Collingwood smash Demons to leap into top four
While the Demons came to life in the last term they never seriously threatened to pull off what would have been a miracle at the MCG. Collingwood meanwhile are evoking plenty of 2018-style grit.
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Snow there wasn’t, but Melbourne’s washed-out season has endured another sad chapter at the MCG against Collingwood.
The Demons could manage only three goals in three quarters and while they came to life in the last term, never seriously threatened to pull off what would have been a miracle.
The Pies were no oil painting either — starting and finishing poorly — but ultimately forced themselves back inside the top four.
While Collingwood’s ability to hang tough in the face of an injury crisis at the pointy end of the ladder is reminiscent of last year, there’s nothing about these Demons that evokes memories of 2018.
FT: COLLINGWOOD 10.10 (70) DEFEATS MELBOURNE 7.11 (53).
With only pride to salvage from a disappointing season, a meeting with a traditional rival couldn’t stir it from them.
In dry, but bitterly cold and windy conditions, it took 25 minutes, 195 disposals and eight behinds before a goal was kicked in this scrappy game by Harrison Petty.
The Demons actually kicked the first two and held Collingwood goalless in a first quarter for the first time since 1988.
But when the excellent Scott Pendlebury kicked the Pies’ first at the eight-minute mark of the second term, another six unanswered goals followed and the Dees never threatened again.
And in keeping with their and Steven May’s season, the defender appeared to strain his hamstring in the last quarter of his first game back.
GRUNDY V GAWN
In an era of precious few direct match-ups, this one is always compelling viewing.
Both won All-Australian honours last year, but Gawn beat Grundy for the starting berth and the Demon got the better of the Pie when they met back in Round 12.
But in keeping with this game, their latest meeting wasn’t exactly a heavyweight bout for the ages.
Gawn and Grundy effectively cancelled each other out. Grundy maybe shaded it, but was nothing special by his lofty standards.
ANGUS’ HEADWEAR
As usual, Angus Brayshaw warmed up with the helmet on.
Then he started the game without it, even turning away the club doctor who ran it out to him in the first quarter.
It appeared as though Brayshaw was trying to find a circuit breaker in the search for form.
But nope, 10 minutes later he had the helmet back on again.
Odd, but then again, it has been an odd season for the Demons.
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FORWARD AND BACK
Will Hoskin-Elliott returned to the forward line, Jaidyn Hunt went back to defence and Jordan Roughead swapped ends to play as a key forward.
The magnets got a work out in both coaches boxes, with Roughead also spending time in the ruck to relieve Brodie Grundy with Mason Cox absent.
Max Gawn could see that coming, literally. The Demon big man spied Roughead putting on the shin pads during the warm up — a dead give away.
BIG BEN
He may barrack for Essendon, but Ben Simmons goes a fair way back with former junior footy and basketball teammate Christian Petracca.
The NBA star was at the MCG to support his mate and fellow No.1 draft pick Petracca, who presented Simmons with a Melbourne jumper before the game.
Simmons cheered the Dees onto the ground from the boundary line, before watching his latest game from a corporate box.
That’s where his entourage needed help with the local delicacy — a meat pie.
Simmons’ mate Michael Fonoti was determined to eat his with a fork.
“Put the fork down … what are you doing?” Simmons asked in an Instagram video.
BUCKS DELIGHTS AS EXPERIMENT PAYS OFF
Collingwood will persist with the experiment of playing Jordan Roughead forward, with coach Nathan Buckley “encouraged enough” with his new-look attack against Melbourne.
In the absence of fellow big man Mason Cox, who will miss the rest of the season with an eye injury, Roughead started forward against the Demons having spent the rest of the year in defence.
The former Western Bulldogs backman finished with only 11 disposals and three marks, but Buckley said he wanted a second target alongside key forward Brody Mihocek and Roughead shaped as that player.
“I was encouraged enough by that with Roughy and we’ll use that as a learning tool and work out whether that’s the best mix,” Buckley said.
“We know that he’s going to be very good for us behind the ball if required. But we also think it’s very important to have a couple of tall targets for us in front to structure up our forward line.
“In a finals atmosphere in a tight game, you still need to have the ability to go long to contest. We’d like to think that we can hurt the opposition with our offence in a number of different ways but you need to be able to trust that you’ll get a contest down the line.”
Buckley said he felt his side played a “really efficient brand of footy for the first three quarters”, disappointed by only the final term when the Magpies were outscored four goals to one.
“We were very passive in the last quarter and that’s probably not a bad reminder, too, that you need to take the game on, remain aggressive, proactive,” he said.
Veteran Daniel Wells faces an uphill battle to feature in finals after failing to prove his fitness for a VFL return this week after being sidelined since Round 10 with a knee injury.
Collingwood has a bye in the VFL next weekend, meaning Wells would not be able to get a game under his belt until Round 23.
“We love the bloke and the contribution he’s been able to make to us,” Buckley said.
“If he gets up, he gets up. If he doesn’t, he doesn’t. To be in the position he is at the moment is remarkable, but there’s still a few hurdles for him to jump. I’d say it’s more unlikely than likely but that’s not taking it off the table because he’s still got to find out where he can get to in the next few weeks.”
SCOREBOARD
FT: COLLINGWOOD 10.10 (70)
d
MELBOURNE 7.11 (53)
GOALS
Demons: Gawn, Hunt, Brayshaw, McDonald, Petracca, Fritsch, Petty
Magpies: Mihocek 4, Pendlebury 2, Varcoe 2, Thomas, Crisp
SAM EDMUND’S BEST
Demons: Oliver, May, Fritsch, Petracca, Harmes, Viney, Brayshaw
Magpies: Pendlebury, Mihocek, Treloar, Sidebottom, Crisp, Howe, Maynard
SAM EDMUND’S VOTES
3 — Scott Pendlebury (Coll)
2 — Brodie Mihocek (Coll)
1 — Adam Treloar (Coll)
INJURIES
Demons: May (hamstring)
Magpies: Daicos (concussion)
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Harris, Gianfagna, McInerney
Official crowd: 31,903 at the MCG
Originally published as Collingwood smash Demons to leap into top four
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