AFL Round 11: Collingwood defeats North Melbourne: How Jordan De Goey has taken his game to a new level
Jordan De Goey’s career was at a crossroads a year ago after his infamous Bali trip. But the star Pie has repaid Craig McRae’s faith as he elevates himself to a new level.
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Jordan De Goey and Brayden Maynard would head to the local footy oval in the off-season sensing an opportunity.
While the rest of the footy world had their doubts about the Magpies, two of their biggest stars were determined to go deep in 2023.
But over their break late last year, they knew they had to do the miles rather than the margaritas.
Perhaps there was a time when De Goey, in particular, would let loose in the summer months.
But not this time.
On Sunday, as Collingwood kept its place on top of the ladder with a one-sided win over North Melbourne, De Goey elevated himself to a new level as he powered the 35-point win with another three-vote performance.
After 11 rounds, the man who signed a bumper new contract to stay at Collingwood is the only player in the competition to average 25 disposals and one goal a game.
De Goey broke through the stoppages like a wrecking ball on Sunday and is surely headed for his first All-Australian jumper and will challenge Nick Daicos and Darcy Moore for the Magpies’ best and fairest, if not the Brownlow Medal.
De Goey is now seventh-favourite ($15) to win the most coveted individual prize in the game half way through a career-best season.
And when Daicos cops the opposition attention, De Goey strikes.
The superstar ballwinner confronted some much-publicised personal issues mid-last year after a troubled trip to Bali, but has clearly won back the trust of his football club approaching this year’s mid-season bye.
One of his best mates, Maynard, was ecstatic for De Goey, knowing the hurdles he has jumped to re-ignite a career which was at a crossroad last year when he took time away to gather himself.
But almost one year on, De Goey is delivering massively for the Magpies, repaying Craig McRae’s faith as one of the most impactful players in the league.
And personally he’s in a great place.
Maynard says it all traces back to those sweaty sessions at the local footy ground in the off-season when footy, not froffies, was the main priority.
They knew, after a tough preliminary final loss to Sydney Swans, they had a golden chance to clinch their first flag this year, and while no one is getting ahead of themselves, it’s so far, so good.
“I’m absolutely rapt for him. The work that he put in over the off-season. It was elite,” Maynard said.
“Probably some of the last few off-seasons he has had probably weren’t his best.
“But I knuckled down. He knuckled down.
“We all knuckled down.
“And the good sessions we did were awesome.
“We would just catch up at the local footy ground and get to work.
“It’s obviously showing because we went into the preseason fit and firing and we think we are one of the fittest teams in the competition.”
De Goey racked up 35 touches and one goal against the Roos, but could have had three or four majors as Collingwood notched their 10th win from 11 games.
His running goal from long-range in the third term was a signature show of power. Geelong champion Steve Johnson, calling for Triple M, said it also “took a high level of skill” to quick it quickly on the turn streaming inside 50m.
And the massive punt the club took at the trade table last year off-loading star ruckman Brodie Grundy has had the desired affect.
The Magpies, according to Champion Data, are the No. 1 ranked team for scores from clearances this season.
It means the ball they win out of the middle they convert into scores. It is all more efficient, the midfield setup.
And after this weekend’s clash against West Coast they’ll meet Grundy in the King’s Birthday clash at the MCG.
Maynard said the Magpies are hungrier than ever to make it count this year.
“I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do over the next few months,” he said.
“Our game obviously stands up against the best.
“We are all on the same page and we know what we are all doing.
“We have a lot of mids, we can do a lot of things and we are team first.
“So if Nick is getting tagged we know what we have to do and we are all over it.
“And we just fight like hell until the final siren.”
The win over North Melbourne was relatively straight-forward despite the efforts of young midfielder Will Phillips who played the best game of his career as the Roos won the last term six goals to three.
But the Magpies had got the job done by then, and took the foot off the throttle.
North wasn’t at the Magpies’ level.
“Credit to our boys,” Maynard said.
“It was foot on the throat in the second and third quarters, we came out firing and it put us in good stead.
“I’m stoked the way we are going. It is very early days.
“But throughout the week we get to work. We work bloody hard in the gym.
“Setting PB’s (personal bests), getting after it.
“We set very high standards. It’s very early days but good to see we are playing good football.
‘He was on fire early’: McRae laments Pies’ Sidebottom loss
— Ed Bourke
Magpies coach Craig McRae says his side is unlikely to regain Steele Sidebottom until after its round 14 bye following a suspected medial ligament sprain on Sunday.
Sidebottom started impressively in his 300th game but was subbed out midway through the first term after hurting his right knee following a heavy tackle he laid on Cam Zurhaar.
McRae does not think the injury is too serious, but says the veteran wingman will likely miss about a month, including a blockbuster King’s Birthday clash against Melbourne.
“It looks like he’ll miss a few weeks, I’m not sure exactly, but three to four potentially … might be back after the bye,” McRae said.
“It’s a shame – we sort of built the whole day up around what it means for him and all of us, and he started well too, he was on fire early.
“As guys came to the bench they were saying ‘where’s Steele?’. Potentially (it affected us), but again if you look at aspects of the game I thought we just continued to play the way we wanted to play.”
McRae said the Kangaroos presented his midfield with one of its most difficult tasks of the season, praising the combination of Todd Goldstein and Hugh Greenwood at stoppages, but added Jordan De Goey’s 35-disposal performance stood out from his rivals.
“I thought I’d keep quiet on Jordy because he’s having a ripping season … today was out of the box,” he said.
“I think the difference with Jordy (from) maybe two, three years ago is his work ethic and his ability now to cover ground.
“You watch how hard he’s running, you watch him get to contests and defensively as well, he’s buying right into that, and that was a pretty special game.”
He thought the added midfield responsibility given to De Goey was bringing out his rich vein of form this season.
“I think there’s a natural progression in his game, he’s now 26 and maturing, (completing) pre-seasons,” he said.
“We’ve given him more responsibility, he was a hybrid forward-mid, now he’s pretty much just a midfielder for most of it.”
McRae said he was not alarmed at a leaky final quarter in which the Kangaroos quickly put on six goals, insisting the Magpies are nowhere near the completed product.
“We’re in a growth phase if you like … this is not the end of the year, this is not finals time. We’re finding out a little more about our group and what we need to work on,” he said.
He said he saw an opportunity to move Nick Daicos through the middle of the ground against inexperienced Roos opponents, and was able to trial several players on the wing in Sidebottom’s absence.
MILESTONE MAN’S INJURY NOT ENOUGH TO CONTAIN RAMPAGING PIES
The Magpies were too quick and too clean as they cruised to a 35-point win over North Melbourne, but their seventh win on the trot was marred by a knee injury to milestone man Steele Sidebottom.
With a sea of family and friends in the crowd for his 300th game, Sidebottom hobbled off with a suspected medial ligament sprain midway through the opening term and was subbed out of the game.
The Kangaroos brought more of last week’s competitiveness under caretaker coach Brett Ratten and booted six final quarter goals, but lost the game through two major lapses where the competition leaders piled on four quick majors in the opening term and during time-on in the third.
Hugh Greenwood and Will Phillips were strong at the coalface as the Roos won the clearance battle, but they did not have the running power to match the Magpies brigade led by Jordan De Goey and Nick Daicos, who hit targets and changed angles with ease to stretch North’s defence.
Forward duo Nick Larkey and Cam Zurhaar were dynamic for the Roos and kicked four between them in the final term, only receiving the supply they needed after the heat was out of the game.
MELANCHOLY MILESTONE
Steele Sidebottom made a red hot start to his 300th game but within 15 minutes was down in the rooms and ruled out of the game with a medial ligament injury to his right knee.
The classy wingman was met with a rousing cheer for each of his four kicks, which were the most of any player on the ground before he was forced from the field with the injury stemming from contact after a big tackle he laid on Cam Zurhaar.
The Magpies will have a tough time replacing Sidebottom while he is sidelined, with fellow aerobic beast Pat Lipinski unlikely to be fit until after their round 14 bye.
PHILLIPS ARRIVES
Former No. 3 pick Will Phillips announced himself in his 23rd game, racking up 29 touches as the Kangaroos midfield had the better of the Magpies around the stoppages.
He was just one shy of his career-high 19 disposals at halftime, and impressed with his clean hands and acceleration out of stoppages in a full-time midfield role.
The Roos midfield was comprehensively beaten in transition by the Magpies, but the significant clearance win over the premiership favourites suggests Phillips has cemented his place in the midfield mix.
DEPRECIATING ROO
Ben McKay’s patchy form this season continued on Sunday, with the restricted free agent soundly beaten in the air defensively and only managing a single handball to halftime.
He failed to bring a ball to ground in a one-on-one with the significantly undersized Will Hoskin-Elliott, who then converted his set shot, before moments later leaking another goal after being easily worked under a ball by Brody Mihocek.
The 25-year-old’s performances are undermining his market value and have possibly driven away rival bidders, but the immediate issue for the Kangaroos is there are no real alternatives to challenge him for his key defensive post.
MAGPIES 4.3, 7.5, 13.8, 16.9 (105)
KANGAROOS 0.3, 2.8, 4.9, 10.10 (70)
BOURKE’S BESTMagpies: De Goey, N Daicos, J Daicos, Pendlebury, Mitchell, Mihocek. Kangaroos: Larkey, Greenwood, Phillips, Logue, Zurhaar, Scott.
GOALS Magpies: Mihocek 3, J Daicos 3, Ginnivan 2, Cox 2, Hoskin-Elliott 2, N Daicos, De Goey, Adams, Johnson. Kangaroos: Larkey 5, Stephenson 2, Howe, Zurhaar, Scott.
UMPIRES Broadbent, Deboy, Rebeschini, Strybos
INJURIES Magpies: Sidebottom (knee). Kangaroos: none.
CROWD 39,467 at Marvel Stadium
BOURKE’S VOTES
3. J. De Goey (Coll)
2. N. Daicos (Coll)
1. N. Larkey (NM)
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