There's barely been a moment Geelong have shone this season without the phrase "Dangerwood" featuring prominently.

The combination of Patrick Dangerfield and Joel Selwood has been a smash hit, enough for both players to win All-Australian selection and for Dangerfield to have firmed to almost unbackable favouritism for the Brownlow Medal.

But as strange as it may sound, if you hear "Dangerwood" a lot after Friday night's preliminary final against Sydney, there's a fair chance the Cats will have lost the game.

As good as the star pair have been, Geelong need a lot more than just stellar performances from them if they are to win through to their first grand final in five years. And a key could well be two teammates who between them have played just 11 games for the Cats.

Sam Menegola didn't make his AFL debut until round 18 after missing the first half of 2016 with a knee injury. Scott Selwood has been kept to just four games for his second club by foot, ankle and hamstring injuries.

But both are pivotal to Geelong's chances of beating Sydney, and the Cats' most recent clash with the Swans underlines why.

The round 16 Friday night clash at Simonds Stadium saw both sides coming off losses, the Swans also dealing with co-captain Kieren Jack's family dramas. At a venue where Sydney had won just once in 11 attempts, it was they who led start to finish to win convincingly by 38 points. But it was the "how" which was just as significant.

Dangerfield threatened to blow the game away on his own early with an 18-disposal first quarter. But attended more closely by Sydney's Tom Mitchell thereafter, he had only 16 for the rest of the evening. Selwood, was serviceable, meanwhile, but no star. Which left the Cats pretty much empty-handed while the Swans boasted a full deck.

Jack, Luke Parker, Dan Hannebery and Mitchell were all among Sydney's best that evening, Josh Kennedy quieter but still serviceable with 24 disposals, a goal and a couple of assists.

The Cats simply didn't have enough midfield armoury to go around, Mitch Duncan useful, but Cam Guthrie and the tall but mobile Mark Blicavs far less conspicuous than usual. That not only let Jack, for one, off the hook, but made the relative subduing of Dangerfield after the first term a fatal blow.

While Geelong broke even numerically at the clearances, it was Sydney which made far greater use of them, the Cats returning their worst numbers for scores from stoppages for the season against a side which defends opposition takeaways better than any other.

Two months on, the Cats and their coach Chris Scott have lot more midfield options and versatility up their sleeve, and it's Menegola and the lower-profile Selwood driving that.

The big-bodied Western Australian Menegola has been a huge plus for the Cats since coming into the side in round 18, his returns over that period among the best in the competition.

Scott Selwood, meanwhile, in just four games has tagged Essendon's David Zaharakis and Richmond skipper Trent Cotchin out of the contest and was in the qualifying final able to at least neutralise Hawthorn midfield heartbeat Sam Mitchell to a degree. Sydney star Kennedy seems a likely target this week.

But Menegola's inside work also not only takes some more heat off Dangerfield and Joel Selwood, but enables the likes of Cam Guthrie to play a more positive role, which he did to great effect in the second half against the Hawks, and ditto Duncan.

In fact, throw in two more stronger midfield types who weren't part of that round 16 loss to Sydney in Josh Caddy and Josh Cowan, and the Cats won't be wanting for numbers at all in the contested clinches.

It's certainly a much more physical-looking midfield group than took on the Swans in that round 16 loss, one which will be able to better look after Sydney's much-vaunted midfield guns, but also, significantly, one which can also better generate its own midfield threats.

Most importantly of all, they are additions which enhance the prospect of "Dangerwood" being the cream on top and not the whole Geelong cake. And against the Swans particularly, that could make all the difference.