1. Welcome back
Nathan Vardy returned for his first game since round 21 last season and took the first bounce against Canadian Mike Pyke. Vardy burst onto the scene in 2011 but only played nine games before being sidelined with a hip injury. He was impressive early winning the first hit-out and picking up four kicks. When he led out late in the quarter and took a mark in front of goal, it appeared Geelong had found an x-factor to take it into the finals. His strong mark and goal midway through the second quarter confirmed it.

2. No rest for the Swans  
We all know the demands on players are increasing and fewer players play every game during the season. However the Sydney Swans remain an exception to that rule, having gone into the game with nine players having turned out in every contest in 2012. Geelong had just one in Andrew Mackie. After such a bruising and tough encounter, the Cats method - one they perfected last season when none of their premiership team played every game - would have been gratefully received.

3. Cats around the corner 
A kick around the body set shot demonstration began early in the second quarter. Steve Johnson kicked things off six minutes in when he marked 15 metres out. He took the kick from side on and pushed it wide. Five minutes later Tom Hawkins marked and set himself to kick around the body. The umpire called play on but Hawkins kicked straight. The Tomahawk then debated with the umpire what constituted play-on in such circumstances, the matter of when a player goes off their line during a set shot unclear to everyone. Hawkins, playing his 100th game, kicked four goals to move into the Coleman lead with 62 goals, just two goals ahead of Fremantle's Matthew Pavlich and three ahead Richmond's Jack Riewoldt who plays on Sunday.

4. Happy Chappy   
The scent of finals has sparked the 30-year-old Paul Chapman into gear. The 2009 Norm Smith medallist was on fire early in the game. He found space to kick two goals in the first quarter and was running hard at the football. He was also reported for striking Ben McGlynn for what seemed an innocuous incident. Chapman caught McGlynn high and knocked him off his feet but the Swans small forward was soon back into the fray. The big game performer Chapman ended the game with three goals and reminded opponents that he is a threat in finals. Yet to re-sign with the Cats, he has indicated recently he is more open to accepting a one-year contract.

5. Tackle, tackle, tackle   
Geelong began to pick up its tackling pressure in round 17 after the loss to Collingwood and continued with it on Saturday. It has led to six wins from the last seven as the Cats charged back into premiership calculations. On Saturday Geelong had 89 tackles to the Swans' 68, and had racked up 53 in the first half. Once again James Kelly led the charge with 10 tackles in the first half. It quelled the Swans' ability to put a player into space after sharing the ball around by hand and stifled their run. Opponents can't do much about tackling so it is a handy weapon to take into the finals.

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