson Humphries
Lawson Humphries joined Connor O'Sullivan's poise in defence with elite foot skills that consistently knifed through Brisbane's well set up defensive structure.
The 22-year-old was plucked from seemingly nowhere to become a key cog in Geelong's defence, taken with the 63rd pick in the 2023 National Draft. He's quickly become paramount to the Cats' elite defence and that was further highlighted in the Grand Final, setting up seven rebound 50s - a team-high - from his 23 disposals, 18 of which were effective.
Humphries also ranked third in the match for metres gained with 638 and took seven marks. It was arguably the best performance of his 2025 campaign individually, highlighting why this unsung hero in the Cats' back six should not continue to be unmentioned.
