Premiership captains Nick Maxwell and Tony Shaw back Pies’ same 22 to face West Coast in AFL GF
FORGET the Eagles’ tall forwards. Collingwood’s most recent premiership captains are backing in the team that destroyed Richmond, while singing the praises of the selfless Scott Pendlebury.
NICK Maxwell and Tony Shaw are backing the same 22 that beat Richmond to drive Collingwood past West Coast to a 16th VFL/AFL premiership.
The Magpies today trained in front of an estimated 5000 fans at the Holden Centre, with Jeremy Howe the only man missing from the team that shocked the Tigers.
The defender injured an ankle in the preliminary final win and wasn’t expected to train, but all eyes will be on the club’s open training session on Thursday as fans hope to allay fears he could miss.
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Awaiting Collingwood is an Eagles attack featuring twin towers Josh Kennedy and Jack Darling, a combination some think might stretch the Pies’ back half.
But Maxwell, the last man to lead the club to premiership glory, thinks his club doesn’t need to change a winning formula.
“The guys who did it last week and have done it the last couple of weeks, I tend to back those guys in to do it again,” Maxwell said.
Shaw, who will present the cup to coach Nathan Buckley and Scott Pendlebury should the Pies prevail, also backed the team that got the team to the biggest game of the year.
“You’ve got to have faith,” Shaw said.
“It’s cruel, everybody misses out ... there’s hardluck stories all the time.
“You’ve got to make hard decisions. I don’t think there’ll be many hard decisions other than Howey coming up (from his ankle injury) and hopefully he’s going to be all right.
“I think they can get it done with what they’ve got at the moment.”
Acknowledging the Eagles would provide “hard opposition”, Shaw oozed confidence in Buckley’s team who he said displayed incredible pressure in qualifying for Saturday.
“What Collingwood did to Richmond, it was like they had changed jumpers,” Shaw said.
“They’ve been a great side Richmond ... but to see how it happened, it was pretty awesome.
“Gee you could only get a lot of confidence out of it. They played fantastic footy, and the thing was no-one was a passenger. You get 22 blokes doing what they can and playing their role, you achieve a hell of a lot.”
MEANWHILE, Collingwood captain Scott Pendlebury’s willingness to sacrifice his own game for the sake of his team is a key reason behind the club’s grand final rise, according to Maxwell.
Pendlebury has this season spent less time in the middle in 2018, as a result winning less of the ball himself and shifting greater responsibility to other members of Nathan Buckley’s midfield.
And Maxwell says the skipper’s selflessness has added a new layer to his leadership.
“I think probably the biggest thing was Scott is he always had to be the man because he was obviously our best midfielder, he and Swanny for all those years,” Maxwell said.
“They’d just go out there and they’d be the ones who’d dominate.
“Scott’s been really active this year to actually push other guys forward and (getting them to) take more of a role in certain circumstances.
“We’ve seen him do a job on Patty Cripps a couple of times this year and there’s other guys he’s played on to sacrifice his game
“I think as a leader that’s been part of his growth ... he’s got a bit older, he’s got kids now, so I think from Scotty’s perspective, what he’s been able to do this year’s outstanding.”
Since his retirement in 2014, Maxwell worked with the GWS Giants and NRL powerhouse Melbourne Storm before returning to Collingwood at the end of last year in a newly-created role of leadership and culture manager.
And the man who lifted the premiership cup in 2010 says he’s noticed a change in the Pendlebury he knew as a teammate to the man who on Saturday has the chance to join him as a premiership captain.
“I think he gets more satisfaction right now than what he would have got out of the last few years when he’s probably had more football (himself) and his stats would look better,” Maxwell said.
“But his importance to the team (in those years) hasn’t been anywhere near as big as what it has been this year.
“I think it happens with all players and all leaders. I can guarantee that my first year as captain, I was different five years later ... because you learn different things and pick them up along the way.
“Ultimately you’re only a great leader if you can actually make other people around you better, and I think what Scott has really done this year.”
Originally published as Premiership captains Nick Maxwell and Tony Shaw back Pies’ same 22 to face West Coast in AFL GF