2014 NAB Challenge Round 2: Richmond 124 Collingwood 76

THE FACTS 

COLLINGWOOD   0.3.0.18    0.7.2.44    0.10.4.64    1.10.7.76
RICHMOND           0.5.6.36    1.8.8.65    1.10.12.81  1.17.13.124

SCORERS - Collingwood: White (1.0.0), Reid (0.5.0), Cloke (0.3.1), Mooney (0.2.1), Elliott (0.0.2), Ball (0.0.1), Kennedy (0.0.1), Sidebottom (0.0.1)

BEST - Collingwood: Reid, Pendlebury, Kennedy, Langdon

INJURIES - Collingwood: Nil

SUBSTITUTES - Collingwood: Nil

REPORTS - Collingwood: Nil

OFFICIAL CROWD: Estimated 11,000, Norm Minns Oval

THE MEDIA

COLLINGWOOD NEWS  Nathan Buckley's plan to play Ben Reid alongside Travis Cloke in his forward line this season has paid early dividends with the two combining for eight goals in Wangaratta's NAB Challenge match on Saturday afternoon. The Magpies may have gone down to a strong-finishing Richmond side by 48 points, but the Reid-Cloke approach paid dividends when the ball was in their forward half. It was Reid's first competitive hit-out for the year after the Pies took a conservative approach to his pre-season following a calf injury. Cloke also looked fit as he kicked three goals despite the hard work of David Astbury. Still, the Tigers were very impressive as they booted seven final quarter goals after the Pies got within five points in the third quarter to win 1.17.13 (124) to 1.10.7 (76). For the Magpies, Dane Swan and Pendlebury found the ball often; Swan looking slim in his first game for the year as he racked up 26 possessions. Alex Fasolo, also in his first game for 2014 after the foot injury that wrecked last season, played across half back and was solid. Brodie Grundy rucked with the help of Quinten Lynch after the late omission of Ben Hudson and caught the eye twice in the first half for giving away 50m penalties after run-ins with Matt Thomas. WHAT WE LEARNED Collingwood: A fit Clinton Young is a solid acquisition for the Magpies' midfield. The ex-Hawk, whose first season in the black and white was ruined by calf and hamstring problems, impressed with some bursts out of the middle and delivery with his accurate left foot – one of which hit Ben Reid on the chest directly in front of goal. While Reid clearly looks good in attack, questions remain over whether his presence up forward robs the backline of experience with Lachie Keeffe, Jack Frost and Nathan Brown left to curtail the big forwards in his – and Nick Maxwell's – absence. NEW FACES Collingwood: The Pies had no new faces but got another game into recruits Tony Armstrong, Jesse White and Jonathon Marsh. Armstrong wasn't prolific but White took six marks and took the ball inside 50 four times. Marsh started as the substitute and showed a bit in the minutes he got after half time including an impressive run down tackle in the middle of the ground. POINTS OF INTEREST Unheralded draftee Tom Langdon has quietly gone about making a name for himself as a composed user of the football across half back. The 19-year-old, who split his time between Sandringham's VFL and TAC Cup teams last season, became a Magpie with the 65th selection in last November's National Draft. He registered 17 disposals (seven kicks, 10 handballs) and took two marks in Saturday evening's loss to the Tigers. What's more, he rarely looked panicked when under pressure and was willing to hold onto the ball before an appropriate option presented itself. He used the ball with 82.4 per cent efficiency and took the ball inside 50 twice as well as registering two rebounds. These figures come on top of his 11 disposals against Geelong and 21 disposals in the intra-club practice match on Family Day. Jamie Elliott's career continues to progress. The former Murray Bushranger, who would have enjoyed returning to his local region for the weekend, registered 18 disposals and laid three tackles while appearing to push further up the ground than he did in his first two seasons. This is reflected in his disposal figures in his first 35 games, when he had more than 18 touches in only three games. Much has been said of the potency of Collingwood's forward line should Travis Cloke, Ben Reid, Quinten Lynch and Jesse White all line up alongside each other. The coaches and supporters had their first look at the four-pronged tall attack against the Tigers and would have liked what they saw from Reid, who kicked five goals in his first outing for the year. He also took five marks, three of which were contested. Third-year rookie Caolan Mooney made the most of his chance to play a match sans the substitute's vest. He showed off his trademark leg speed, kicking two goals and sneaking up on his opponents, laying a total of six tackles. Alex Fasolo made a welcome return from the foot injury that ruined his 2013 campaign. Entering his fourth season, it appears that Fasolo may be used as a defender as he continues to develop all facets of his game. He won 35.7 per cent of his 14 possessions in the defensive 50 and none in attack, illustrating the change in his role.                           ".... at the final siren it was Collingwood who now have some serious questions being asked about them. Yes, it is the NAB Challenge. Yes, they were missing Dayne Beams, Nick Maxwell and Taylor Adams but Nathan Buckley wouldn’t have liked the way the team finished off the game. It is a concern with a tough opening four weeks to the season against Fremantle, Sydney, Geelong and Richmond." SUPERFOOTY

SUPERFOOTY Things learned: GO FORWARD, BEN REID Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley should fund research into cloning, because he desperately needs two Ben Reids. How much would the Magpies love to have one Reid in defence and another in attack? After Saturday’s performance, Reid looks to have cemented himself in the forward line after a five mark, five goal effort in Wangaratta. Alongside Travis Cloke and Jesse White, Collingwood would have one of the most dangerous forward lines in the AFL. Unfortunately, without Reid in defence the Magpies were caught out as Richmond piled on 18 goals to take a 48-point win. BRODIE CAN HANDLE HIMSELF Brodie Grundy must have been watching Cool Runnings before taking on Richmond on Saturday. The Collingwood ruckman was a “bad-ass mother who don’t take no crap off of nobody”. Grundy got suckered in my a Ricky Petterd hip-and-shoulder before throwing the Tigers forward to the ground and giving away a free-kick. As Reece Conca and Matt Thomas came in to remonstrate, Grundy wasn’t taking a backward step and ragdolled Thomas to the ground, giving away a 50m penalty. After making his way to the bench, Grundy probably got a stern talking to from coach Nathan Buckley. We say; “keep it up young man”. FASOLO ON TRACK Alex Fasolo missed all but three games in 2013 as a foot injury took its toll. The Magpies’ forward-midfielder returned to the field for the first time since Round 5, 2013 on Saturday and would be pleased with his effort. Fasolo was carefully managed throughout the match but still managed to gather 14 touches and two marks. Collingwood fans will hope to see Fasolo far more often in 2014 as he is a dangerous small forward who is also an important secondary midfield option for Nathan Buckley. PIES HAVE SOME WORK TO DO Collingwood and Richmond came into Saturday’s game after losing their opening NAB Challenge matches. Collingwood showed plenty in a narrow loss to Geelong while Richmond were upset by Melbourne. However, at the final siren it was Collingwood who now have some serious questions being asked about them. Yes, it is the NAB Challenge. Yes, they were missing Dayne Beams, Nick Maxwell and Taylor Adams but Nathan Buckley wouldn’t have liked the way the team finished off the game. It is a concern with a tough opening four weeks to the season against Fremantle, Sydney, Geelong and Richmond.                           REAL FOOTY The amount of expectation perpetually hanging over Richmond meant some anguished reactions to the Tigers' lack-lustre loss to Melbourne in the first round of the NAB Challenge. But any anxiety felt by the sizeable Tiger army would surely have been quelled by Richmond's far more accomplished display in its second hitout against Collingwood at Wangaratta on Saturday, which produced an accomplished 48-point win. It was a victory, not for the first time engineered by Richmond's classiest acts, with skipper Trent Cotchin, Brett Deledio and Dustin Martin all starring, collecting nearly 100 possessions between them. Up forward, despite the absence of spearhead Jack Riewoldt, the Tigers were still able to muster 18 goals, with Cotchin and key forward Ty Vickery booting four each. Richmond certainly began the game in a far higher gear than it found for all four quarters of last week's game. But the Tigers' satisfaction was tempered by coach Damien Hardwick's revelation that No. 1 ruckman Ivan Maric could need ankle surgery and the Tigers do not know when he will start his season. Maric had successful post-season groin surgery but has yet to play in the pre-season. ''We're just monitoring his progress and see how he's going,'' Hardwick said. ''He's probably in the hands of the doctor at the moment. ''It's been a bit of a drawn-out process at this stage so at some stage we've probably got to make a decision on which way we go. [Surgery] is a possibility.'' Strong performances from ruck recruit Shaun Hampson and tall swingman Ben Griffiths on Saturday suggest Richmond has better back-up for Maric this season. The Tigers' defensive pressure was spot on from the start, their first two goals to Shane Edwards and Deledio the direct result of turnovers forced by dwelling on Collingwood defenders attempting to clear the decks. Richmond dominated the clearances early on, having racked up 16 to the Magpies' six late in the first term, and all its stars were on song, Cotchin chipping in with a couple of goals, Martin starting at half-back but sweeping through midfield with effect, and Deledio all over the place. And the Tigers continue to build both the depth and quality of their midfield. Reece Conca, in his first hitout of 2014, didn't miss a beat early, and particularly impressive was rookie-listed former Port Adelaide player Matt Thomas, who picked up 15 first-half possessions. Former Greater Western Sydney youngster Anthony Miles also had immediate impact when he came off the substitute's bench, picking up 10 touches in the third term and finishing with 18. Collingwood's errors were costly early, as was some ill-discipline from the likes of young ruckman Brodie Grundy, who, frustrated by conceding the ruck battle to Hampson, gave away two 50-metre penalties in the first half. The Magpies generally didn't look nearly as sharp as they had in last week's opener against Geelong, though they would have been encouraged by Dane Swan's first competitive outing for the year, the Brownlow medallist getting his usual swag of possessions. Collingwood at least looked potent enough when it did go forward, starting with the three-tall set-up of Travis Cloke, Jesse White and Ben Reid, with Lachie Keeffe at centre half-back. And Reid provided plenty of evidence that his move forward last season could pay longer-term dividends with five goals for the afternoon.