Geelong coach Chris Scott is not short of midfielders who believe they can beat Gary Ablett head-to-head.

Gold Coast captain Ablett has his first meeting with his former AFL club in what will be the Suns' first home match at Metricon Stadium on Saturday night.

The unbeaten Cats have already shown this season they can cover the Brownlow medallist's departure much better than expected.

Now Scott says there are Cats lining up to take him on.

"We've got a really competitive group and we've got a few players in particular within our group that would like the opportunity to play on him and beat him," Scott told reporters on Tuesday.

"But that's easier said than done."

Scott said several Geelong players had made it clear they wanted the job.

"In their own special way, a few of them have."

Ablett has speculated that the Cats are unlikely to tag him but Scott said they would certainly not let him run free.

"Good try. When there are opposition players the quality of Gary, we may not tag them necessarily but we'll certainly pay him a lot of respect," the coach said.

He said Ablett was likely to have a series of opponents.

But the attention paid to the Suns' superstar would be due to his quality, not as any payback for leaving Geelong.

Scott said it was important for both clubs to maintain a professional approach and not treat the match as a personal battle.

He said everyone at Skilled Stadium still held enormous respect for Ablett as a former champion of the club.

Cats skipper Cameron Ling and youngster Daniel Menzel are expected to return from injury, while key forward Cameron Mooney and defender Tom Lonergan are also rated a good chance.

But the Cats are weighing up whether to rest veteran Brad Ottens, who has carried the ruck load almost singlehandedly so far this year.

That would mean Nathan Vardy, who made an unremarkable debut against Carlton last Friday night, would have significantly more responsibility in his second AFL match.

"He played like most second-year ruckman play their first game, he was a little bit nervous and didn't get much of an opportunity, but we're really confident he'll be better this week," Scott said.

Despite the Cats' impressive form so far, Scott said they needed to start better, having trailed at the first change in four of their eight matches.

"We've got a lot of things we need to improve on and that's right up the top."

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