David King believes Geelong are in real trouble with Saturday’s 74-81 loss to GWS reducing them to a 5-6 record after 11 rounds.
Coming off last year’s premiership, the Cats have failed to back up their success with one five-game win streak sandwiched by a three-game losing streak from Round 1 to 3 and now Round 9 to 11.
While injuries are partly to blame for Geelong’s apparent downfall with the likes of Patrick Dangerfield (hamstring), Mitch Duncan (hamstring), Max Holmes (knee) and Cam Guthrie (tor) sidelined, King doesn’t expect the side to return to form immediately after they come back to play.
With the side set to struggle for continuity for much of the season King expects the year to fall by the wayside at the Cattery.
“I think they're in real trouble,” King said on SEN Whateley.
“They're going to struggle to get some significant players playing together for a run of games and get that cohesion back and find form.
“The names will come back in, but you don't come back in and play it 100 per cent.
“You have to build again personally to then build again as a collective.
“I just think this is just going to be one of those years and there's no problems, no one's upset with them. “You’ve just got to say, ‘Hey, thanks for last year, but we've just hit the wall’.
“It just does show you that it doesn't have to go wrong everywhere, you just have to be off a little bit.
“Injuries have played their part and I think that they probably get the best of other teams now.
“Losing a game at home for them is significant to a Giants team who no one's really talking about.”
With several key players out injured, King believes the Cats are having teething problems as several youngsters have been plugged into the team without any prior senior experience.
“We talk a lot about having the experienced campaigners just to walk you around the park and to set up at stoppage and to organise and just make the right decisions at the right time,” King explained.
“They gave up goals through inexperience, Mitch Knevitt tried to step back but through a hole in a dangerous part of the ground that cost them a goal at a bad time.
“Little things like that I think most teams have had to go through while Geelong haven't when they have been a really stable, really experienced club for a long period of time.
“They really haven't had the blood a lot of young kids and now they're having to so they're feeling the pain of what the comp has probably had to do (blooding kids) against them.”
Geelong will be desperate to turn their form around when they face the 7-4 Bulldogs at Marvel Stadium on Saturday night.