There are not too many things left on the much-talked-about ‘to do list’ of Lions coach Chris Fagan.

Having ticked off one by one most of the targets and objectives Fagan had set his playing group when he arrived at the club at the end of 2016, like beating at every  opposition club and winning at different venues, the Lions have a chance on Friday night to erase one of the last big ones.

They are still to win at the MCG under Fagan, having gone 0-6 in their all-too-infrequent visits to headquarters, and will be looking forward to Round 18-19 games this year against Richmond and Hawthorn for a chance to break that hoodoo.

But there is a more immediate mission this week as the Lions look forward to a very rare Friday night game in Melbourne.

It’s a big one. Something the Lions have not done in 18 years – beat Geelong at Geelong.

Not since Round 6 2003 in what was to become the third leg of the premiership hat-trick have the Lions triumphed at the Cattery.

The Lions won 13-14 (92) to 12-6 (78) after trailing by 10 points at halftime in a memorable game for current Cats coach Chris Scott and his long-trusted lieutenant Nigel Lappin, who are in their 11^th year together on the Geelong coaching staff.

Lappin, who joined the Cats in 2009 immediately after the end of his brilliant career, was playing his 200^th game in front of a large group of family and friends who had travelled 300km from his home town of Chiltern in north-east Victoria.

He was chaired from the ground at the final siren by skipper Michael Voss and his best mate Scott after a game-high 29 possessions and a goal that were rewarded with three Brownlow Medal votes.

Scott, the Cats senior coach since 2011, had been forced to the bench in the first term of the 2003 game with hamstring problems and played only 34 percent game time but returned to play a decisive cameo at full forward in the last quarter.

With 10 minutes left he won an intercept possession and found an unmarked Jonathan Brown at the edge of  the goalsquare for a goal to put the Lions 25 points up, and then, after two quick replies from the home side, he steered home a dribbler from deep in the picker for the clinching last major inside the last 100 second.

Lappin, a country boy at heart, was more than happy to post his 200th game in Geelong.

"It's as close as you to get to a country ground these days," he told Channel 9 after the match. "It was good to get a bit of the ball, but just getting the four points was what it's all about. We didn't play to our best, but to Geelong's credit they played really well."

It was a win dedicated to long-serving Board member Neville Blunt, who had died mid-week, and extended the Lions post-merger record against the Cats to 9-0, including 5-0 in Geelong. But it was the start of a long drought.

In 11 visits since the Lions have only once got within four goals – when Mark Harvey was caretaker coach for the third and final time and they lost a one-point thriller to the eventual preliminary finalists in 2013.

Seven times during the drought they have been beaten by 50 points or more.

In 133 games at what is now called GMHBA Stadium (formerly Kardinia Park) since the Lions’ 2003 win there Geelong have a 112-19 win/loss record, with two draws. And under Scott since 2011 they are 63-10 from 73 games.

Ex-Geelong player Lincoln McCarthy, 10-1 at what used to be his home ground, and Lachie Neale, 2-3 there during his Fremantle days, are the only current Lions to win there.

With the Lions having not played in Geelong since 2018 the hoodoo doesn’t cut as deeply as it might but it is still a huge motivation for a side looking to bounce back from a disappointing Round 1 Gabba loss to the Swans last Saturday night.

Ten members of the Round 1 squad of 26 have never played at Kardinia Park, including Grant Birchall and Joe Daniher. Also yet to visit the abnormally long ground are Zac Bailey, Keidean Coleman, Tom Fullarton, Jack Payne, Harry Sharp and Brandon Starcevich, plus emergencies Connor Ballenden and Ely Smith.

Daniel Rich (0-5), Dayne Zorko (0-4), Ryan Lester (0-4), Jarryd Lyons (0-4), Harris Andrews (0-3), Charlie Cameron (0-3) and Mitch Robinson (0-3) have the longest winless streak there.

Everyone else is 0-1 – Callum AhChee, Jarrod Berry, Eric Hipwood, Rhys Mathieson, Hugh McCluggage, Oscar McInerney and Round 1 emergency Marcus Adams.

In Fagan’s only coaching visit to Kardinia Park in Round 19 2018 the Lions, 16^th on the ladder but with three wins their last four games, welcomed back Andrews and Luke Hodge and were considered a real chance against the ninth-placed Cats, who were coming off an after-the-siren win over Melbourne. But after a tight first half the Cats prevailed by 42 points as Tom Hawkins kicked seven goals for the second week in a row.

Catch all the action tonight on Fox Footy, 7 Network, KAYO, and follow along via our Match Centre