By Andrew Wu
Thrill kings Collingwood pulled off their trademark highwire act to advance to the grand final after surviving an almighty challenge from Greater Western Sydney in an epic preliminary final.
But the win may have come at a considerable cost with important forward Daniel McStay set to be this year’s heartbreak kid after injuring his knee in the Magpies’ one-point victory at the MCG on Friday night.
Josh Daicos and Jamie Elliott of the Magpies celebrate a goal.Credit: AFL Photos
As he was at this stage of the season against Richmond in 2018, Mason Cox was the hero for the Pies, kicking what proved to be the winning goal early in the last quarter before the hosts held on for dear life to prevail in front of a raucous partisan crowd of 97,665.
The result, which reverses a four-point Giants win four years ago, keeps alive the promoter’s dream of a Collingwood-Carlton grand final, though the Blues must defy the odds by toppling Brisbane at their Gabba fortress on Saturday.
Giants spearhead Jesse Hogan held his nerve to narrow the margin to just one point with about six and a half minutes left, but the men in orange could not muster a final score for the massive upset.
Toby Greene came tantalisingly close but his checkside shot from the boundary was marked on the line by Steele Sidebottom, who needed to be clean to avoid conceding a levelling behind.
The game was alive until the final few seconds when Will Hoskin-Elliott marked on half-forward, allowing the Pies to run down the clock. Collingwood have another shot at a 16th premiership next week, which would bring them level with Carlton and Essendon.
McStay suffered a suspected medial collateral ligament injury after Jack Buckley fell across his right knee late in the third term, and was subbed out at the final change. The Magpies have not given up on McStay but the odds are against him.
“I’m not great with the terminology, I’m not sure if it’s an MCL,” Craig McRae said. “I don’t want to put a definite decision on it but, at this stage, I think he might be unlucky to miss out. We will wait and see.
“Until you really know, you just put your arms around him and show love and support as best you can. That will play out pretty quickly, I would have thought.”
McStay had been an important contributor, booting two goals on star defender Sam Taylor in a low-scoring game.
“He had moments, he really did,” McRae said. “Early, he was significant, jumping and marking the ball. You can see why we get him, why he’s important to us. We need someone who can mark it forward of centre. And if he doesn’t quite get up well he’ll be missed.”
Vice-captain Taylor Adams is another injury concern for the Pies, as he races the clock to recover from a minor hamstring strain sustained last week at training.
“That’s going to be a watch the clock,” McRae said. “I think every second is going to be needed. We’ll push it to the line and see what we get.”
This was a match the Giants should have put away in the third quarter, but you cannot shake off McRae’s unrelenting Pies, who go one better this year after losing by a point in the preliminary finals 12 months ago to Sydney.
The masters at coming from behind, the Pies had to go into defensive mode - as they did a fortnight earlier against Melbourne - and they did it.
They had the ball hemmed in their forward half with repeat stoppages, not allowing the Orange Tsunami to surge late.
“When it’s a one-point game, it can go either way,” Giants coach Adam Kingsley said. “You look at every little entry, every little instance where you’re defending, could we have done better? Could we have saved a goal, saved a point? Could we have saved territory?
“And I’m sure our boys will replay all their moments in their heads for a long, long period of time. But that’s the nature of prelim finals. It’s the nature of losing by a point.”
Jordan De Goey was the best afield with 34 disposals and a career-high 13 clearances, while Tom Green was excellent for his side, with 31 touches in a performance that reaffirmed his status as a future star.
The week off, on top of the pre-finals bye, was not an issue for the Pies, who made a red-hot start. Clean with the ball, and fierce in their pressure when they did not, the Pies stifled the Giants, who were jittery.
The Pies had two goals on the scoreboard within six minutes, plus several early wins on the whiteboard. Steele Sidebottom was on top of Josh Kelly, likewise De Goey on Callan Ward, though the biggest bonus for McRae was McStay’s blows on Taylor.
McStay should have kicked two but the Giants were also wasteful, not helped by an advantage call that was disadvantageous, and a 50-metre penalty their way that denied them a shot at goal from 20 metres out.
Considering how well they played, an 11-point lead was not worthy of the Pies’ dominance.
When Greene belatedly scored the Giants’ first, six minutes into the second term after frittering gilt-edged chances, they surged. Green was dominant, his bulldozing in close reminiscent of Patrick Cripps at his best.
The Pies’ could not sustain their early intensity. The play which led to Jake Riccardi’s goal summed up their breakdown in offence and defence.
Streaming through the centre, Isaac Quaynor opted for for territory with a kick to a two on one inside 50, burning a free Pat Lipinski.
From the turnover, the Giants whisked the ball to the other end where Stephen Coniglio, showing the composure Quaynor lacked, spotted Riccardi, one of two unmanned Giants in the goal square.
The Magpies were on the rack when Greene sharked a hit out from Cox and snapped truly from a boundary throw-in.
Things were not working for them. Promising plays amounted to nothing, breaking down at half-forward. The Magpies’ effort could not be questioned. Perhaps they were trying too hard.
Goalless since the six-minute mark of the first term, the Magpies broke their drought in most uncultured fashion, a mongrel punt forward from Darcy Moore which led to a goal to Bobby Hill.
Mistakes counted for plenty. Callum Brown’s fumble on the wing cost his team a deep entry inside 50 and a goal at the other end. He atoned moments later, curling a left-foot snap after a brave contest from Jesse Hogan.
Cheeky Hill
Bobby Hill, who left the Giants in acrimony, got under the skin of his former teammates with a well-timed cheeky bump on Hogan, who had been off-balance. Lachie Whitfield did not take kind to the act, which was well within the rules, bowling over Hill. It cost the Giants a free kick.
Hindrance More Than Help
Fifty-metre penalties should assist the receiving side but in the Giants’ case it hindered more than helped. Lachie Keeffe had marked the ball 20 metres out but the ball was taken back to Callum Brown for a more difficult shot about from 45 metres. He missed. The Giants were also given an advantage which resulted in a snapshot from the boundary instead of a set shot from further out but less acute angle.
COLLINGWOOD 2.2 2.6 7.7 8.10 (58)
GWS GIANTS 0.3 4.4 6.9 8.9 (57)
GOALS Collingwood: McStay 2, Hill, Mihocek, Elliott, Cox, McCreery, Crisp
GWS Giants: Greene 2, Hogan, Lloyd, Riccardi, Green, Cumming, Brown
UMPIRES - Rosebury, Stephens, Gavine, Meredith
CROWD 97,665 at the MCG