IN ALL my time I cannot remember a bigger build-up to a home and away game than our clash with Geelong this week.

Everyone in the footy world has had this one pencilled in to their calendars for months and while you always focus on your opponent in any given week, we have been keeping one eye on the Cats all year long.

That’s nothing unusual though, I think every club would be paying close attention to the way they go about their business. They are the benchmark and everyone should be observing them.

I keep hearing terms like ‘finals-like’ and ‘sell-out’ and there is no doubt the game will be played at a high intensity. It will be on for sure but we have to remember that when all is said and done, it is still just a round 14 game. Despite all the hype outside the two clubs, there won’t be any cups or medals presented.

We are preparing this week like we have all year but it will be a great opportunity to test ourselves against the very best.

I can’t help but notice a few little bits and pieces in the footy media this week talking about the rivalry between the two teams.

To be honest there probably was a rivalry four or five years ago but both sides have changed a fair bit since then. I read somewhere that there is hatred from us to them but that is just ridiculous. It is certainly nothing but respect with the way they’ve performed over the last few years.

Talk of a rivalry started in 2004 after we’d beaten them in the pre-season competition. There were a few comments thrown around from both camps but the rivalry was built around both sides having a young, exciting list with some high draft picks.

People get excited about that but a bit of time has gone by and the rivalry is probably not as intense these days as people might think.

Melbourne-based footballers tend to travel in the same circles but I don’t really see the Geelong boys out all that much since they are based down the highway.

A few of them share the same management as me and there’s a few who I’ve played footy against for quite a while but that’s about the extent of it.

But I have watched enough of their games to know plenty about them. They’ve got a super midfield and when you play as well as they have for such a long period of time and won so many games they are not going to have many weaknesses. Their midfield is their strength. They have some superstar individuals and they work well as a team.

I know it’s going to be a huge task for us to come up against them and I know that wherever I look I’m going to be up against a star of the AFL.

Some have said that with both teams four games clear of the third-placed Bulldogs that a loss won’t be too damaging but both sides will be keen to do well. You always hear that you shouldn’t flirt with your form and neither team will want to concede that first game.

All year long our motto has been to try to bridge the gap between us and Geelong. We feel we’ve done that but just how far we’ve done it, we’ll know a bit more on Sunday. I can’t wait.

The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.