Maxwell on Collingwood

The Australian

COLLINGWOOD captain Nick Maxwell believes the Magpies now boast greater depth than during the drought-breaking premiership season of 2010.
The 29-year-old is also confident Collingwood will improve on last year's effort when a beaten preliminary finalist, due to a better understanding by the players of Nathan Buckley's demands but also because the coach, too, will be enhanced by the knowledge gained from his first season in charge.
Collingwood, which elevated Sam Dwyer and Jack Frost to its senior list this week, begins its season at Etihad Stadium tomorrow against North Melbourne wary that the Kangaroos defeated it by five goals on the same ground last August.
Maxwell, however, believes the Magpies are well placed following a mixed pre-season in which they trounced West Coast in Perth with an inexperienced squad yet fell heavily to Geelong in the final warm-up match.
"We are in a pretty good position at the moment. There are still a few guys that have to come back from injury but, all in all, we are happy with our pre-season. We think it has been a success," he said.
It is the effort against West Coast in the NAB Cup match that convinced Maxwell that Collingwood had the depth on its list to overcome injury obstacles.
A glance at the 25-man squad announced on Thursday indicates a change in personnel; Dwyer and Frost are joined by former Eagle Quinten Lynch and Blue Jordan Russell.
Brent Macaffer, too, is effectively a new recruit given the premiership forward's last game before being stricken with injury was in August 2011.
While premiership Magpies Chris Dawes and Sharrod Wellingham were among those to depart the Magpies at the end of last year, Maxwell is certain the nest of 2013 is better equipped to handle adversity.
"I think what (the defeat of West Coast) has shown is that we have thrown other guys in and it has showed us that they can play at that level," he said.
"We have probably got more depth this year than when I have been at the club. I think there is more (than in 2010).
"I think there are guys like Sammy Dwyer and Kyle Martin who are just new, but they are mature-aged guys, so they already have that physical body and the way they have gone about it is just sensational."
Maxwell said part of the reason Collingwood had not missed the finals since 2005 was its ability to replace senior players.
"I think it is, even going back to 2007 when we lost Bucks, Jimmy Clement, Anthony Rocca the next year and then (Paul) Licuria and (Brodie) Holland," he said.
"There is a lot of development that goes on to get the guys up to that level and when you are finishing high on the ladder, it is hard to get the draft picks to bring through the quality players, so I guess that is where we have been really lucky and worked hard on our systems.
"We are proud of our system, to be able to bring through a lot of rookies. We have eight rookies play in the 2010 premiership which just shows that you don't always have to have first-round draft picks if you pick the right guys who are prepared to work hard.
"One of the big things we do is pick guys with character. That is the aim, to pick guys who are the right people.
"They don't have to have all the right skills and they don't have to be perfect, and I am proof of that, but if you get the right character guys who show they are going to work their backside off and are desperate to play AFL footy, that is what we have seen."
Maxwell, who has played 179 games for Collingwood after being given a chance on its rookie list, said he was confident Buckley's coaching style would have benefited from his first season in charge.
"I think you get better with every year that you have with a new coach," he said.
"With Mick (Malthouse), I didn't understand the game plan as well in my first and second year as I did in my eighth and ninth when he ended up leaving. With Bucks, it will be no different.
"He has only had one year as coach, so he is going to improve. He is going to get better and he is going to find different ways of getting the best out of different players, so all in all, it can only be a good thing for us."
But as certain as Maxwell is that Collingwood will contend again come September is his acknowledgement that the key foes of recent years will also be thereabouts.
"I think the names that have been there the last few years are going to be the similar ones," he said.
"Hawthorn and Sydney, West Coast and Fremantle, if they win the games at home they usually do, and then pinch a few over here, then they are going to win enough games to finish top four as well.
"History says if you don't finish top four, then you can't win it. It is going to be very interesting because I think . . . there is going to be a lot of teams miss out with a lot of wins."