COLLINGWOOD 0.3.3.21 0.5.4.34 1.12.7.88 1.15.8.107
WESTERN BULLDOGS 1.5.3.42 1.9.7.70 1.11.9.84 1.14.12.105
SUPERGOALS - Collingwood: 1 (Fasolo)
GOALS - Collingwood: Moore 4, Varcoe 2, Gault 2, Cloke 2, Treloar 2, Fasolo, Blair, Crisp
BEST - Collingwood: Treloar, Adams, Moore, De Goey, Pendlebury, Sidebottom, Swan
INJURIES - Collingwood: Nil
REPORTS - Collingwood: Nil
OFFICIAL CROWD: 12,594 at Etihad Stadium
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COLLINGWOOD'S boom recruit Adam Treloar has reinforced his enormous value with a best-afield performance in his first pre-season hitout. Teammate Darcy Moore bagged four goals as the Magpies remained undefeated in the NAB Challenge, courtesy of a two-point win over the Western Bulldogs at Etihad Stadium on Saturday. In a remarkable contest for a pre-season match, the Dogs – powered by dominant 33-disposal display from dashing defender Jason Johannisen and a three-goal effort from young key forward Tom Boyd – played the frenetic football that made them one of last season's bolters, leading by 40 points midway through the second term. But the complexion of the game changed after half-time when the seemingly undercooked Pies upped their rotations, piling on seven successive goals to storm to an eight-point lead just 17 minutes into the third term. Bulldogs sharpshooter Jake Stringer missed a flying shot in the dying moments as the Pies won 1.15.8 (107) to 1.14.12 (105). Ex-Giant Treloar, whose only official match practice had been three quarters in the VFL last week, showed no sign of any lingering groin problems, amassing 26 disposals and two goals. After starting on the bench, Treloar was soon showing his class and work ethic, often starting a chain of handballs and getting on the end of it 60m downfield, as he did when he nailed a lovely running shot after 21 minutes. Treloar later slotted a goal from outside the arc, and combined well with skipper Scott Pendlebury, Steele Sidebottom, Dane Swan and former Giants teammate Taylor Adams. The Bulldogs will sweat on the fitness of ruckman Tom Campbell, who left the field in the second term with a right foot injury and didn't return, raising a possible selection dilemma for the Dogs with veteran ruckman Will Minson nursing a hamstring strain that could sideline him for round one and Jordan Roughead being left out of the clash with the Pies. High-priced Boyd has emerged as a possible ruck option after his impressive showing, with the talented 20-year-old contesting the first centre bounce and acquitting himself well around the ground. However, Boyd did his best work in attack, taking two superb contested marks in the first quarter, the second being a huge, floating pack mark in the goalsquare, which he converted. At the other end, fellow forward hope Moore showed he might be ready to assume the key role of second tall forward alongside spearhead Travis Cloke, who had a quiet day, kicking two easy goals from the goal line in general play. A major concern for the Pies on the eve of the premiership season was their sloppy play in the first half when they made numerous elementary skill errors, particularly in defence where a series of kicking blunders under little or no pressure provided the Dogs with scoring opportunities. WHAT WE LEARNED Collingwood: Good teams take advantage of basic skill errors, and the Pies had too many fumbles and missed kicks when under little pressure in the first half. In the third quarter their midfield got on top and the Magpies fought back, showing Collingwood can match it with the best teams in the middle. NEW FACES Collingwood: Adam Treloar was involved in a scoring chain starting from half-back in the first quarter, finishing the play with a goal. Another burst through the middle in the third quarter saw Treloar kick perfectly to Darcy Moore while running flat out. Moore didn't convert but that combination should excite Collingwood fans. James Aish only came on in the last quarter, and didn't do much in the time he spent on a wing. NEXT UP The home and away season beckons. Collingwood will play the Sydney Swans at the SCG on Saturday, March 26. When the Western Bulldogs and Collingwood met in the final, let's-get-serious game of the 2015 pre-season, Dogs' fans were given a window to the excitement to come via a stunning 10-goal win. At half-time on Saturday they were humming "here we go again". The Bulldogs' speed and skill had spirited them to a six-goal lead and made the opposition look flat-footed. For their part, the Magpies' calamitous kicking had the effect of quite literally shooting themselves in the foot. Premature extrapolators had the Bulldogs winning the premiership and Collingwood destined to slide rather than, as is widely expected, soar back into contention. That Collingwood was in front 16 minutes into the second half further franked the wisdom that pre-season football can be an entree as light as a souffle. The end result was a two-point win to Collingwood in a finish as stirring as could be possible in mid-March, but with nothing up for grabs it was the seeds of promise that mattered most. For the Magpies Adam Treloar was all class as his build towards round one was completed with a 26-possession, two-goal outing, Jordan De Goey did little to soften the fizz of expectation around him, and Darcy Moore provided the focal point that Travis Cloke couldn't with four goals. The great tale of hope in Bulldogs' colours was the man they most hope will match his billing,Tom Boyd, who was prominent both up forward and in the ruck where he shared duties with Jack Redpath as Tom Campbell sat out the second half with an ankle injury. Elsewhere Jason Johannisen continued his rise in stature in a highly respected defence, Marcus Adams showed a bit in some big back-half one-on-ones, Caleb Daniel was lively and Tom Liberatore got through another outing at the coalface. Practice matches are for fine-tuning and an opening notable for errors by foot betrayed that it's very much mid-March. Jake Stringer for the Dogs and Corey Gault and Jarrod Blair at the other end all missed what they should have kicked, Jarrod Witts gifted the Bulldogs their first when he picked out Lachie Hunter, and Tom Langdon and even Scott Pendlebury found the wrong side of the boundary line. When Dane Swan got his first touch after 20 minutes, a free 15 metres out, his centring ball went straight to the Dogs, who promptly ran it to the other end where Lin Jong, all alone inside 50, dropped a chest mark. Back it pinged and finally found safe hands, Treloar kicking his first goal in Collingwood colours. The Benny Hill music rolled on as Alex Fasolo hit the post from 20 metres straight in front. The Magpies kicked the first six of the second half in a startling turnaround in which they turned the Bulldogs' centre clearance dominance on its head, Moore twice dragged the ball out of the sky, Fasolo landed a nine-pointer from 60 metres and Gault got hold of one so close it was a formality. His drop punt from the goalsquare put Collingwood in front. The last quarter was tit-for-tat, the industrious Mitch Wallis's third reclaiming the lead for the Bulldogs before Cloke's second gimme snatched it back. The black and white transformation was exemplified in Travis Varcoe twice running down opponents, the second putting Jake Stringer sufficiently off his kick to miss from the top of the goalsquare when a goal would have pinched it for the Bulldogs. |
COLLINGWOOD moved heaven and earth in the off-season to secure midfielder Adam Treloar and his first official match with the Magpies against Western Bulldogs on Saturday showed precisely why. Treloar produced an outstanding debut as the Magpies kept their unbeaten preseason run alive with a two-point win in an entertaining and even contest against the Bulldogs. The 23-year-old had 26 touches, kicked two goals and helped to inspire a second-half comeback from what was a seemingly hopeless position after their opponents dominated the first half. He kicked a key goal in the first term, then followed it up with a superb shot from just inside 50m in the all-important last term. In contrast to Thursday night's clash between Richmond and Port Adelaide, which brought criticism of the preseason series, this one was an impressive one for fans of both sides looked at the season ahead. This was one of the most entertaining NAB Challenge games this season with both sides seemingly getting plenty out of the contest. Treloar aside, the Magpies would have been delighted with four goals to Darcy Moore, the forward line functioned well even if the back half looked shaky at time, and the likes of Taylor Adams, Scott Pendlebury, Dane Swan and Steele Sidebottom showed what a deep midfield they have this season. The Dogs were best served by Jason Johannisen, who was brilliant from start to finish, Lachie Hunter was impressive, Matthew Boyd and Robert Murphy were good across half back, and Tom Boyd showed a fair bit, kicking three goals and helping out in the ruck after Tom Campbell was injured. The Magpies may have kicked the first goal of the game via a Travis Varcoe run down, tackle and free kick from 35m, but it was Bulldogs who dominated the first half. For the most part that came from the slick run from the back half, and from its midfield edge in those first two terms, though it was also aided by a strangely sloppy Collingwood defence which turned the ball over so often that it must have had coach Nathan Buckley fumed in the coaches' box. The rusty disposal in defence brought about the Dogs' first goal, through Lachie Hunter, and it became a theme for much of the day. Pies fans appeared as if they were cheering that Hunter goal. They weren't, it just happened to coincide with boom recruit Adam Treloar's entry onto the field from the interchange bench. Treloar went straight into the middle and worked his way into the game, showing his incredible workrate late in the term when he took part in a passage from half-back that ended in his first goal in black and white. By that stage, the Dogs had the early ascendancy, and Tom Boyd had played an unlikely role in that. Boyd would have delighted Dogs' fans with his performance on Saturday, kicking three goals overall, and dragging down a couple of impressive marks in attack. Importantly, he was able to help out in the ruck, especially when Tom Campbell went off injured during the second term. Former Hawk Matt Suckling showed why he was targeted by the Dogs in the free agency window when he slotted through a superb super goal late in the first term to make the difference 28 points. By the middle part of the second term, that margin had bloated out to 40 points, and the Magpies appeared to be a fair way off the pace of what appeared to be a much slicker Bulldogs' outfit. Marcus Bontempelli iced a goal just before half-time across the left side of his body, making the difference six goals, but at stages it looked like it could have been more. But just as they did down at Geelong in the first NAB Challenge game, the Magpies transformed the state of the game with a stunning third term. It was an 11-goal third stanza against the Cats, which turned the game, and it was as almost as powerful this time around with eight goals in that same period, including a sensational super goal from Alex Fasolo. Seven of them came in succession, and Treloar played a big part in this turnaround, as Collingwood went from looking like also rans to taking the lead just 16 minutes into the term with a Corey Gault goal. The Magpies held a slight edge at the final change — four points — as both sides threw themselves into a frantic final term that impressed the fans of both sides. And they managed to close out the game, but only just after a wayward kick-in from Marley Williams gave the Dogs one last chance to steal the match back, Time beat them in the end, as the Magpies held on. Collingwood recruit Adam Treloar's strong performance against the Western Bulldogs on Saturday afternoon was to be expected, Magpies coach Nathan Buckley says. Treloar, 23, had hip surgery at the end of last year. The match against the Dogs was his debut for the Magpies' senior team and he excelled, racking up 26 disposals, including 10 contested. A pair of goals capped his game. His run through the middle and class with his kicking was pivotal to the win, while a goal from long range late in the last quarter showed what a weapon he can be. The former Greater Western Sydney midfielder played three quarters of a VFL practice match last Sunday – his first game of 2016. Buckley said the Pies did not need to limit Treloar's minutes. "He's put a lot of work in and he's in good shape. We couldn't be happier with his progress to this point and he's ready to attack the season," Buckley said. "We were only going to expose him to what he was ready for." Collingwood was undefeated in the NAB Challenge and Buckley said that form was advantageous, despite the Pies' biggest winning margin through the pre-season competition being eight points. "For whatever it's worth – which is not a great deal – but to be able to have been in those positions and take the learning from the last two or three minutes from each of the games will stand us in good stead," he said. The Pies went 1-6 in games where the margin was two goals or less last season. Brent Macaffer came off the ground late in the contest with what appeared to be a cramp in his calf, although the exact nature of what happened is not known at this stage. Collingwood will have a practice match next Friday, with defender Ben Reid expected to play. "He's (Adam Treloar) put a lot of work in and he's in good shape. We couldn't be happier with his progress to this point and he's ready to attack the season. We were only going to expose him to what he was ready for." |
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