Sacked podcast: Former Saints coach Scott Watters concedes he might have cost Collingwood 2011 grand final

As Tom Hawkins took control in the 2011 grand final, Collingwood’s coaches box waited. And Scott Watters still rues not acting more quickly as the Cats spearhead proved the difference.

Former Collingwood defensive coach Scott Watters admits he should have made the positional switch to shut down Tom Hawkins earlier after he caught fire in the key match-up of the 2011 Grand Final.

Watters was part of the Collingwood coaching set-up in those dramatic years that involved the drawn Grand Final, the loss to Geelong and the succession plan between Nathan Buckley and Mick Malthouse.

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Geelong key position star Hawkins turned the 2011 Grand Final as an injured Ben Reid failed to quell his marking power with Pies defender Chris Tarrant used in other match-ups.

Collingwood coach Mick Malthouse said this month he still had regrets about that contest and the lead-in to the game.

Watters told the Herald Sun’s SACKED podcast it was one of his big regrets in the coaches box that Tarrant didn’t get the job earlier when it was obvious Reid was in no shape to stop the white-hot Hawkins.

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“It was a really tough call. We sort of gambled a little bit with Reidy and he had been such a terrific player, maybe we kept him a little too long in reality and it is probably one that I do take some responsibility for in the box as well, that we should have pushed it harder,” he said.

“Chris Tarrant we played in a number of different roles that year. Hindsight is always a great thing, and you don't get all of them right. If you had your time again 10 minutes earlier that change gets made.”

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Tom Hawkins climbs over Ben Reid to mark during the 2011 grand final.

He says the way the Collingwood players responded from the 2010 Grand Final draw was amazing under Malthouse’s riding instructions.

Watters says Heath Shaw’s stunning goalmouth smother on Nick Riewoldt early in the replay set the scene in an eventual easy win, labelling it a “lightning bolt” that changed the momentum of the clash.

“Typical Heath Shaw, just precocious, to believe that he could get there, and when he got there, the ripple effect of that through every single person, player and coach on the ground, that's what great players do, that just was a bolt of lightning on that day.”

“When you think about defining moments, I have been involved with footy since I was six, and if I am wrap up my top two or three moments in football that is right in there. Heath and I still keep in contact. I am always going to his games and watching, and if I see something I will have a chat with him.”

Former Collingwood assistant Scott Watters chats with Ben Reid at Collingwood training.

Watters revealed that he called up Eddie McGuire and ripped through him after the Pies president attempted to poach Nick Riewoldt, but admired his audacity and strong leadership for Collingwood.

“I don’t think (Nick was going to leave). I remember speaking to Eddie because obviously I had come from two years at Collingwood and I really respect Eddie and I had a pretty good conversation I think the week after, which was pretty blunt.

“He was within his rights to do that, 100 per cent. But I was also in my rights to tell him to go and get stuffed.

“I think Eddie is an example of a great president that provides really strong direction whether you love him or hate him, and that was one of the great parts about being involved in Collingwood for two years.”