{"id":131803,"date":"2026-05-28T14:45:02","date_gmt":"2026-05-28T04:45:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/?p=131803"},"modified":"2026-05-28T14:46:03","modified_gmt":"2026-05-28T04:46:03","slug":"cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/","title":{"rendered":"Cooney declares Cats flag favourites"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-start=\"577\" data-end=\"748\">Brownlow medallist Adam Cooney has declared Geelong the AFL\u2019s premiership favourite, saying the Cats\u2019 latest statement win over Sydney showed they are built for September.<\/p>\n<p><center><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/A-oTRW_XHXY?si=1FdnvNA9e_GdEr6x&amp;start=357\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/center><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"750\" data-end=\"956\">Speaking on <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/1yaxutGNTUPycBj73D77XG?si=c5efe65f37964829\"><em data-start=\"762\" data-end=\"780\">Armchair Experts<\/em><\/a>, host Cam Luke and Cooney discussed whether Chris Scott\u2019s side had moved to the front of the premiership race after ending Sydney\u2019s seven-game winning streak at GMHBA Stadium.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"958\" data-end=\"1055\">When Luke opened the discussion by asking who the premiership favourite was, Cooney was emphatic.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1057\" data-end=\"1079\">\u201cIt has to be Geelong.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1081\" data-end=\"1110\">\u201cIt just has to be the Cats.\u201d<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1112\" data-end=\"1206\">Luke said Geelong\u2019s sustained success under Scott made it difficult to ever rule the club out.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1208\" data-end=\"1262\">\u201cThis is the 15th season that Chris Scott has coached.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1264\" data-end=\"1293\">\u201cHe\u2019s been in the 11 prelims.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1295\" data-end=\"1421\">\u201cSo, history kind of suggests that at some point they\u2019re going to put their head up and go, \u2018We are a premiership contender\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1423\" data-end=\"1544\">Geelong backed up that reputation on Saturday, defeating Sydney by 27 points, 15.17 (107) to 12.8 (80), at GMHBA Stadium.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1546\" data-end=\"1719\">The result ended the Swans\u2019 seven-game winning streak and came in front of a crowd of 35,869, with the Cats producing a relentless performance against another top-four side.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1721\" data-end=\"1908\">Cooney said the Cats were no longer relying on Patrick Dangerfield to dominate every major game, and were better equipped this season to manage the veteran\u2019s impact when it mattered most.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1910\" data-end=\"1959\">\u201cThey\u2019re not even relying on Patrick Dangerfield.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1961\" data-end=\"2006\">\u201cThey don\u2019t need Dangerfield to star anymore.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2008\" data-end=\"2068\">\u201cThey need him in aspects of major games with a leadership.\u201d<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2070\" data-end=\"2246\">Dangerfield played 57 per cent game time against Sydney, but still had an impact with 15 disposals, a goal and six score involvements while spending large periods on the bench.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2248\" data-end=\"2426\">Cooney said Geelong\u2019s forward mix had become a major weapon, with Jeremy Cameron, Shannon Neale and the club\u2019s smaller forwards giving the Cats a more reliable attacking profile.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2428\" data-end=\"2478\">\u201cThey\u2019ve got other guys to take that forward line.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2480\" data-end=\"2513\">\u201cYou can trust Shannon Neale now.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2515\" data-end=\"2547\">\u201cObviously you can trust Jezza.\u201d<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2549\" data-end=\"2707\">Cameron again led the way inside 50, kicking three goals, while Brad Close and Ollie Henry kicked two each as Geelong finished with 10 individual goalkickers.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2709\" data-end=\"2853\">Luke said the Cats\u2019 pressure and system had also exposed concerns about Sydney\u2019s ability to maintain its attacking style under finals-like heat.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2855\" data-end=\"2979\">\u201cThe pressure that Geelong was able to bring and execute was the reason that Sydney were able to get no fluency in the game.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2981\" data-end=\"3092\">\u201cAnd when you have no fluency against Geelong, they hurt you at some point because they go back the other way.\u201d<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3094\" data-end=\"3275\">Sydney\u2019s handball game troubled Geelong early, with Joel Amartey kicking three first-quarter goals, but the Cats adjusted and took control with a five-goal burst in the second term.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3277\" data-end=\"3435\">The margin reached 38 points midway through the third quarter after Bailey Smith broke the game open, collecting 18 disposals and kicking a goal for the term.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3437\" data-end=\"3595\">Sydney threatened late in the third, with Logan McDonald\u2019s two goals reducing the deficit to 14 points at the final change, before Geelong\u2019s leaders steadied.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3597\" data-end=\"3745\">Cameron and Dangerfield kicked the first two goals of the last quarter from tight angles, before Close added another to put the result beyond reach.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3747\" data-end=\"3959\">Lawson Humphries was among Geelong\u2019s best with 33 disposals, nine intercept possessions and eight score involvements, while Gryan Miers continued his return to form with 24 disposals and eight score involvements.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3961\" data-end=\"4051\">For Cooney, the performance confirmed <a href=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/cam-mooney-geelongs-system-now-looks-premiership-ready\/\">Geelong\u2019s place at the head of the premiership race.<\/a><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"4053\" data-end=\"4077\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\">\u201cIt has to be the Cats.\u201d<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"4053\" data-end=\"4077\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\">Listen to the full podcast here <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/1yaxutGNTUPycBj73D77XG?si=c5efe65f37964829\"><em data-start=\"762\" data-end=\"780\">Armchair Experts<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Brownlow medallist Adam Cooney has declared Geelong the AFL\u2019s premiership favourite, saying the Cats\u2019 latest statement win over Sydney showed they are built for September. Speaking on Armchair Experts, host Cam Luke and Cooney discussed whether Chris Scott\u2019s side had moved to the front of the premiership race after ending Sydney\u2019s seven-game winning streak at [&#8230;]<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"btn btn-secondary understrap-read-more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/\">Read More&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":254,"featured_media":131807,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-131803","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sport"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Cooney declares Cats flag favourites - Geelong Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Adam Cooney says Geelong \u201chas to be\u201d the AFL premiership favourite after the Cats\u2019 statement win over Sydney at GMHBA Stadium.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Cooney declares Cats flag favourites - Geelong Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Adam Cooney says Geelong \u201chas to be\u201d the AFL premiership favourite after the Cats\u2019 statement win over Sydney at GMHBA Stadium.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Geelong Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-05-28T04:45:02+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-05-28T04:46:03+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2026\/05\/FeatureImage.jpg?_t=1779943563\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"630\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Staff Writer\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Staff Writer\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/sport\\\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/sport\\\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Staff Writer\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/65a93d2010f8b8ca5cd82b3cb117506a\"},\"headline\":\"Cooney declares Cats flag favourites\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-28T04:45:02+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-05-28T04:46:03+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/sport\\\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":585,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/sport\\\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/21\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/FeatureImage.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Sport\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/sport\\\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/sport\\\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/sport\\\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\\\/\",\"name\":\"Cooney declares Cats flag favourites - Geelong Times\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/sport\\\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/sport\\\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/21\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/FeatureImage.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-28T04:45:02+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-05-28T04:46:03+00:00\",\"description\":\"Adam Cooney says Geelong \u201chas to be\u201d the AFL premiership favourite after the Cats\u2019 statement win over Sydney at GMHBA Stadium.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/sport\\\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/sport\\\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/sport\\\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/21\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/FeatureImage.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/21\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/FeatureImage.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":630,\"caption\":\"Geelong captain Patrick Dangerfield leads the Cats from the field after their 27-point win over Sydney at GMHBA Stadium. Photo: AAP Image\\\/James Ross\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/sport\\\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Cooney declares Cats flag favourites\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/\",\"name\":\"Geelong Times\",\"description\":\"Free local news\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Geelong Times\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/21\\\/2020\\\/09\\\/times_logo_1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/21\\\/2020\\\/09\\\/times_logo_1.png\",\"width\":248,\"height\":37,\"caption\":\"Geelong Times\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/65a93d2010f8b8ca5cd82b3cb117506a\",\"name\":\"Staff Writer\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f8141369e4f36c1f36501cdd7a0b2ce97575be91418e5a4f5e160bd32c4a99d5?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f8141369e4f36c1f36501cdd7a0b2ce97575be91418e5a4f5e160bd32c4a99d5?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f8141369e4f36c1f36501cdd7a0b2ce97575be91418e5a4f5e160bd32c4a99d5?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Staff Writer\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/author\\\/staffwriter\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Cooney declares Cats flag favourites - Geelong Times","description":"Adam Cooney says Geelong \u201chas to be\u201d the AFL premiership favourite after the Cats\u2019 statement win over Sydney at GMHBA Stadium.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Cooney declares Cats flag favourites - Geelong Times","og_description":"Adam Cooney says Geelong \u201chas to be\u201d the AFL premiership favourite after the Cats\u2019 statement win over Sydney at GMHBA Stadium.","og_url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/","og_site_name":"Geelong Times","article_published_time":"2026-05-28T04:45:02+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-05-28T04:46:03+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":630,"url":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2026\/05\/FeatureImage.jpg?_t=1779943563","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Staff Writer","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Staff Writer","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/"},"author":{"name":"Staff Writer","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/#\/schema\/person\/65a93d2010f8b8ca5cd82b3cb117506a"},"headline":"Cooney declares Cats flag favourites","datePublished":"2026-05-28T04:45:02+00:00","dateModified":"2026-05-28T04:46:03+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/"},"wordCount":585,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2026\/05\/FeatureImage.jpg","articleSection":["Sport"],"inLanguage":"en-AU","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/","url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/","name":"Cooney declares Cats flag favourites - Geelong Times","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2026\/05\/FeatureImage.jpg","datePublished":"2026-05-28T04:45:02+00:00","dateModified":"2026-05-28T04:46:03+00:00","description":"Adam Cooney says Geelong \u201chas to be\u201d the AFL premiership favourite after the Cats\u2019 statement win over Sydney at GMHBA Stadium.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-AU","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2026\/05\/FeatureImage.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2026\/05\/FeatureImage.jpg","width":1200,"height":630,"caption":"Geelong captain Patrick Dangerfield leads the Cats from the field after their 27-point win over Sydney at GMHBA Stadium. Photo: AAP Image\/James Ross"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/sport\/cooney-declares-cats-flag-favourites\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Cooney declares Cats flag favourites"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/#website","url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/","name":"Geelong Times","description":"Free local news","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-AU"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/#organization","name":"Geelong Times","url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2020\/09\/times_logo_1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2020\/09\/times_logo_1.png","width":248,"height":37,"caption":"Geelong Times"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/#\/schema\/person\/65a93d2010f8b8ca5cd82b3cb117506a","name":"Staff Writer","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f8141369e4f36c1f36501cdd7a0b2ce97575be91418e5a4f5e160bd32c4a99d5?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f8141369e4f36c1f36501cdd7a0b2ce97575be91418e5a4f5e160bd32c4a99d5?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f8141369e4f36c1f36501cdd7a0b2ce97575be91418e5a4f5e160bd32c4a99d5?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Staff Writer"},"url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/author\/staffwriter\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/131803","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/254"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=131803"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/131803\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/131807"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=131803"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=131803"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=131803"},{"taxonomy":"post_folder","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_folder?post=131803"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}