Collingwood 2010 Draft Wrap

Collingwood 2010 Trade Period

Collingwood Retirements 2010

Once again, I would like to inform everyone of the new home of The Collingwood Blog.

www.thecollingwoodblog.com

That time has come, along with a different look.

I would like to point everyone who has either frequented this site during the time where my contribution was more consistent, or to those just happening across here for the time being, to the new home of The Collingwood Blog.

http://www.thecollingwoodblog.com/

This will be the last post at this address, although I will leave the site open for a fortnight or so for the benefit of those returning here.

I would like to thank all of those regular readers and contributors and hope that you will all find your way to the new and improved home of The Collingwood Blog.

I’m not going to go in depth on anything that transpired this year — not yet anyway.  2010 was a year where I regretfully was unable to maintain this site with regular updates like I had wished and as luck would have it, it was the most memorable year that the Collingwood faithful have had since 1990.

What I would like to say to all of you who may happen upon this blog and in particular to those who have been regular readers in the past when I kept this place up to scratch, is hang tight.  I have had thoughts and plans for this blog over the past six months – thoughts that have been impossible to ignore as I’ve been focusing on more pressing matters – and a plan has been hatched to re-launch over this off-season – hopefully in an even bigger way – and get a new, even trendier, blog happening in time for the 2011 season.

There will be more on this soon, but I assure you that the wheels are well and truly in motion.

Floreat Pica! The Pies are premiers in 2010!

Collingwood		West Coast
4 Dawes		3 LeCras
4 Jolly		1 Strijk
3 Didak		1 Kennedy
2 Lockyer		1 Ebert
2 Pendlebury		1 McKinley
2 Beams
2 Swan
1 Ball

The 10th Letter’s Best:	5. Darren Jolly
	4. Alan Didak
	3. Dane Swan
	2. Dayne Beams
	1. Chris Dawes

Saturday night saw the Magpies take on the witches hats from the west, a four quarter formality that resulted in an 83 point drubbing.  Big wins are always welcomed, but it is seriously difficult to read too much into the result given the incompetence of our opposition.  Regardless, we went into the match expected to win handsomely and did just that, with a fairly even team effort and a few standout performances.

Collingwood took control of the match from the opening bounce, effectively ending the contest before the quarter time siren by way of six goals, whilst West Coast struggled to trouble the scorer.  Some of the passages were pitiful to watch, as West Coast’s ineptitude allowed Collingwood to do as they pleased – a joy for the Collingwood faithful, yet I have to admit I was more than a little embarrassed for our opponents. 

Harry O’Brien had a fantastic opening quarter, putting the lock down on LeCras whilst providing his trademark dash out of defence.  Chris Dawes kicked a fantastic goal whilst tight up against the boundary line in the wrong pocket for a right footer, a feat that Pendlebury recreated a little later on with a lovely set shot from a similar position.  Beams linked up well throughout the quarter and would continue to do so throughout the match, with one almost ridiculous piece of play resulting in Dayne casually jogging in behind the defence to mark unchecked 20 metres from goal; it was at that point that Worsfold was surely wishing he could evoke the mercy clause.

The second quarter showed a more spirited West Coast outfit as complacency seemed to set in a bit for the Magpies.  LeCras continued to work hard and was rewarded by finally slipping Harry’s leash and getting on the scoreboard after dribbling through an excellent goal.  West Coast ended up outscoring Collingwood for the quarter, but it was the only shot they would fire for the remainder of the match.

The third quarter saw Collingwood – and more specifically Alan Didak – put the Eagles to the sword with an eight goal quarter, three of which came off the boot of Didak in the space of no more than two minutes.  The only position that West Coast potentially held superiority in heading into the match was the ruck department, but Darren Jolly played his best game for the season and made a complete mockery of his opponents in Cox and Naitanui.  Jolly’s match reached its apex at the very last second of the third quarter, when in the ultimate act of adding insult to injury, Jolly stood on the head of the highlight reel’s favourite subject Naitanui, taking the mark of the night.  Jolly then went back and casually executed the perfect checkside punt, notching up his fourth and final goal.

The final quarter was a dull affair, with both teams adding two goals and merely running out the clock.  Jarryd Blair gave a very good account of himself in his debut match after being a late replacement for Sidebottom.  Blair laid 5 tackles and gathered 16 possessions, with half of them falling under the contested category.  Importantly, the pint sized midfielder handled the step up and showed poise along with the tenacity that VFL watchers have come to expect. 

At the final siren, Darren Jolly was far and away our best player with a stand-out performance against quality opposition.  Swan and Beams collected a lot of the ball and ran hard throughout the night, whilst Didak also put in the hard yards and reminded us of just how damaging and mercurial he can be.  Pendlebury was class personified with everything he touched whilst Chris Dawes kicked a goal every quarter and took some strong contested marks; including clunking one very good overhead mark in the last that was sure to inspire optimism in every Collingwood supporter.  Our backline stood up as expected, doing a more than admirable job on the West Coast forward line which despite ladder position does possess some impressive quality in the forms of Kennedy and LeCras.  There were some concerns in the clearance department, as we were bested 31-27 in that category.  On the bright side, it was the move of Blair onto Priddis in the second half which went a long way to nullifying West Coast out of the centre.

Leon Davis battled admirably but is still like a gasless zippo; it’s solid and still looks flashy, but just isn’t firing.  Jack Anthony returned to the team in a swingman capacity and had a mixed game, doing some good things and some bad, but he showed enough to suggest that he will be capable at either end of the ground.  Ben Reid and Dale Thomas were impressive again, whilst Wellingham continues to find his touch. 

Convincing victories are always pleasing, but West Coast are playing a truly terrible brand of football and as such I’m reluctant to read too much into our performance.  Whilst we took a percentage boost and four points away from the match, it was a result that we should have expected if we are to seriously contest this year.  As for our opposition, any team who doesn’t beat West Coast by 40+ should probably be made to forfeit the four points.

Collingwood		Sydney
3 Dawes		3 O’Keefe
2 Sidebottom		2 McGlynn
2 Cloke		1 Kirk
2 L. Brown		1 Bird
1 O’Brien		1 Shaw
1 Dick		1 Rohan
1 Jolly		1 White
1 Didak

The 10th Letter’s Best:	5. Dale Thomas
	4. Darren Jolly
	3. Dane Swan
	2. Harry O’Brien
	1. Steele Sidebottom

At the conclusion of our round 13 clash with Sydney a few things were reaffirmed; Sydney remain our bunnies; Stephen McBurney loves getting his mug on television, a trait that seems to rub off on his comrades; and Dale Thomas is undoubtedly within the top three in the race for the Copeland. 

Our record against Sydney has been stretched to nine victories after Saturday night, but despite this I wasn’t absolutely confident heading into our split round clash at ANZ Stadium in Sydney.  Our last month of football wasn’t impressive by any means and whilst strolling back to Federation Square from the MCG after our draw with Melbourne, I was surprised by my lack of emotion at the result.  It wasn’t a case of being deflated by a draw, but more so the early stages of resignation.  Resignation to the possibility of another year making up the numbers, well beyond frustration over certain things remaining the same.

Now I’m not saying a somewhat expected victory against Sydney has served to instantly remedy the dejected feeling that certain results this year instilled in us; but there are definitely signs – collectively and individually – that point to the prospect of Collingwood being much more than just a dour collection of moderately talented individuals carving out a piece of September action with no real promise of more.

A true lesson in patience, Dale Thomas and Ben Reid are two players who are driving this point home. 

Thomas has certainly taken another step this year, an achievement which we should refrain from attaching a relieved “finally” to; because quite frankly, I think most Collingwood supporters could see it coming.  Dale has improved in every year at the club and the writing was on the wall in last year’s finals series, when after a disappointing September, Dale was one player who could truly hold his head up high.

Saturday night, Dale played the game like a different set of physics applied to him – a sight we’ve become familiar with in wet conditions.  While others fumbled, Dale collected cleanly and often at top speed, opening the game up for the Magpies in the opening half.  His piece of magic in the second quarter that saw him collect a ricocheting volley at full speed whilst surrounded by opposition players, only to smoothly dish the ball off to Brad Dick who finished in style was one of the highlights of the evening.  Dale became a marketable face and also an easy target when he was climbing on player’s heads and bouncing them in from the boundary every so often, but it is this sort of flash that we truly love and are beginning to see a lot more of.  Dale is remaining in the game these days and for all the inaccurate ideas held by opposition fans that he is somehow soft, Dale is not only continuing to put his head over the ball – as he always has – but he’s starting to hit packs harder, the benefits of physical development.

Ben Reid was another player who divided opinion amongst Collingwood fans after some admittedly interesting forays as a forward in the seniors.  Last year, the club decided to give Reid a full year in the VFL playing at CHB to see what he could offer and undoubtedly to further his education.  It has proven to be a masterstroke, as Reid thrived in the role throughout 2009, regularly being named amongst the leading possession getters and proving he had an aptitude for reading the play across half-back.

Throughout the season so far, Reid has maintained his spot in the side and is benefitting from the experience.  It is already evident that the team are looking to use Reid’s raking left foot to mount a lot of our attacks from defence.  Saturday night saw a different Ben Reid, whilst the week before he collected a lot of the ball, against Sydney he impressed in a more traditionally defensive manner.  By the halfway mark of last year most had accepted that Reid would be a handy weapon coming out of defence, but we were all still needing more convincing of how he would stack up when the ball was coming in.  Saturday night went a long way to easing our minds on that front, as Reid got the better of both Jesse White and Mumford when he was rested forward – two players who have a distinct size advantage.  It wasn’t just his competence in one-on-one situations, but he left his man smartly and had an impact every time he did, displaying sure hands on more than one occasion.

Harry O’Brien was pivotal in the first half, providing us with plenty of rebound and kicking what was the goal of the night after intercepting a bullet and high-stepping into our forward fifty to drill it home.  Harry has had a mixed bag of a season so far, but looks to be settling and returning to some of his pre-season form that caused many to believe he was destined for AA honours.  Heath Shaw amassed a lot of the ball and provided a lot of run, whilst Prestigiacomo was Prestigiacomo; which of course means his opponent was missing in action.

Darren Jolly had a fantastic game against his old side, which is a credit to him considering the difficult start he’s had to his Collingwood career.  Jolly competed well throughout the course of the night, breaking even in the ruck whilst providing a lot more around the ground than his direct opponents.  Leigh Brown provided adequate back-up whilst also having an impact around the ground.  I never thought I would see the day when I came to the conclusion that Leigh Brown was a better choice than both Fraser and Wood, but currently that is the situation and it’s a credit to Leroy – and a challenge to the other two.  What Leroy brings to the table is a taste for the contest and a genuine willingness to scrap for every touch and impose himself physically wherever possible, the sort of tenacity that Fraser and Wood appear to lack on a reasonably frequent basis.

After being kept reasonably quiet in the early stages and letting himself down with some prissy disposals, Alan Didak deserves mention for working himself into the game whilst being tagged.  His decision making improved as the match wore on, looking to be more direct.  Dids has a formidable left boot and I’ll be glad when he stops opting for the soft touch short option (a kick he has a tendency to botch) and starts using his penetration to send the ball swiftly to more dangerous positions.  Speaking of good ball use, Steele Sidebottom had another good game showing his nous around goals once more whilst also displaying his ability to regularly pick the right options.  Whilst he only amassed 16 touches, Steele was immense around the packs and defensively, laying seven tackles and working hard to assist teammates.

Leon Davis had yet another one of those nights, but I can’t fault his work when not in possession – which at the moment is a majority of the time – as his defensive work up forward has been excellent..  It’s just not coming together for Leon and he is struggling to get clean ball up forward, which prompts me to think that it might be worth letting Leon move further up the field, even letting him push down back to mop-up just so he can get a taste.

Chris Dawes returned to the side and seemed to straighten up our forward structure.  Finishing the game with three goals and one behind, Dawes’ kicking was a highlight despite missing his easiest shot for the night.  I’m of the opinion that we should play Dawes for the remainder of the season; he’s of course going to have games where he has his colours lowered, but that’s all part of his development as a footballer.  In his time in the seniors, whilst obviously needing some improvement overhead, he’s also shown excellent footy IQ and is definitely beginning to back in his own strength, taking some very nice contested marks.  If Dawes can start clunking some overhead marks, he could be a formidable talent heading forward.

Sharrod Wellingham found some form again after a lacklustre return from injury.  Boots seemed switched on and showed a lot more urgency against Sydney, which are hopefully signs that he is returning to the sort of form that had him vying for most improved accolades.  Dane Swan was his usual workhorse self, whilst Luke Ball continues to win over the faithful with his tenacious approach. 

In the end, we took control of the match from the opening bounce and never looked like losing.  We were challenged occasionally, but responded promptly and ensured that the game was played on our terms.  There is definitely room for improvement and we need to cement our top four position over the coming month with matches against West Coast, Port Adelaide and Richmond – whilst also being given another opportunity to see how we match up against the formidable Saints. 

Given our competitiveness over recent seasons, it’s easy to lose sight of just where we are in our development.  The recruitment of Jolly and Ball was obviously a case of addressing weaknesses with a view to securing a premiership as soon as possible, but the bulk of our side are still growing into their roles.  What results like those against Geelong and St. Kilda prove is that we’re not quite there yet, whilst the results against the Bulldogs and Fremantle – and even Sydney on Saturday night – prove that we are heading in the right direction; particularly when you take into account the players who were instrumental in achieving those results.

Understandably, Collingwood fans were on a high during the week but with Melbourne next on the agenda there were also some concerned undertones that gained momentum as the match approached.  As Collingwood supporters, we’ve seen it all and know never to take anything for granted, but even I confess that I went into today’s match against Melbourne feeling rightfully confident.  In fact, despite history, I’m embarrassed to admit that I went into today’s game with percentage in mind.

Who could blame me though?  Last week we saw a Collingwood side put another contender to the sword in emphatic fashion.  Our small forwards were freed up from midfield duties with the arrival of Luke Ball and the improvement of Wellingham, allowing them to run amok with Didak, Davis and Medhurst contributing 11 goals.  Dane Swan looked ominous, amassing 30+ disposals and kicking three goals of his own whilst Shaw, O’Brien and Maxwell controlled the game from the back half.

What was most pleasing was the sustained ferocity towards the ball.  The Bulldogs are a quality outfit renowned for their ball movement and use, yet the pressure that we applied made them look unsure and messy for periods throughout the match and it was in these periods where we made them pay dearly.

Less than a week later and simply put; Collingwood have been the benefactors of a jail break, one that was aided by its opposition’s inexperience and some questionable umpiring.

There is a football adage which states that good teams win even when they play poorly, but I’m struggling to apply it to the Collingwood side who took the park today.  Melbourne – whilst still committing trademark errors – were terrific in their attack on the contest and could not be accused of shirking the issue.  Collingwood on the other hand appeared complacent and inept for large portions of the game, with many senior players offering up sub-par efforts repeatedly throughout the course of the match.

Questions have to be asked of Travis Cloke after he was well held by Joel Macdonald, a player who stands 8cm shorter and 13kg lighter than Travis.  Similarly, John Anthony struggled to have an impact once again whilst our smalls who were so dangerous last week contributed very little.  Leon Davis at least showed a preparedness to work hard at stages, a contrast to Didak who played what was quite frankly a selfish brand of football for the entire four quarters.  Didak’s ability has never been in question, but too often he fails to meet expectations defensively and unfortunately on days like today it’s just cheap and cringe worthy.

Darren Jolly failed to fire for the second week in a row, whilst Luke Ball despite working hard in the clenches was unable to offer much in general play as he clearly struggled with his kicking.  Most knew that kicking wasn’t Ball’s strong point and it’s difficult to read too much into today’s efforts given that our ball movement was scrappy in general.  Usually our strongest point, our defence broke down today with Heath Shaw being the most notable of players to lower his colours.

Aside from the four points – which we should accept sheepishly – the only other silver lining would be the performance of Dayne Beams.  On a day where we failed to fire in just about every position, Beams was the only player to do anything convincingly.  He won the hard ball consistently and used it well, playing direct and making things happen more often than not.  After missing out on round one due to disciplinary reasons and only getting a look in after the late withdrawal of Shane O’Bree, Beams led the way and can be rightfully credited with getting us over the line.

It was a forgettable day for Collingwood and with the Saints on the horizon, we’ll have to hit the drawing board and attempt to recapture our round one form during the week if we’re to stand any sort of chance.  Regardless of the scoreboard, Collingwood’s effort today didn’t fall into the realm that the adage I mentioned earlier encompasses.  Throughout the course of the game, we got the rub of the green with the umpires and still only escaped by the barest of margins when Ricky Petterd couldn’t quite hang on to a mark in the dying seconds.  We may have walked away with the victory today, but we certainly didn’t deserve it.

Collingwood took on Adelaide last night in Alice Springs with the match being played at Traeger Park; which could have been mistaken for the local swimming pool.  Whilst reports have been scarce and most of us had to be content with listening in via radio, the likes of Sidebottom, Goldsack and O’Brien all played a prominent role in our eventual 22 point victory.  Another good sign was first year player Ben Sinclair, who made a good first impression and has even been named in the bests in some reports.

Despite being downed by St. Kilda, who led by 43 points at one stage, there was plenty to be happy about in our NAB Cup encounter.  Harry O’Brien was incredibly impressive and looks set for a very big year.  Defensively, Harry is as determined as ever but it is the addition of what appears to be a more offensive mindset that is rounding out O’Brien’s game and could be the catalyst for him to take the next step.  Heath Shaw was our best ball-winner and spent a bit of time being played through the midfield.  I’m still unsure as to how the move of Shaw to the midfield will play out, but he ran hard and carried the ball well as usual and there is definite merit in further exploring the scope of players with the talent of Shaw and O’Brien.

What most of us were curious to see however was how our three new additions would fare.  Darren Jolly suffered from some early rust but became increasingly dominant as the game wore on, finishing the game with two goals (both of which were important in getting us back into the contest) and 20 hit outs.  Luke Ball amassed 22 possessions, 6 tackles, 5 marks and a goal in what was simultaneously his first game for Collingwood and his first game against his former team mates at St. Kilda.  Ball’s tenacity around stoppages and ability to win the ball in tight was a highlight and will serve us extremely well in 2010 and beyond.  We experimented a bit with our midfield on the night and with two major additions in Jolly and Ball, a little time is required before the chemistry completely comes together.  Simon Buckley on the other hand didn’t have the best showing first up, but will undoubtedly have time and further opportunity to impress.

Nathan Brown struggled to contain his direct opponents on the night and as a result found himself the target of much criticism around the traps.  After his debut season, the expectations for Brown sky-rocketed and as is natural in such instances, patience among the masses is often exchanged for premature visions of All-Australian honours and hysterical declarations.  When – as usually occurs – these lofty expectations aren’t met, the reaction is usually equally hysterical denunciations.  Whilst Brown has struggled off and on since that first season, he is still only 21 years old and it takes plenty of time and experience before key position players – particularly key defenders – find their feet.  Prestigiacomo was lambasted in the early stages of his career, whilst Brian Lake of the Western Bulldogs arguably only reached his peak as a key defender in 2009 as a 27 year old.

Ben Reid similarly didn’t set the world on fire against the Saints, but did show some good signs with his raking left boot finding moving targets heading out of defence.  It was an errant kick at the end of the game that opened the door for the Saints, but he shouldn’t be dragged over hot coals for an error that came about simply due to inexperience.  After a productive and promising 2009 in a new defensive role at VFL level, Reid is likely to be given more senior opportunity in defence this year; making 2010 his most important year thus far in terms of development.

Dayne Beams has got Collingwood fans salivating after putting in an impressive showing in the single half of football that he was afforded against the Saints.  Whilst Beams stats were moderate on paper, it was the influence and composure that he displayed that was most impressive.  The modern game lends itself to "stat deception" and often the true importance or influence of players isn’t reflected on paper.  In the second half, Beams displayed an instinctive ability to get his hands on the ball during centre clearances and in contested situations; whilst continuing his familiar kamikaze attack on the football, a quality that won over the masses in 2009.  With the addition of Darren Jolly and Luke Ball; along with the still developing Pendlebury, Beams and Sidebottom, "first use" is a phrase that Collingwood is at long last set to become familiar with.

Harry O’Brien was awesome, collecting 22 disposals and 8 marks, one of which was the mark of the night.  As I touched on earlier, Harry got involved in a more attacking fashion and used the ball well heading forward whilst still proving to be a formidable player in one-on-one contests.  Nick Maxwell looks set to continue on the form of 2009 that saw him not only win over the respect of a football public that largely ridiculed his appointment as captain, but also win All-Australian honours.

Whilst Davis and Didak were disappointingly quiet against the Saints, with Didak once again struggling against a close tag by Clinton Jones.  Leon Davis didn’t look at all interested for the most part and put in what was simply a flabbergasting performance.  On the bright side, we can only expect better things from both Didak and Davis, two of our most polished footballers.  Paul Medhurst showed some signs of returning to his best form after struggling for most of 2009.  Medhurst looked creative, confident and most importantly dangerous once more; kicking what was almost the match winning goal before the Saints got one back after sloppy checking in our defensive 50.

Of our big forwards, Leigh Brown did the most damage on the scoreboard by kicking four goals whilst Travis Cloke was overall our most impressive key forward.  Leroy worked hard as usual and showed some very good signs by capitalising on his opportunities with straight kicking.  Travis Cloke was prominent and was a driving force during our come back, taking some excellent contested marks and in general being a serious presence up forward.  Cloke is still struggling with his kicking accuracy and it can be frustrating to watch as a supporter, but after a pre-season filled with speculation over the extent of his knee troubles it was good to see Cloke playing some good – at times dominant – football.

In the wash-up, there were plenty of good signs against St. Kilda and from what we’ve all heard so far, some more positives coming out of our match in Alice Springs — none as positive as the fact that we incurred no injuries.  Whilst our premiership window is open and the likes of Jolly and Ball will hopefully play a big part in bridging the gap, it is the development and improvement of our entire list that will play the biggest part in getting us to the promised land.

Despite our team currently doing the rounds in the NAB Challenge, the early signs from training and the games we’ve been involved in have been good.  2010 shapes as an exciting season for the Collingwood Football Club.

Finals have become a regular occurrence for Collingwood in recent seasons, a fact that is mostly refreshing yet lends itself to frustration as we have thus far fallen short.  After having a mid-season purple patch which saw us win 12 out of 13 games from round 9 onwards, we were provided with a new form of hope.  We had gone someway towards breaking the trend that emerged in previous seasons; a trend which saw us habitually drop winnable games to inferior opposition.

With this winning streak the premiership hopes of Collingwood fans strengthened and assumed a more real quality, a tangible aspect.  Securing a double chance, particularly after the bitter disappointment of wasting the opportunity in 2008, in a final series that was comprised mostly of Victorian sides set the scene for these hopes to be realised. 

What panned out was disappointing, but not without some consolatory elation.  In the qualifying final we fell short in an arm wrestle with the Saints; a game in which similar to earlier in the year, we were better early on but were then well beaten from halfway through the second quarter.  The elation came in the semi-final against Adelaide, where after being blitzed out of the blocks the Magpies swarmed in an awesome third quarter display.  The match culminated with Jack Anthony kicking the winner with just seconds remaining after a frantic final quarter.  A week later – and no matter how you slice it – the Pies bowed out of the 2009 race in forgettable fashion against a rampaging Geelong.  As awesome as Geelong were in 2009 and have been for the past three seasons, our performance in the preliminary was unacceptable and dare I say shameful after half-time – but I’m sure the players acknowledge that.

In the wash, we were once again beaten for class and experience in the middle of the ground, whilst despite Jack Anthony’s 50 goal season up forward our attack at large struggled throughout the year and particularly so in September.  We were cruelled by the loss of Pendlebury early in the first week of finals, but even with Pendles in the side we were admittedly up against it in the class stakes when compared to St. Kilda and Geelong.  There is no shame in that of course, but it did need to be addressed.

Identifying that our window was open and with what many considered a shallow draft on the horizon, the powers that be decided that we were going to target the missing pieces during trade week.  For years the Collingwood faithful have been screaming for a big bodied ruckman, a deficit that we have unsuccessfully tried to mask in previous September sorties.  During the 2009 trade period, our prayers were answered when we acquired the services of Darren Jolly – a ruckman who is more than just a big body, but one of the very best players in his position.  With Jolly now wearing black and white, the Magpie midfield will have to use the pre-season to grow accustomed to first rate tap service, rather than perfecting the art of anticipating the opposition’s ruckman.

Complimenting the addition of Jolly is Luke Ball, a player regarded for his courage, leadership and importantly his ability to win the hard ball.  With Shane O’Bree nearing the end of his career, Luke Ball will fill the position of hard-bodied extractor within our midfield brigade.  With Ball and Pendlebury sitting at the feet of Darren Jolly and an improving Cameron Wood, Collingwood should be getting a lot more first use in 2010.

Whilst the addition of Jolly and Ball is an exciting one (made better by the manner in which we acquired Ball, but that’s been done to death) and will certainly go a long way to mending some recurring problems, these two additions are not, in my mind, the final piece to the puzzle.  A lot will depend upon the continued improvement from the likes of Wellingham, Beams and Sidebottom; with the likes of Pendlebury, Maxwell and O’Brien consolidating upon the steps that they took this year.   Realistically, despite factoring in September for the past four years and reaching the preliminary final twice, there is still improvement to be had from a majority of our list and if the likes of Medhurst, McCarthy and Fraser can have a better run with injury we’ll be well and truly primed.

We were aggressive in the trade period without going overboard; managing to add some much needed elements, improve our depth with the addition of Simon Buckley whilst also picking up some youth.  If we are to be successful in 2010, it will be a mixture of improvement from the old and a successful assimilation from the new that will get us over the line.  I’ve liked the methodical manner in which the club has gone about creating our current playing list; as when it comes to success we ideally want to have some longevity as opposed to being a flash in the pan, a single season anomaly.  Geelong have shown what astute drafting and development can produce, it would be nice if we could put a stop to their dominance whilst replicating it.

With Jolly and Ball and expected improvement from our existing list, it’s a reasonable expectation that we will be a lot more competitive against the top echelon in 2010.

I wish I could guarantee that I won’t be going AWOL again, but who knows what hand life is going to deal.  The plan however is to keep this site going; if not kicking things into a whole new gear.

With that out of the way, what’s been happening?

The Departed

The end of every season spells the end of Collingwood careers; it’s a sad fact of football life.  This year saw the departure of senior listed players Chris Bryan, Danny Stanley, Marty Clarke, Shannon Cox and Anthony Rocca; these were joined by rookie listed players in Tobias Thoolen, Kevin Dyas and Johnny Bennell.

Out of that list, Anthony Rocca is the most notable and I have to tip my hat to the man after providing great service and some awe inspiring highlights over the course of his 242 game career.  Pebbles was for such a long time the most important player when it came to Collingwood’s structure and ultimately our fortunes at large.  Whilst he copped a lot of flack throughout his career due to his endurance, many underrated just how good Anthony was when at his best.  His performance in the 2002 Grand Final was one of his most memorable in my mind with Rocca shining on the biggest of occasions in conditions that did not suit gorilla forwards.  His performance that day just about snared us our 15th premiership; some might even say that he had done enough, if not for a goal umpire.  Thanks for the memories Pebbles, I’m yet to hear a roar louder than the one you evoked in the 2002 preliminary against Adelaide.

Marty Clarke and Kevin Dyas both returned to Ireland at the conclusion of the 2009 season, much to the disappointment of Collingwood fans.  Whilst Dyas was hampered by a hamstring setback during his short stint with the Magpies and many didn’t hold too many expectations, Marty Clarke had well and truly endeared himself to the Magpie faithful by quickly showing he could cut the mustard at senior level.  Unfortunately, Marty lost the taste and desire for AFL football during the 2009 season; a season which saw him ruled out of senior level contention after returning home to Ireland in the middle of the year to attend his sister’s wedding.  Regardless of the decision to return home, Marty’s form at both AFL and VFL level was short of his best and his omission from the first 22 was warranted.  It was disappointing to lose Clarke – especially after he showed so much promise – but if a player’s heart isn’t in the jumper then we are better off finding one whose heart is.

Shannon Cox announced his retirement almost immediately after returning to pre-season training in terrible shape — again.  It would seem that the coaches were rightfully miffed and either made the call and let Shannon exit with some dignity on his terms or gave him an ultimatum that he simply wasn’t up to.  Shannon Cox is a major disappointment in my book, but his story is testament to the fact that talent alone does not ensure an AFL career.

The writing was on the wall for Bryan, Stanley and Thoolen well prior to the conclusion of the season.  Chris Bryan had fallen behind Wood and Leigh Brown in the pecking order and to his credit acquitted himself well in the VFL throughout 2009, providing our boys with a strong focal point playing predominantly as a forward.  Danny Stanley was a favourite among many VFL watchers – myself included – but it seemed inevitable that 2009 was going to be his last on our senior list.  Whilst most would acknowledge that Danny had flaws that were going to hinder his chances at senior level, I still believe he wasn’t provided with sufficient opportunity to find his feet and address those issues at the highest level.  Regardless, with the welcome additions we’ve made to the midfield over the last two off-seasons, Danny was never going to come into the equation.  Not much can be said about Thoolen, during his two years at Collingwood he didn’t make much progress and he was always going to be fodder once 2009 was wrapped up.

Johnny Bennell was the surprising one, being delisted after just a single season on our rookie list.  There have been some whispers as to the reasons, but I’m not prepared to speculate.

Welcome Aboard

It’s typical that I would fall into a period of inactivity during what was perhaps Collingwood’s most active and riveting off-season.  Heading into every trade period it seems that Collingwood is linked with a high profile player and just about every year, when the trade period concludes and said player does not find himself in a Magpie jumper, there is a contingent of supporters who become exasperated at our perceived inability to land the big fish.  At the end of 2009, it was Luke Ball who publically expressed his desire to play for Collingwood and when the trade deadline rolled around and both St. Kilda and Collingwood refused to blink, it looked like the same old tune had been queued up in the jukebox.

The trade period wasn’t a failure though, we did manage to land Darren Jolly from Sydney in exchange for our first and third round picks.  This was a huge acquisition for the Pies, as we finally grasped the opportunity to adequately address our issues in the ruck department by adding not only a strong bodied ruckman to our list, but also one who would be considered within the very top echelon of ruckman currently in the league.  Landing Jolly helped ease the disappointment of initially missing out on Ball, despite our best efforts to come to the party.

Some people were disappointed with Collingwood not being a little more aggressive in our trading philosophy when it came to pursuing Ball.  I have at times in the past been critical of our reluctance to make some tough decisions in regards to list management, but in this instance and regardless of knowing the outcome, I was pleased with how Collingwood handled themselves.  The asking price of our second round pick plus Nathan Brown was exorbitant in my mind, especially considering the direction we were heading in and what our future needs would be.  Assuming he was fit and could remain so, Luke Ball would improve us immediately; but if it was at the expense of our long term prospects then I think most would have shied away from the deal.  The offer of the same pick plus Goldsack seemed fair in my mind and one that I would have entertained despite being a fan of Tyson, but the Saints changed their mind on that front at the eleventh hour in what seemed a spiteful turn of events.

What eventuated has rekindled the debate regarding free agency and has brought about claims of draft tampering as Luke Ball refused to talk with other potential suitors whilst also refusing to submit himself for medical testing to any club other than Collingwood.  Ball made himself scarce and unreachable heading into the national draft, spending a lot of time overseas on holiday whilst his manager Paul Connors made all the moves to give Luke the best possible chance of reaching his preferred destination.  Everything was done well within the rules as they stand and come the national draft – much to the delight of two out of the three parties involved – Luke Ball found himself available when pick #30 rolled around.

Ross Lyon had stated heading into the draft that we would find out Ball’s true market value, implying that his decision not to accept any of the combinations offered by Collingwood would be justified.  It’s hard to gauge whether Lyon was right or wrong given the circumstances, as personally I do feel that Ball would have likely been snapped up prior to our selection had he made himself freely available to any club prior to the draft.  The fact remains however that the Saints allowed Ball to depart for nothing and were denied the satisfaction that usually comes with sticking to so called principles when Ball managed to get to his club of choice in the end.

For Collingwood, it was a massive victory as we managed to keep all of the players whose names were bandied about (Nathan Brown, Sharrod Wellingham, Tyson Goldsack and the up-and-coming Jarrad Blight) whilst adding the experience and quality of Luke Ball and Darren Jolly.

Complimenting these high profile additions were the likes of Ben Sinclair (Pick #62), Josh Thomas (Pick #75) and ex-Demon Simon Buckley (Pick #85).  Out of those three, it was the Queenslander Josh Thomas who was discussed the most prior to the national draft, being touted as a possible alternative at Pick #30 if Luke Ball was off the table.  Getting Thomas so late in the draft pleased many Collingwood supporters, but before we get carried away we should be mindful that 15 other teams overlooked him and even our own recruiters were comfortable with waiting so late into the proceedings before snapping Josh up.  With that said, I’ve liked the footage I’ve seen of Thomas and he was highly rated by the Gold Coast franchise who he turned down to nominate for the draft.

Ben Sinclair is an extremely light dasher who also possesses a fair share of courage from all reports.  Sinclair projects as a project very similar to Luke Rounds as we look to address our lack of genuine pace throughout the middle of the ground and coming out of defence.  Simon Buckley is a ready made player within this same category, a dashing defender who could also play off of a wing if required.  The ex-Demon has struggled with injury and managed only a solitary game in 2009 after having an impressive 2008, where he averaged 21 disposals and 6 marks over the course of 14 games.  At 22 years old, Buckley still has his best football ahead of him and it will be interesting to see where he stands in our defensive hierarchy considering the depth of flankers we already possess.

The Rookie Draft Awaits

Collingwood has two selections available in the upcoming rookie draft, with the third being reserved for the elevation of NSW scholarship holder Scott Reed to the primary rookie list.  During the rookie draft, we will also be adding American Shae McNamara as an international rookie.  McNamara stands at 203cm tall and his athleticism has impressed many at the club; if Shae can continue to improve his basic skills then he could prove to be a valuable and cheap pick-up.  It was Shae who pursued the possibility of an AFL career by learning the basics and putting together and distributing some workout footage; his determination to make this opportunity happen has to be admired.

There hasn’t been much talk about prospects we might be looking at and our permission to train list contains no new faces, but with the majority of our squad currently over in Arizona that is to be expected.  Personally, given that we’ve targeted midfielders predominantly in the last two drafts, I would like to see us snare a couple of project key position players in the rookie draft.  There are some prospects but whether they survive until our first pick at #19 remains to be seen.

That pretty much brings us up to speed so far in the off-season.  We’ve addressed our two biggest deficiencies by adding a top shelf ruck in Jolly, whilst complimenting our midfield with a strong inside midfielder in Ball.  Both players will bring invaluable experience and leadership to the club and with Nathan Buckley now running around the club in an official coaching capacity alongside Mick Malthouse, there are a lot of reasons for Collingwood supporters to be smiling.

Bring on 2010!

Collingwood let itself down against the Saints, but I don’t think too many people considered the outcome to be all that surprising given the line-up of each side and the respective seasons that we have had.  St. Kilda lost only two games during the home-and-away season, both coming against significantly inferior opposition during a time when motivation was dwindling as finals approached.  Collingwood, whilst having an excellent run in the second half of the year, still finished 5 games adrift from St. Kilda and yesterday that gap was on display.

Our boys definitely didn’t put in their best effort and this lends us some hope heading into our match against Adelaide.  Whilst quite a few of our players underperformed, I don’t know how much solace we can take from this line of thinking given that St. Kilda’s dominance did play a part in the output of our players.  Another concern is that we were once again exposed – seemingly with no backup plan – to a well structured zone defence.  This was evident against Hawthorn (for the third time in recent history) during the season, whilst the Saints also put us to the sword in this fashion in our home-and-away encounter.

Admittedly, we were missing a significant portion of our top end talent the first time we faced the Saints this year; but we were also beaten in a similarly systematic fashion by the Saints in last year’s finals series.  Whilst blame needs to be attributed to our strategy and perhaps our team selection, players also need to be held accountable for what was a lacklustre effort after quarter time.

One of the major problems that was evident from the middle of the second quarter onwards, was our lack of pressure on the ball carrier.  For whatever reason, we didn’t apply the sort of pressure that finals football requires and in many ways played right into St. Kilda’s hands.  It’s all well and good to get back and attempt to block up space, but with the Saints possessing players who use the ball well and an elite key forward in Riewoldt; conceding the ball, time and the middle of the ground is fraught with danger.  We were also reminded that we simply don’t have a defender who can go with the likes of Riewoldt or Franklin, no disrespect to Presti who was done no favours and has otherwise been stellar this year.

We weren’t helped by the early loss of Pendlebury, who has become increasingly important to Collingwood’s midfield and our rotations in particular.  As a consequence, too much was expected from the likes of Beams, Sidebottom and McCarthy; an expectation that was compounded by the poor performances of seasoned players in Fraser, O’Bree, Lockyer, Johnson and Didak.  All things considered, I thought that our young brigade gave a good account of themselves, but they’re understandably not ready to be the driving force behind a premiership tilt.

The selection of McCarthy over a better prepared Wellingham was a little bit perplexing.  McCarthy is going to be a very good player with a full pre-season and match fitness behind him, but he simply didn’t have the required preparation to be called upon in finals football.  The omission of Wood was another move that was surprising given that St. Kilda went into the match with two genuine rucks in King and Gardiner.  A lot will be made of the inclusion of Rocca, but personally I feel that it was inconsequential given the way the game played out.  Rocca gave as good an account of himself as was realistically possible in a match that looks to have been his last for the black and white.  With that said, Brad Dick would have been extremely handy up forward with or without Rocca in the team, as our forward pressure was virtually nonexistent.

If he hadn’t won every doubtful Collingwood supporter over already, Nick Maxwell definitively proved why he was made captain.  In a game where we were smashed out of the middle, Maxwell played a flawless game down back and looked to be one of only a few players who realised the finals had arrived and wanted to be accountable for our fortunes.  As a whole, I feel our backline performed admirably given what they were up against. 

Despite a low possession game, I found some comfort in Dale Thomas’ performance.  He managed to kick two goals and did all the things that many uninformed observers claim are foreign to him.  Despite a few mistakes (that are somewhat characteristic) Heath Shaw also played with some purpose and like Thomas showed a readiness to put his body on the line.  Cloke worked hard up the ground, but struggled to provide us with the target and presence that we required forward of the centre.  I rate Cloke, but his importance looks to be a structural one as we search for match winners elsewhere – I’m not confident that he will become the potent KPF that we once envisioned.

We can pick over the bones of this defeat, but the reality is that St. Kilda are simply further ahead of us on the premiership clock.  We enter every year with expectations of a premiership – as we should – but it’s also important to be realistic and rational when weighing up our prospects.  Most would admit that a premiership this year would have been ahead of schedule given the state of our list, which clearly has deficiencies that we are hoping to address with the maturation of our existing youth.

With that said, our finals hopes are still alive despite coming up against an impressive Adelaide outfit.  We’re going to have to do things the hard way, for if we do get over the Crows then we will face an even more imposing Geelong in the preliminary final – a task made even harder due to the absence of Pendlebury.  We do match up well on Geelong and anything is possible in September, so whilst Sunday’s result has dented the confidence of most Collingwood supporters and acted as a catalyst for pondering beyond this year, let’s just see how the lads respond.