Preview Round 12: Collingwood v Melbourne

Sportal
 

Collingwood v Melbourne Monday June 9, 3.20pm MCG Fox Footy / 7mate 3.00pm Weather: Min 7 Max 16 Chance of rain 5%: < 1mm Wind: WNW 11kph Betting: Collingwood $1.18 Melbourne $5.00

Why watch?
It’s a Monday afternoon on a public holiday, what else are you going to do? Melbourne are the most improved side in the competition and gave ladder leader Port Adelaide a real scare up in Alice Springs last weekend. Paul Roos has amped up the competitiveness of these Demons and they are now playing with a belief that’s been missing pretty much since Dean Bailey had them challenging for the eight in 2010. Collingwood, however, continue to get the job done. They haven’t been rated among the top echelon of premiership threats, especially after losing to Adelaide. But the Magpies are just quietly going about their business without even really hitting overdrive just yet. 

Match notes

• Collingwood should regain Luke Ball, Brodie Grundy and Dane Swan for this week’s clash. But the Magpies will also lose Steele Sidebottom (suspended), Nick Maxwell (calf) and maybe Jesse White (finger). If White plays, Taylor Adams is probably the player to come out of the team.
• Collingwood will be aiming for their fourth consecutive Queen’s Birthday win since the classic drawn game in 2010.
• Melbourne will field one of their best forward lines for several weeks as former Magpie Chris Dawes returns to the side from suspension to join James Frawley.
• Dom Tyson is increasingly looking like the recruit of the year as he continues to deliver the goods for the Dees. But one imagines Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley has taken notice of how damaging Tyson can be and the young Demons can probably expect a date with Brent Macaffer on Monday. That will be good news for Nathan Jones, though, who usually cops the heavy tag, while Daniel Cross will probably shadow Scott Pendlebury or Dayne Beams.
  

Quote of the week?
“But because the injury is now taken into account, you can get unlucky – Steele got unlucky,” said Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley when discussing Sidebottom’s three-match ban for taking out Saint Maverick Weller. 

Last five weeks
Collingwood

• W 23 Essendon
• W 34 Carlton
• L 21 Adelaide
• W 8 West Coast
• W 86 St Kilda
  

Cold hard fact
Melbourne won four Queen’s Birthday games in a row from 2004 to 2007. But the last time it beat the Pies Neale Daniher was coaching and Brad Miller – who starred in that game - was better known for his football rather than his wife. 

Final word
This promises to be the most even contest between these teams since they played out a classic draw in 2010. Melbourne have only been beaten by more than 31 points on one occasion this year and that was a Round 2 hammering by West Coast before the Roos game plan clicked into gear. Despite that effort, the Dees' average losing margin is around five goals, way down on last year’s 64 points. In all fairness, Melbourne are a bit stiff not to be on the fringes of the eight after being right in games against the Western Bulldogs and Port, only to drop away at the end and not take their chances. Yet, while Melbourne are much improved, this match may be a struggle. They had to travel back from Alice Springs to Melbourne and while they have had a nine-day break, the long trip may take its toll. Collingwood are coming off a 10-day break and while they have injury worries, seem to have the players on the park to get the job done. This will be much tougher than the last few years but it’s still Collingwood by 20 points.