American tradition set to flood AFL blockbuster as Geelong celebrate Patrick Dangerfield's 350th
Geelong will flood GMHBA Stadium in an American-style white-out as they celebrate Patrick Dangerfield's 350th AFL game on Friday night.
White t-shirts will be draped over every seat in the stadium ahead of the top-four clash with Brisbane, free for fans to wear and keep.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Geelong set for stadium white-out to celebrate Patrick Dangerfield's 350th.
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Fans wearing t-shirt handouts in club colours has become a customary tradition in the NBA, particularly in the playoffs, and American college football, where hosting teams strive to extract as much home-court (or ground) advantage as possible, making for a hostile environment for visitors.
With the NBA Finals between Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers in full swing over in the US, Geelong are following suit, according to 7NEWS Melbourne's Xander McGuire.
'Geelong is bringing one of American sport's most famous traditions to GMHBA Stadium,' McGuire said.
'Inspired by Penn State's famous white-out, Geelong's kitting out the Cattery with white, Geelong-themed t-shirts.
'All 40,000 seats will have a free tee on them, with the Cats hoping to ramp up their home-ground advantage with a college football-like cauldron.'
But they'll be without star young defender Sam De Koning, who has damaged his left shoulder.
De Koning will need surgery to repair an AC joint injury he suffered in their 95-point thumping of Essendon.
De Koning was substituted out of Saturday's game in the third quarter at the MCG after a ground ball contest with Bombers midfielder Will Setterfield.
The 24-year-old is expected to miss four to five weeks.
Geelong teammate Zach Guthrie is backing the depth in their defensive stocks as they look to extend to mark Dangerfield's milestone with a win against the third-placed Brisbane Lions (9-4-1).
The Cats (10-4) are second on the ladder and boast a five-game winning streak.
Star utility Mark Blicavs was deployed in De Koning's role against Essendon, while Guthrie has pointed to youngster Connor O'Sullivan as another option.
'Sam is a really important player for us. He's one that we really depend on every week to play on those taller types,' Guthrie said on Monday.
'He's been doing a really good job for us but we've got a number of guys who can roll through that position.'
Guthrie's brother Cam has suffered another setback in his return to AFL.
The older Guthrie, after having surgery on his left achilles in February, was forced to sit out of a VFL game last week with a calf complaint.
The 32-year-old onballer has not featured at AFL level this year and has played just ten games in the last two seasons.
Cam Guthrie gets a handball away during last season's VFL semi-final against the Southport Sharks. (Julian Smith/AAP PHOTOS)
But Zach Guthrie, 26, remains confident his brother's return is imminent.
'He ended up missing the VFL game on the weekend, just to hopefully try and get it right,' Guthrie said.
'I think the positive signs are that it's hopefully not too serious.
'Fingers crossed, I'd like to play some footy again with him soon.'
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