COLLINGWOOD 0.3.3 6.5.41 9.7.61 12.11.83
ESSENDON 5.4.34 6.5.41 6.7.43 8.12.60
SCORERS - Collingwood: Swan (4.2), Sidebottom (3.0), White (2.0), Elliott (1.0), Goldsack (1.0), Grundy (1.0), Cloke (0.3), Pendlebury (0.2), Beams (0.1), Lumumba (0.1), Macaffer (0.1), Witts (0.1)
BEST - Collingwood: Swan, Sidebottom, Macaffer, Beams, Pendlebury, Langdon, Frost
INJURIES - Collingwood: Fasolo (foot), Young (leg)
SUBSTITUTES - Collingwood: Alex Fasolo replaced by Josh Thomas in the third quarter
REPORTS: Nil
OFFICIAL CROWD: 91,731 at the MCG
| 1. Swan song When the game was locked in a stalemate in the third quarter, someone needed to stand up and make a difference. It fell to the experienced head of Dane Swan, who went on to win his second Anzac medal in as many years. In the third quarter alone, Swan had 10 possessions and kicked two of his three goals with two show-stopping moves. The first came when he intercepted a handpass near the boundary 50m out, ran the length of the arc – giving no respect to Cale Hooker as he strolled past him - bounced twice and slotted the goal. The second came late in the quarter when he ploughed through traffic and kicked truly to make the difference 18 points at the final change. Swan's snap at the 19-minute mark of the last quarter when the Bombers were within 10 points was just icing on the cake. 2. Bomber blitz There is no other way to explain the first quarter than a red and back rout. The Bombers piled on five goals to zero – and very nearly made it six with Jason Winderlich marking on the 50m arc as the siren rang. The veteran forward made the distance but hit the post, which left the Bombers with a comfortable 31-point lead. The Pies didn't take the ball inside their own forward 50 for 10 minutes at the start of the game and not until the Bombers had three goals on the board. Scott Pendlebury missed a shot in the last 30 seconds after winning a free kick from Jake Melksham, but even the silky skills of the Collingwood captain couldn't save his side from being rendered goalless in the opening quarter for the first time against Essendon since round 19, 1990 – and the first time in any quarter against the Bombers on Anzac Day. 3. Land of the little men Just as journalists were reaching for the record books at quarter time, things changed dramatically. Melksham kicked the first goal of the term but from there, it was all Collingwood as the Pies slammed through six unanswered goals to level the scores by half time. Scott Pendlebury, Dayne Beams, Clinton Young and Steele Sidebottom stepped up while the damaging Bombers from the first term – Brent Stanton, Paul Chapman and Dyson Heppell – were reduced in effectiveness. When the momentum swung, it wasn't the big guys who forced the change for the Pies. Jesse White kicked one when he gathered the ball off hands but Travis Cloke touched it just four times in the half and Jarrod Witts twice. Sidebottom snuck two of his three goals from the back of the pack, while Tyson Goldsack and Swan chipped in with the others. |
4. Goal review win There's been plenty of talk recently about the effectiveness of the goal review process and with suggestions that the majority of them are inconclusive. But an instance at the 20-minute mark of the second quarter that cost Collingwood a goal showed the review system can be worthwhile when the right camera angle is available. Cloke kicked a goal from the boundary but Heppell was quick to signal he had touched the ball off the boot. The umpire bravely called for a review in front of the Magpies' cheersquad, which was making some serious noise as their team charged. The footage clearly showed a deviation in Heppell's fingers as the ball travelled through his hands. The adjustment was made, a point awarded and Collingwood fans were left to seethe despite the correct call overruling the goal. 5. Doubt on Dempsey decision? It was only this week Essendon defender Courtenay Dempsey re-joined his teammates after being exiled to the VFL earlier this month for failing to meet professional standards. The backman's pre-season didn't start well when he came back from leave six kilos overweight. But, after last playing on March 29 – in a VFL practice match where he injured his hamstring after overcoming a pre-season calf issue – Dempsey was recalled to the team this week after addressing his teammates on Tuesday. He started as substitute and came on for Kyle Hardingham in the third quarter and it appeared early on he was going to be challenged by the pace of the game. He was run down once by Sidebottom and then caught twice more before his first constructive possession – a contested mark – set up Melksham for a shot at goal. He ended with 10 touches and will be better for the run but it was still an interesting decision to bring him straight in for such a big stage event, even when he started in the green vest.
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| THE MEDIA | |
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Collingwood has overcome a disastrous start to outclass Essendon by 23 points in a bruising Anzac Day affair at the MCG in front of the sixth largest crowd in home and away history. 91,731 fans crammed into the home of football to witness the Pies overcome a 37-point deficit to run out victors 12.11 (83) to 8.12 (60), in the 20th Anzac Day clash between these two sides since the tradition began in 1995. Essendon jumped out of the blocks kicking the first six goals of the game before the Pies, sparked by midfielder Steele Sidebottom and Anzac medallist Dane Swan, piled on nine unanswered goals to wrestle the game back onto their terms. After being criticised for a slow start this season, Swan was back to his best with 26 touches and four goals, while Sidebottom was next best for the Pies amassing 26 disposals and kicking three goals. The win was soured for Collingwood with Alex Fasolo substituted out of the game and wingman Clinton Young limping off in the third term. Fasolo watched the remainder of the game from the bench with a moon boot on his right foot with fears he has injured the navicular bone in his foot, an injury which kept him to just three games last season. Essendon's relentless pressure and quick ball movement had Collingwood on the back foot from the opening bounce and it showed on the scoreboard with the Bombers stunning the Pies with a five goal opening term. Midfielder Brent Stanton was sublime for the Bombers with 14 first-quarter disposals and a goal. Collingwood could only manage a measly three behinds in the first term with Essendon dominating the inside-50s 16 to nine to lead the Pies by 31 points at quarter-time. After their first goalless opening term against Essendon since round 19, 1990, the Pies hit back in the second quarter. A Jake Melksham goal in the opening two minutes of the second term pushed the Bombers lead out to 37-points and it looked as though the game could become a blow out. But in a remarkable turn around, the Pies, ignited by star Steele Sidebottom, piled on six unanswered goals to draw level with the Bombers at half-time. A goal from recruit Jesse White at the eight minute mark of the second quarter, the Pies first major for the game, sparked his side into action. Pies skipper Scott Pendlebury lifted his output in the second term with 11 touches, while Sidebottom had eight disposals and kicked three goals, including one just before half-time to level the score. With the momentum well and truly in their favour, the Pies continued to apply the heat on the Bombers in the third term kicking away to an 18-point lead at the final change. With Travis Cloke unable to impact the scoreboard, White stood tall up forward, while Dane Swan threatened in attack kicking two goals in the third term to give the Pies a run of nine unanswered goals. Not willing to concede defeat the Bombers lifted in the final stanza, the Merrett brothers combining to kick the first two goals of the quarter and reduce the deficit to eight points. But the Pies steadied through Jamie Elliott, Swan and Brodie Grundy to seal the win for the black and white army. The decision to bring back Courtenay Dempsey into the side was a risk that didn't pay off for coach Mark Thompson. Dempsey was subbed on for the Bombers early in the third term, replacing Kyle Hardingham who had just one touch to half-time. The rebounding defender had not played competitive football for a month, after injuring his hamstring two days before being exiled to the VFL for failing to uphold training and preparation standards. His lack of match practice was evident as he was chased down on several occasions and appeared to be unable to keep up with the pace of the contest. Defender-turned-forward Jack Carlisle also failed to bounce back after his coach gave him a public back-hander during the week with Thompson declaring the 22-year-old was "in danger" of being dropped. The Bombers also have some key injury concerns of their own with Paul Chapman copping a blow to the head and limping off with an ankle complaint, while skipper Jobe Watson, who was well held by tagger Brent Macaffer, sustained a gash to the face. Defeating Essendon on Anzac Day after coming from so far behind - and the way they did it - made the win more worthy than Collingwood’s other three wins of the season, Magpies coach Nathan Buckley said. He said he felt the team had improved on last year, in particular defensively at either end of the ground. The win came at a cost for Collingwood, with Alex Fasolo injuring a big toe and needing to be substituted. When he finished the game in a moon boot, there were concerns he had re-injured the navicular bone that kept him out for most of last season, but scans were expected to reveal a toe injury. Clinton Young finished with a corked thigh in a heavy collision with Bomber forward Paul Chapman that left the former Geelong premiership player assessed for concussion. Before a crowd of 91,731, the Magpies came from 37 points down early in the second quarter to boot nine unanswered goals and eventually win by 23 points. They withstood a mini-Essendon comeback in the last quarter to win by 23 points, despite being down a man on the bench. “It was an excellent win … the pride in the performance, the belief in what we're doing at the moment … it's a massive step forward for us,” Buckley said. “Today was probably as encouraging as any of our wins so far. We were on the back foot early, but we were able to hold our line and maintain the belief in the way we went about it. The onfield leadership of the players to maintain that communication and positivity when things were heading south, what we were able to execute over four quarters was the biggest win for us.'' Collingwood had 11 fewer forward entires than Essendon but also laid an impressive 97 tackles. Essendon put on 81 in a fiercely contested game. “We won a different way … Essendon came out from the bell, punched us in the nose, we had watery eyes and it took us a little while to get our bearings,” Buckley said. “It was all the more meritorious with the youth in our side and our senior leaders out there, to be able to keep everything on track and stick to the task. That doesn’t mean we are going to come back and win it, but the fact that we were able to is a fairly big feather in the cap. “Last year, if we were to give up that many inside-50s, we would have been scored [against] really heavily.” Buckley said the team was starting to better implement minor changes to the game plan made after last season when it was exploited defensively at either end of the ground. “We were a top-four side defensively and offensively through the middle last year in transition, in contested ball and clearances, but at either end we had some work to do. We made some modifications, we are adjusting that. “We are not putting a cap on what we are capable of. We are still finding our best balance, we are still finding out what we are capable of, and we look forward to challenges we have to come.'' Buckley said key-position swingman Ben Reid would likely return to the side in after the bye, and following the Carlton game next Friday night. |
MARK Thompson couldn’t have been more satisfied at quarter time on Anzac Day if he was chomping a salad roll and tipping back a Peroni. All week he had publicly goaded his team about their motivation and privately schemed about tactics to bring down the rampant Pies. Just two minutes into the second quarter on a glorious autumn day his Dons were playing perfect Anzac Day football. Thirty seven points clear, with Thompson lauded as a motivational and tactical genius yet again, Essendon had enough momentum to stop a train. It should say everything about the extraordinary nature of another Anzac Day clash that by game’s end his tactics were in tatters and his controversial selections under pressure. A total of 91,731 fans feasted on a contest with everything: massive momentum swings, star turns by mighty midfielders, and a game in the balance at time-on in the last term. But when the dust settled the Dons were still 2-4, and with Thompson’s decisions on substitute Courtenay Dempsey and Jake Carlisle clearly backfiring. First the Dons squandered a lead of better than six goals, then butchered a chance to regain the lead with a last term of missed shots (2.5) and botched opportunities. Thompson watched on helpless while a trio of remarkable Pies in midfielders in Dane Swan (four goals), Steele Sidebottom (three goals) and Scott Pendlebury (30 touches, seven tackles) ripped the game from his grasp. Through their sheer running power the Pies would pile on nine goals in a row, then absorb Essendon’s best late blows to hold the Dons off by 23 points. Carlisle was played forward and was utterly inept, while Dempsey was continually run down and harried into errors despite Thompson’s faith. It will be cold comfort to Thompson that this was yet another chapter in a long line of great Anzac Day contests and watched by the sixth-highest home-and-away crowd in history. The Bombers will lick their wounds, but the rest of us will consider this: can one game of football rescue a season desperately sinking into mediocrity? Because if it stopped short of the type of 1995 Anzac Day epic, it had everything the fans demand from this great code of ours. This game had everything we have missed this year with the rare exception of a few contests like Hawthorn-Geelong. The fans don’t want pretty footy, they want risky football with the capacity to surprise. When good teams bring the heat at the MCG they deny time and space, basically guaranteeing long bombs forward, bone-crunching tackles and quick kicks from packs that clears congestion. The scope of the turnaround from early in the second term beggared belief. The Dons had the first nine inside 50s, the first six goals, and at one stage were on record pace after 24 tackles in 23 minutes. By quarter time Jason Winderlich was shutting out Nick Maxwell, Paul Chapman was smashing Alex Fasolo, Cale Hooker had kept Travis Cloke statless, and Jackson Merrett was tight on Steele Sidebottom. Even superstar Pendlebury had been beaten by Jake Melksham as the Bombers led by 37 points when he kicked the first goal of the second goal from yet another Winderlich assist. Yet Collingwood’s team effort would find a way to combat those 30 minutes of scintillating football. Swan was nearly statless early in the second term but conjured one brilliant moment after another to kick four goals including the sealer. Pendlebury and Young would find a way to lift in that crucial second term to arrest Essendon’ momentum. And all the while Dayne Beams won critical possessions in close so that even when Alex Fasolo (foot) and Clinton Young (knee) were sidelined the Pies found the calmness to end this contest. Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley has refused to put a ceiling on what his team can achieve this season after it found a "different way" to win against Essendon on Anzac Day. After the Magpies gave up a 31-point lead in the first quarter by failing to kick a goal to the Bombers' five, they wrestled back momentum and levelled the scores by half time. They then wrung out a 23-point victory despite being forced to reshuffle their backline with Alex Fasolo (toe/illness) and Clinton Young (corked thigh) unable to finish the game. The way the game was won – different to the Pies' other three victories this season – was the most satisfying aspect for Buckley and enhanced his belief the team has improved this season. "We are not putting a cap on what we are capable of, this side," Buckley said afterwards. "We are still finding our best balance, we are still finding out what we are capable of and we look forward to challenges we have to come. "Last year if we were to give up that many inside-50s we would have been scored (against) really heavily. "We were a top four side defensively and offensively through the middle of last year in transition, contested ball and clearances, but at either end we had some work to do. "We made some modifications, we are adjusting that. "It was an excellent win. The pride in the performance, the belief in what we're doing at the moment...it's a massive step forward for us." Anzac medallist Dane Swan summed up the Pies' first quarter as being "out-pressured" and "out-worked", which led to them chasing their tails and ensuring they didn't panic. Buckley said the fact they worked out how to win and stuck to a new plan that evolved as the game changed was a major positive. "I thought as much as you possibly can, our players held their heads and in the coaches box we held ours and understood it was going to be a grind to work out of it," he said. "(Essendon) really had everything on their terms in the first quarter and we were able to wrestle that back. "That was done on the run in many ways but it was done in the belief there are prerequisites with the way we want to play that we weren't able to execute in the first but we were in the last three." They lost Fasolo in the second quarter and Young in the third, but it was the bizarre circumstances surrounding the former's fitness that left Buckley disappointed with the club's medical staff. Buckley said they believed Fasolo had hurt his toe – and not his navicular bone again, as speculated during the game – before the main break. He has also suffered from the flu for the past three weeks. However, he ran out with the team for the start of the third and it took 10 minutes before the substitute was made to bring Josh Thomas into the game. "I still have some questions to ask of our medical department," Buckley said. "We had 20 minutes to work it out (at halftime) and it wasn't until 10 minutes into the third where we got the decision." When asked if someone "might be having a kick in the bum", Buckley responded with, "Potentially, yeah". Both players will have scans over the weekend. Meanwhile, the Pies aren't expecting key position player Ben Reid to return before their round eight bye but are "bullish about him getting back pretty soon after". Paul Seedsman will play his first VFL game on Saturday following pre-season hip surgery. |
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