The nagging pain of last year's AFL grand final loss is driving Geelong as they strive to realise their potential as an all-time great team.

While a barren club history and a near-perfect season give St Kilda all the motivation they need for Saturday's premiership decider at the MCG, the Cats crave redemption.

For all their excellence over the last three years, the Cats keep going back to the one that got away.

Hawthorn were brilliant this time last year, capitalising on Geelong's poor goalkicking to win the grand final by 26 points.

Asked on Friday what he drew on more for inspiration - that loss or the drought-breaking 2007 triumph - Cats coach Mark Thompson replied: "Probably the losing one.

"They're pretty recent memories, so you'd hope that when the players are going through a tough period of the game, that they should be able to find something from the hurt they felt last year.

"It's a very hurtful thing to occur in a person's life and it was quite recent."

This generations of Cats have been superb, breaking the club's 44-year premiership drought with their 2007 success, but one flag from three grand finals would be no dynasty.

Even though the Hawks did not make the top eight, there have been frequent reminders of their exploits this month.

For Cats captain Tom Harley, they have been like a twist of the dagger in the guts.

"Losing a grand final is absolutely heart-wrenching and tough to watch this year, when you saw the brown-and-gold ... throughout the whole advertising campaign, even for this game," Harley said.

"If you need that as motivation, we certainly have that.

"As players we've got to take that onus to do whatever it takes."

A St Kilda-Geelong grand final has been this season's destiny, especially since their epic round-14 blockbuster.

The two teams were unbeaten going into that match and the Saints won a pulsating clash by a kick.

The Saints only lost twice late in the season and were deserving minor premiers, while the Cats struggled for several weeks after that match.

But Geelong have regained form and key personnel, smashing Collingwood in their preliminary final to assume favouritism.

A second premiership in three years would confirm these Cats as one of the all-time great AFL teams.

A Saints win would be only the second premiership in the club's history and their first in 43 years.

"We've pursued excellence from our pre-season - every session, every game, and we'll be pursuing excellence again on the weekend and see where it takes us," Saints coach Ross Lyon said.

Memories of less pleasant times also motivate Lyon, who has transformed the Saints since becoming coach in 2007.

He played more than 100 games for Fitzroy from 1985-94 before a short stint with the Brisbane Bears, but feels he could have done more.

Lyon is determined that his players will have no such regrets.

"'Bomber' (Thompson) was a very good player, a premiership player, and what drives me in my coaching is that as a player, I probably took some shortcuts along the way and I probably ... wasn't in a great environment," Lyon said.

"As a coach, it makes you work really hard and provide a great environment for the players, give themselves the best opportunity.

"'Bomber' played in a really successful era (at Essendon) and I was at a club that was really battling for a fair period."

Forecasts of dismal weather for Saturday's game do not bother the two teams, with Lyon saying the players should be ready for anything.

"We'd like to think we've put a game plan together that can stand up in any dimension, any conditions, that's been our aim throughout the year and we felt we've delivered on that - but it's a really big challenge tomorrow," he said.

According to Centrebet, the Cats are tracking at $1.61 favourites and the Saints will pay $2.33.

Thanks mainly to the expected weather, Geelong onballer Jimmy Bartel has shortened from $11 to $7.50 in betting for the Norm Smith Medal as best afield.

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