Geelong captain discusses keys to beating Brisbane Lions, past success, behind-the-scenes moments

Patrick Dangerfield’s well-received encore to his legacy-enhancing preliminary final game was a players-only performance in the showers post-match.

Geelong’s resident superstar – not even rock-star midfielder Bailey Smith challenges Dangerfield’s status at the Cattery – had his teammates in stitches as he recited, word for word, Jim Carrey’s opening scene in cult movie Ace Ventura: Pet Detective.

It’s the one where Carrey, as Ventura, does everything possible to destroy the glass item inside a package he is delivering, with the sole intention of rescuing a Shih Tzu from a man who stole the pooch from its actual owner.

“That was a close one, ladies and gentlemen. Unfortunately, in every contest, there must be a loser … loo-hoo-ser-her,” Ventura famously says to the Shih Tzu he just recovered for a client, before the man realises what has happened and arrives at Ventura’s car and starts bashing it in with a baseball bat.

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Dangerfield’s teammates lost it.

“It’s amazing when he does that sort of stuff,” fellow Cat Jack Bowes told The Age.

“He’s such a fierce competitor on the field, but off the field, he’s so relaxed, laid back and jovial. He loves a joke, and I think he’s got a great balance in that. It’s something I’ve always really admired.

“On field, when you see him flying for marks or breaking open packs; sometimes you feel sorry for the blokes on the end of it. I’m excited to see what he can do again on Saturday.”

The football world has universally lauded Dangerfield, at age 35, for his spectacular display last week against Hawthorn, including 31 disposals, three goals, 20 contested possessions, 13 score involvements, nine inside 50s and six centre clearances. It was the highest-rating preliminary final performance since Champion Data started keeping records.

Coach Chris Scott insisted afterwards that they don’t wrap the champion veteran in cotton wool and unleash him in September, but there must be some truth in that with his management in his 18th season.

The best-on-ground performance, which propelled Geelong into their seventh grand final since 2007, even triggered a discussion between his teammates about where “Pat” stacks up among the AFL’s modern giants.

Max Holmes believes Dangerfield is “easily” inside the top five, while Shaun Mannagh has him on the podium – and joked that the man himself would probably place himself there, too.

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“Gary Ablett jnr is a clear No.1, I’d say,” Holmes said. “I honestly want to put Patty second, but I know people scream that ‘Dusty’ [Dustin Martin] is better, and ‘Buddy’ [Lance Franklin] is up there as well.

“It’s hard to rank those players, but I think ‘Danger’ is in that top five, for sure. He’s incredible to play alongside, and I guess that’s a perk of being at Geelong. There are stars everywhere who you can take a lot of wisdom from.”

Bowes – who chose to join the Cats in large part because of Dangerfield’s involvement – agrees with Mannagh, pointing to his 359 games, eight All-Australian selections and four club champion awards across two clubs, as well as him winning the 2016 Brownlow Medal and playing in the 2022 premiership.

“The only thing missing on his resume is being captain in a grand final and winning the premiership, so hopefully, we can tick that off for him,” Bowes said.

Emerging midfielder Jhye Clark, the Cats’ super sub in the preliminary final, has a different measure for Dangerfield. After entering the match when Tom Stewart was concussed before quarter-time, Clark had a front-row seat to Dangerfield’s extraordinary feats.

“It’s so sick. He’s one of a kind,” Clark said.

“He just runs straight through everyone, and when you watch him play – you just want to run through a brick wall. He’s so inspiring for the whole team, and I’d be very scared of playing against him.”

Don’t mess with Danger’s play list

Shannon Neale was yet to make his AFL debut when he walked into the player gym at Kardinia Park one day in the 2022 pre-season.

Zach Tuohy, Rhys Stanley and Dangerfield were already in there. Country music was blasting from the speakers, which a then-19-year-old Neale was unimpressed with before he made a mistake he will never forget.

Without a moment of hesitation, the big forward from Perth pressed the “skip” button.

“‘Don’t change the music! You can’t do that!’,” Dangerfield crossly told Neale, who initially laughed, thinking his reaction was a joke.

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“But he said, ‘I’m dead serious’ and he’s got the finger pointing at me, and everything,” Neale recalled. “I walked out of the gym, and I almost left the club that afternoon. About 20 minutes later, he sends me a message, and he’s like, ‘Mate, I am extremely sorry, the [summer] heat got to me – it’s fine’.

“It took me a couple of weeks to look him in the eyes again. He wasn’t the captain at the time, but obviously, he’s a leader. He’s such a figure. It’s Patrick Dangerfield. Anything that happens like that; you think you’re done.”

Neale sheepishly shared the Dangerfield story, which he thinks might get him in trouble, but he wanted to make the point that it was a sliding doors moment for their relationship, which was limited at the time.

They are only two lockers apart, now sit alongside one another in team meetings, and have formed a close bond.

“I can ask him for advice, and I feel very comfortable approaching him about anything,” Neale said. “He’s super witty, and loves a laugh. I think he’s really enjoying his footy. He’s relaxed, and enjoying where he’s at, and certainly, our friendship has blossomed since that moment.”

Another speaker-related Dangerfield story emerged last Friday night.

The evergreen skipper was controlling the tunes again pre-match against the Hawks, but made the left-field choice of classical music.

This time it wasn’t just Neale who took umbrage, prompting Dangerfield to relent and change to a different song, Kenny Loggins’ Danger Zone.

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“He started walking around strutting his stuff,” Mannagh said.

“It was very funny – but that’s Pat. He’s a kid at heart, but as soon as we go out there and cross that line; he’s the person that you see on the field. He’s incredible. He puts us on his back, and you walk taller with him, so we love him off the field, but we love him just as much on it.”

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