INAUGURAL Geelong captain Melissa Hickey is raring to go ahead of her belated AFLW home debut for the Cats against conference rivals Carlton.
After two seasons with Melbourne, Hickey jumped at the chance to join the team she had supported all her life when Geelong were issued with an AFLW licence for the 2019 season.
After rupturing her ACL in March last year, Hickey was determined to recover in time for the Cats’ season opener in early February.
But a sore hip meant she came up just short, with the 34-year-old forced to watch from the grandstand at GMHBA Stadium as the Cats pipped Collingwood by a solitary point before a crowd of more than 18,000.
She finally got back on the park in last weekend’s 29-point loss away to Adelaide.
“To be honest, last week we got hit really hard, really early and I feel like we all went into shock,” Hickey told AAP at the adidas Ultraboost 19 launch.
“We took a backward step.
“But I didn’t think about my knee at all during the game, which was good; I was just trying to organise everyone and get back into it.
“I reckon I’ll be much better for the run.”
Saturday’s match shapes as a classic “eight-point” encounter.
The Blues and the Cats sit atop the weaker Conference B standings with one win apiece from three matches, meaning the victors on Saturday will go a game clear in first place with three rounds to play.
“If we win, we go into top spot outright so it’s massive,” said Hickey, who can trace her Geelong heritage all the way back to club foundation legend Reg Hickey.
“Obviously the Blues have got some really good key forwards that we will have to get on top of in Tayla Harris and Darcy Vescio.
“And Brianna Davey, wherever she is on the ground, is someone we’ll have to watch.”
Harris was freed to play in Saturday’s match after getting a one-match rough conduct suspension downgraded to a reprimand.
© AAP 2019
