2014 Premiers: HAWTHORN

HAWTHORN  25.5.35    11.9.75   16.11.107    21.11.137
SYDNEY        12.3.15     5.3.33         8.5.53        11.8.74

SCORERS
HAWTHORN: Roughead (5.1), Breust (3.1), Langford (3.0), Gunston (2.3), Hodge (2.1), Burgoyne (2.0), Puopolo (1.1), Hale (1.0), Hill (1.0), Suckling (1.0), McEvoy (0.1), Mitchell (0.1), Shiels (0.1)
SYDNEY: Franklin (4.2), Goodes (2.1), Jack (2.0), Tippett (1.1), Kennedy (1.0), McGlynn (1.0), Hannebery (0.1), Rohan (0.1)

NORM SMITH MEDAL: Luke Hodge

BEST:  Hodge, Roughead, Gibson, Lewis

OFFICIAL CROWD: 99,454 at the MCG

2014 Brownlow

REAL FOOTY

2014 Brownlow Medal results:

PLAYER	3	2	1	Votes
Matt Priddis (WC)	4	5	4	26
Nat Fyfe (Fre)	5	4	2	25
Gary Ablett (GC)	5	3	1	22
Lance Franklin (Syd)	4	4	2	22
Patrick Dangerfield (Adel)	6	1	1	21
Josh Kennedy (Syd)	5	1	4	21
Travis Boak (PA)	4	4	1	21
Joel Selwood (Geel)	2	6	3	21
Steve Johnson (Geel)	5	2	-	19
Trent Cotchin (Rich)	3	3	3	18
Dayne Beams (Coll)	3	3	1	16
Scott Pendlebury (Coll)	2	4	2	16
Brent Harvey (NM)	5	-	-	15
Callan Ward (GWS)	4	1	1	15
Jordan Lewis (Haw)	3	2	2	15
Tom Rockliff (BL)	1	5	2	15
Dyson Heppell (Ess)	3	1	3	14
Scott Thompson (Adel)	2	4	-	14
Robbie Gray (PA)	1	5	1	14
Ben Cunnington (NM)	4	-	1	13
David Mundy (Fre)	3	2	-	13
Michael Barlow (Fre)	2	3	1	13
Dion Prestia (GC)	2	2	3	13
Nathan Jones (Melb)	1	3	4	13
Dustin Martin (Rich)	-	5	3	13
Mitch Duncan (Geel)	3	1	1	12
Luke Parker (Syd)	3	1	1	12
Ben McGlynn (Syd)	2	3	-	12
Luke Hodge (Haw)	2	2	2	12
Brett Deledio (Rich)	2	2	2	12
Dom Tyson (Melb)	3	-	2	11
Dan Hannebery (Syd)	3	-	2	11
Josh Kennedy (WC)	3	1	-	11
Jarryd Roughead (Haw)	2	2	1	11
Nick Riewoldt (StK)	2	2	1	11
Rory Sloane (Adel)	2	1	2	10
Jack Macrae (WB)	2	2	-	10
Hamish Hartlett (PA)	1	3	1	10

2014 Grand Final

Weather: Min 9 Max 19 Chance of rain 40%: < 1mm Wind: S 14kph Betting: Sydney $1.65 Hawthorn $2.30

Grand Final

Sydney v Hawthorn

MCG

2:30PM Saturday SEPT 27

Seven Network 1:00PM Live

Fox Footy 7:30PM 5hr delay

2014 Preliminary Finals Results

2014 Season Review

SUPERFOOTY
 
COLLINGWOOD 2014 SNAPSHOT
Wins: 11
Losses: 11
Draws: 0
Ladder position: 11th
Percentage: 94.1
Last year: Finished 6th (14-8, 114.99%)

WHAT WENT RIGHT
Understandably, we all quickly forgot how impressive Collingwood looked during the first half of the season. The Pies sat fourth on the ladder with an 8-3 record following their scrappy win over Melbourne in Round 12. We all know what happened next, though.
They unearthed and exposed two young defenders — Jack Frost and Tom Langdon — to the rigours of AFL and both adapted to their surroundings comfortably.
Frost was the only Magpie to play all 22 games in 2014 — a remarkable achievement considering it was only his second AFL season. He impressed with solid performances on big-name forwards such as Sydney’s Lance Franklin (Round 2), Adelaide’s Taylor Walker (Round 9), Melbourne’s Chris Dawes (Round 12) and Port Adelaide’s Jay Schulz (Round 19).

Tom Langdon: a superb season.

Langdon was the Pies’ sole Rising Star nominee, following an excellent game against Carlton in Round 7. Despite fading late in the year and missing three games, Langdon showed signs he could be a star of the future, averaging 17 disposals, six marks and three rebound 50s per game.

Dayne Beams returned to career-best form, Brent Macaffer and Tyson Goldsack found their respective niches through defensively focused roles and Jamie Elliott developed into one of the competition’s most elusive small forwards.
And you couldn’t fault the Pies’ intensity on the ball-carrier, finishing second in the league for average tackles per game (71) behind Sydney.

WHAT WENT WRONG
Where to start?
Overall, the second half of the season was a disaster, highlighted by their abundance of injuries. Dane Swan (hamstring/knee), Travis Cloke (ankle), Dayne Beams (knee), Nathan Brown (shoulder), Brent Macaffer (knee), Ben Reid (hamstring), Clinton Young (hamstring), Taylor Adams (finger) all missed big chunks of the season, subsequently exposing second-tier players that weren’t ready to take on the big boys.
Even before his injury, Cloke was under performing. After an impressive 2013 campaign, Cloke was well down on average kicks, marks and, above all, goals per game in 2014. He took more contested marks than any other player last season (58), but was ranked equal-13th this year (32).
Having said that, Cloke had little support inside forward 50 from his fellow big men. The club poached forward-ruckman Jesse White before the start of 2014, hoping he would form a lethal partnership with Cloke. But the experiment failed, with White only booting 20 goals from 18 games.

Ben Reid never got a clear run in 2014.

Swan had a poor season by his lofty standards. Yes he missed five games due to injury, but he only booted 11 goals and averaged 25 disposals per game — his lowest figure since 2008.

The Pies’ top two picks from the 2013 National Draft — Matt Scharenberg and Nathan Freeman — both failed to play a senior game due to injury, with Scharenberg unlikely to play next season after rupturing his ACL in the VFL in late August.
The cherry on top was the post-season publicity surrounding Heritier Lumumba, who was outraged over a homophobic reference in a poster put up at the Westpac Centre. Despite an individually solid season, Lumumba is now almost certain to part ways with the club.

BEST-AND-FAIREST
It’s hard to go past skipper Scott Pendlebury, who was named on the bench of the All-Australian team on Tuesday night.
As his team faded, the 26-year-old continued to perform brilliantly during the second half of the season. He finished the year ranked third in the league for average SuperCoach score and effective disposals, sixth for average disposals and eighth for average contested possessions.
Pendlebury, who was appointed Collingwood captain at the start of the season, showed outstanding consistency, dipping below 25 possessions in only three of his 21 matches.
Expect the smooth-moving midfielder to win his third Copeland Trophy in early October.

Skipper Scott Pendlebury: likely to win the Copeland Trophy.

SUPERCOACH STUD
Popular pick Dayne Beams was the SuperCoach revelation of 2014.

Beginning the year at a bargain price of $497,200, Beams was a must-have in your midfield. And the star Pie didn’t let owners down, averaging 115 points per game.
The best aspect about Beams’ 2014 SuperCoach campaign was his reliability and consistency. He only dipped below 100 points in three of his 19 matches. One of those games was when he hobbled off the MCG with a knee injury in the third quarter of Collingwood’s loss to Brisbane.
Beams, who averaged 27 touches, one goal and six clearances per outing, ended up as the eighth-most popular SuperCoach pick in the competition by season’s end.

SUPERCOACH DUD
Dane Swan. No questions asked.
For years, Swan was the most reliable midfielder in the AFL. Averaging 117 and 127 SuperCoach points per game between seasons 2009 and 2013, he was your automatic captain.
Not this season.
Swan averaged 86 points per game — his worst return since his debut season of 2005. He only topped 100 points three times.
The Brownlow medallist started the season priced at $632,600 but finished at $388,600. His price drop of $244,000 was the biggest of any player this year.

Dane Swan was unable to recapture his best form this year, with injury hampering his quest.

THE LIST

Elite: Dayne Beams, Scott Pendlebury, Steele Sidebottom
Big improvers: Tyson Goldsack, Brent Macaffer, Jamie Elliott, Jack Frost
Gone: Nick Maxwell, Luke Ball, Quinten Lynch, Caolan Mooney, Marty Clarke, Peter Yagmoor, Ben Hudson
Trade Bait: Heritier Lumumba, Alex Fasolo, Paul Seedsman

WHAT THEY NEED
After losing to Hawthorn in Round 23, Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley said the club would make decisions based on being “super-competitive in the next three to five-year period”.
From a positional perspective, the Pies bat reasonably deep. They have an abundance of tall defenders and shorter players who can play either midfield or half-forward, while they have two promising young ruckmen — Brodie Grundy and Jarrod Witts — who are still a few years off reaching their full potential.
But to be immediately competitive, the Pies must secure a second tall forward to support Cloke, especially with Lynch announcing his retirement and White struggling to make an impact this season.
That hole could be filled by Melbourne big man Mitch Clark, whose preferred club of choice is reportedly Collingwood. The Pies have met Clark twice at the Westpac Centre and seem prepared to take the risk of recruiting him, despite his foot, soft-tissue and mental health problems.
And with Heath Shaw leaving 12 months ago and Lumumba set to depart soon, Collingwood could also do with a rebounding defender who can provide dash and drive out of defensive 50.
The Pies had cracks at star players like Nick Riewoldt, Jonathan Brown and Steve Johnson at different stages over the past decade, so don’t be surprised if they attempt to land a big fish during the upcoming trade period.

Nathan Buckley and the Pies are buoyant about their future.

PREMIERSHIP CLOCK
Before Collingwood played its first match against Fremantle in Round 1, club chief executive Gary Pert said he expected the Pies to be “featuring in the top four” over the next three years and “winning a premiership during that period of time”.
At the time, the call seemed bold and somewhat convincing. Now, it seems optimistic, perhaps unrealistic.
Collingwood will be doing some strong soul-searching over the summer. But was this year’s fall from grace the hit it needed to have? Was it the perfectly-timed wake-up call?
The Magpies missed the finals for the first time since 2005. Yes it’s not the end of the world, but it still seemed a disappointing outcome, considering most expected Nathan Buckley’s men to feature in the finals.
One thing in Collingwood’s favour is its core group of players are still in the right age bracket to challenge for a flag. Dayne Beams (24-years-old), Jarryd Blair (24), Nathan Brown (25), Travis Cloke (27), Jamie Elliott (22), Tyson Goldsack (27), Lachie Keeffe (24), Brent Macaffer (24), Scott Pendlebury (26), Ben Reid (25), Steele Sidebottom (23) and Alan Toovey (27) all have ample time to improve, both as individuals and a group.
But with Collingwood being Collingwood, expectations from fans and stakeholders will be high.
There hasn’t been too much backlash to this year’s fall from grace. But if the team fails to improve in 2015, stronger repercussions will undoubtedly ensue.

CHAMPION DATA SAYS
TICK: Started the season in a blaze of glory, ranking fourth on the ladder after Round 12 behind the Swans, Hawks and Power. It ranked in the top 5 in the league for contested possessions, tackles and mark inside 50 differentials.
CROSS: After winning eight of its first 11 games, the Pies fell right away thereafter, managing only three more wins for the year. They ranked 16th on the form ladder from Round 13 onwards — with only Melbourne and St Kilda worse off.

2014 Preliminary Finals

Betting Swans 1.25 N. Melbourne 4.00 Hawthorn 1.32 Port Adelaide 3.40

Friday SEPT 19, 7:50PM - Preliminary Final 1: Sydney Swans v North Melbourne ANZ 7mate / Fox Footy 7.30pm

Saturday SEPT 20, 4:45PM - Preliminary Final 2: Hawthorn v Port Adelaide MCG 7mate / Fox Footy 4.30pm

2014 Semi-Finals

Betting North Melbourne 2.30 Geelong 1.62 Fremantle 1.53 Port Adelaide 2.50

Friday SEPT 12, 7:50PM - Semi-Final 2: North Melbourne v Geelong MCG 7mate / Fox Footy 7.30pm

Saturday SEPT 13, 7:45PM - Semi-Final 1: Fremantle v Port Adelaide Patersons 7mate / Fox Footy 7.30pm

2014 Season Review

fanatix

COLLINGWOOD (11th: 11 wins, 11 losses)

What went right:
The first half of the season.
Nathan Buckley’s side were 8-3 after 11 rounds and were looking on track for a finals spot, with captain Scott Pendlebury yet again outstanding.
The introduction of youngsters Jack Frost and Tom Langdon gave Pies fans a glimpse into the future and it was all looking good.

What went wrong:
Injuries clearly took its toll on Collingwood’s season, with 21 players listed as unavailable for the Magpies’ final game of the season against Hawthorn.
However, Buckley’s side showed its frailties even in their early-season wins.
An unhealthy reliance on Travis Cloke and Jamie Elliott for goals came back to bite them, and a weakened defence meant they were unable to stem the flow of opposition goals no matter the improvement of both Langdon and Frost.

Star performer:
Scott Pendlebury.
The Collingwood captain was yet again superb in what was an extremely disappointing season for the club.
As sleek and as skilful as ever, the skipper averaged 14 kicks and 28 disposals a game to become a shining light in what was a dark, dark season for the black and white faithful.

The future:
There’s no doubt Collingwood’s list is still good enough for finals football, but there are still questions around the coaching nous of Nathan Buckley.
Whilst a fine player in his time, Buckley has shown he still has a lot to learn as a coach at AFL level in a tactical sense.
Tom Langdon and Jack Frost were revelations and will become key Magpies in the near future.
Injuries hurt their cause massively in 2014, but if they can keep their key men fit and healthy, the Magpies should come into the finals equation in 2015.

Score: 4.5/10

2014 Season Review

THE ROAR

After missing the finals for the first time since 2005, there is a lot of work to do for the Collingwood Football Club if they are to contend for another premiership in the years to come.
A mixture of injuries, poor form and the retirements of premiership players Nick Maxwell and Luke Ball conspired against the Pies as they crashed to their lowest placing since 2005, finishing 11th after being in the top four midway through the season.
The club also suffered from inconsistent results on the field, most of which contributed to their downfall in the second half of the season. That is something the club should rectify if they are to return to the upper echelon of the ladder in 2015.
That said, let’s see how Collingwood’s 2014 season unraveled and forecast what lies ahead for them in the future.

Collingwood
Final ladder position: 11th (11 wins, 11 losses, 94.1%)
Rising Star nominees: Tom Langdon (Round 7)
Retirees/delistees: Nick Maxwell, Quinten Lynch, Luke Ball, Caolan Mooney, Marty Clarke, Peter Yagmoor, Ben Hudson

What went right?
After dropping two of their first three matches of the year, including the season-opener against Fremantle by 70 points, the Pies warmed into the first half of the season, winning seven of their next eight to be sitting in the top four after Round 12.
They also defeated five of the eight eventual finalists – Sydney in Round 2, Richmond, North Melbourne and Essendon in consecutive weeks, as well as against Port Adelaide in Round 19.
They also kept their undefeated record against Mick Malthouse intact, winning both of their encounters against Carlton by 34 and 15 points in Rounds 7 and 15 respectively.

What went wrong?
After sitting in the top four after their Queen’s Birthday win over Melbourne, the Pies fell away badly. They won just three more matches for the rest of the season. Further, their largest winning margin in this period was by only 15 points against Carlton.
Injuries started to ravage the team and this was evident in losses by more than ten goals against Essendon, the Brisbane Lions and Hawthorn, all at the MCG, and all within the final seven weeks of the season.
In the end, season 2014 will be remembered as not only a season which signalled the end of their finals run, but also one where injuries struck at the wrong time of the season.

Best win: Round 22 versus GWS Giants at Spotless Stadium 11.9 (75) to 9.13 (67)
As far as the club’s best victories in season 2014 go, while this was not the most impressive one, it was the most courageous.
The Pies arrived at Sydney’s Spotless Stadium not only on the back of a heavy loss to the Brisbane Lions the previous week, but also without Ben Reid after he injured his hamstring in the opening minutes of that defeat.
Further, they lost Dane Swan and Clinton Young to hamstring injuries, as well as Brent Macaffer to the dreaded ACL injury, mid-match, meaning the Pies could only operate on a one-man bench for all but the opening seconds of the second half.
But anything GWS (who also operated on a one-man bench in their 64-point thumping of Melbourne the previous week) could do, Collingwood could do better.
Behind with just over five minutes remaining, two quick goals saw the Pies claim an eight-point victory as the Giants fell back to their old habit of tiring late in matches.

Worst loss: Round 1 versus Fremantle at Etihad Stadium 5.10 (46) to 17.14 (116)
It might not have been indicative of how poorly Collingwood’s season would eventually unfold, but there’s no doubting their 70-point loss to Fremantle in the season opener was very disappointing.
The Pies welcomed the Dockers to Etihad Stadium in what would be the first ever season opener to take place under the roof, and to the disappointment of many of its fans, they would only kick five goals against last year’s runners-up.
They were missing Ben Reid and Jesse White through injury, while Travis Cloke was kept goalless on the night, his poor showing being the result of poor forward entry by the Pies, and relentless defence by the Dockers.
It was to be, marginally, the Pies’ worst defeat for season 2014, and it placed them last on the ladder at the end of Round 1, but from there the club would start to build its season as already recapped earlier.

The future
Not only have Nick Maxwell and Luke Ball retired, premiership defender Heritier Lumumba could also be on the way out after reportedly not being happy over a homophobic message posted about him within the club.
Last week he was spotted having coffee with Melbourne coach Paul Roos, which has led to speculation the Pies could offload him to the Dees. He would be a perfect replacement there for James Frawley who is expected to leave the club as a free agent.
There’s also the chance he could reunite with his premiership winning coach, Mick Malthouse, at Carlton. While that appears unlikely, it could also add some spice to the first time the Blues and Pies face off in 2015, likely to be as early as Round 5.
Other than those, injury-prone Quinten Lynch also hung up his boots, while Caolan Mooney and Marty Clarke have both quit the club to return to Ireland.
With an earlier start to the pre-season, and still with some key decisions to make in regards to their playing list, the Pies will have more time to either prepare for a return to the finals in 2015, or to continue to reshape its list that is capable of contending for another flag in future years.

Finals Week 1 Results

Qualifying Final:
Hawthorn    3.4.22   6.5.41   10.8.68   15.14.104
Geelong       2.1.13   6.5.41    8.6.54     10.8.68

Qualifying Final:
Sydney         3.4.22   5.8.38   9.10.64   13.15.93
Fremantle    3.1.19    5.3.33   6.6.42    10.9.69

Elimination Final:
North Melbourne   2.3.15   2.4.16    9.5.59   14.9.93
Essendon               2.4.16   6.7.43   10.8.68  12.9.81

Elimination Final:
Port Adelaide   8.1.49   14.5.89   19.8.122   20.12.132
Richmond         1.1.7       3.2.20      6.5.41      11.9.75

Collingwood: An Analysis

REAL FOOTY - Jake Niall

A somewhat prominent Collingwood supporter who works in the media - and isn't Eddie McGuire - was asked this question on Saturday: If Scott Pendlebury was injured for a period next year, who would captain the Pies?
"Aaarrrrrrrrrrggghhh," said the Collingwood man, sounding like Bob Hawke in his political pomp. He added, "aaarrrrrrrrrrggghhh.
"That's your answer, I suppose."
This fellow knew enough about the Pies to recognise that Nick Maxwell and Luke Ball had retired, and that there wasn't another obvious candidate to lead the game's most visible football club. Eventually, after more contemplation, he suggested, "They'd probably have to give it to Travis Cloke."
That exchange certainly isn't a scientific study of the club's list, but it highlights the issue that Collingwood confronts, as it continues to shed significant senior players and replace them with kids. The Magpies lack leadership in a playing group that has become dangerously young and inexperienced.
By "dangerously" young, I mean that the Pies are slipping down the experience ladder, to the point that they seem certain to regularly field one of the youngest 22s in the competition in 2015. As it stands, they will have only one player, Dane Swan, who is older than 28. What was a renovation of the playing list is on the brink of becoming a three-quarter rebuild. Collingwood is potentially placing itself in the same demographic terrain as the Western Bulldogs, Brisbane and even the expansion teams.
Assuming that Heritier Lumumba follows Heath Shaw, Dale Thomas, Chris Dawes and Sharrod Wellingham out the Westpac Centre door and they neither add nor subtract more seasoned players, the Pies will enter next season with only eight players who have played 100-plus games, plus the fragile Ben Reid on 99.
Sydney has 17 players with more than 100 games in the bank in 2014, Hawthorn and Geelong 13 each. Hawthorn's team that confirmed cessation of the Kennett Curse on Friday night contained 11 with more than 100 games. Eight of those 11 had played 200 games. The eight triple-figure players remaining for the Pies include Tyson Goldsack, Jarryd Blair and Clinton Young - none of whom is a guaranteed selection or could be considered "core" players.
This continued loss of experience, particularly in the midfield, has placed Dayne Beams in a strong bargaining position. An aggressive Brisbane is hovering with a chequebook, eyeing off a rare chance to land a high-calibre Queenslander. There is an argument that if Collingwood is to lose Beams, it would be better to make the trade now, when he is under contract and it can dictate terms. But the likely departure of the wingman formerly known as Harry O'Brien surely puts paid to any Beams trade this year.
If Beams went and was replaced by either an early pick or, say, James Aish, Collingwood truly would be in the throes of a total rebuild, and its probable premiership contention window would be pushed further back to the dusk of Cloke's and even Pendlebury's careers. Beams wasn't an entirely happy camper at the conclusion of the 2013 season, but if he isn't a Buckley acolyte, he has still performed exceptionally well under the current coach. The Pies have little choice but to back themselves to retain him. If this means sweetening his 2015 contract, they should do it.
Collingwood also should bring in some experience to support Pendlebury, who shapes as a lone ranger on the leadership front and is still learning how to lead a team that has moved very swiftly from contention to a team in which Lachlan Keeffe, a 40-gamer and a convert from soccer, is part of the leadership group, along with Young and Steele Sidebottom.
Leadership isn't easily purchased. It is hard enough to find a seasoned player from another club who can play - at reasonable cost - without taking leadership capacity into account. Mitch Robinson is a hard, capable footballer who should be picked up by a second club, but he won't be his next club's answer to Tom Harley. None of those uncontracted Greater Western Sydney kids would fill the leadership breach, either.
Should Lumumba find more palatable pastures, Collingwood will have lost 1000-plus games of experience in the post-season, if you count the retirements of seldom seen Quinten Lynch and Ben Hudson. The leadership deficit is such that the Pies could do worse than have someone of Brad Sewell's ilk running around for them next year. The few senior bodies they have acquired, such as Jesse White and Young, haven't delivered.
Collingwood's collapse from 8-3 at the season mid-point coincided with the injury to Maxwell, who had knitted an inexperienced backline together in the absence of Reid and Nathan Brown and played some career-best footy. Maxwell had a small fraction of Gary Ablett's talent, but his injury and exit was a less severe version of what happened to the Suns when Ablett's shoulder was ploughed into the turf by Brent Macaffer.
The incremental progress of the Suns and GWS demonstrates that it has never been harder for young teams to win than in these physically and mentally taxing times. There is a strong correlation between the ladder and the order of experience. The expansion clubs are acting as a kind of experiment measuring how long it takes to build a contending team from scratch.
On my reckoning, if you don't have an existing base of quality senior players, the process takes seven to eight years (Gold Coast should play finals next year, in year five). The new teams show that it doesn't matter how talented the kids - without experience, they don't win.
Collingwood is certainly well-placed in the department of youth. The Pies have a promising pair of young rucks in Jarrod Witts and Brodie Grundy. Tom Langdon came straight in and showed immense poise, Jamie Elliott has match-turning abilities, Tim Broomhead seems classy, while Taylor Adams and Marley Williams shape as tough, capable players. Jack Frost held down full-back when Brown was grounded. The only negative in the youth department has been the severe injuries to prized draftees Matthew Scharenberg and Nathan Freeman, the former's knee injury representing the nadir of Collingwood's season.
The Pies will enter 2015 and 2016 with a more talented group than they had this year. But, as a team that is losing games and experienced heads by the day, they need to find leaders, from within or without. Quickly.

Finals Begin

Betting Hawthorn 1.52 Geelong 2.60 Sydney 1.42 Fremantle 2.90 N. Melbourne 1.70 Essendon 2.18 Port Adelaide 1.42 Richmond 2.90

Friday SEPT 5, 7:50PM - qualifying final: Hawthorn v Geelong MCG 7mate / Fox Footy

Saturday SEPT 6, 2:20PM - qualifying final: Sydney v Fremantle ANZ Stadium 7mate / Fox Footy

Saturday SEPT 6, 7:15PM - elimination final: North Melbourne v Essendon MCG 7mate / Fox Footy

Sunday SEPT 7, 2:50PM - elimination final: Port Adelaide v Richmond Adelaide Oval 7mate / Fox Footy

'Harry' to Leave?

REAL FOOTY

Collingwood is likely to part ways with premiership player Heritier Lumumba after he criticised the club for not acting on what he felt was a homophobic slur and after a series of intense discussions in recent weeks broke down.
Lumumba recently challenged Collingwood over a graffitied advertising poster in the players' rooms, of Scott Pendlebury and Dayne Beams, that he said was homophobic and should not have been tolerated by the club.
Someone had written "off to the Mardi Gras boys?" on the picture of the two players. Lumumba said the club should have come down strongly to find out who had written the graffiti on the poster and to take action as it was offensive to the gay members of staff.
Coach Nathan Buckley, who it is understood was unaware of the poster, was taken aback by the claim of an unsafe workplace during a meeting with Lumumba late in the season.
Lumumba said in that meeting he might resign to which it was suggested that that might not be a bad idea. He withdrew that comment but plainly made his uneasiness about the situation known to teammates after that meeting.
There has since been a series of meetings between Lumumba and club officials – including a lengthy meeting on Monday with club President Eddie McGuire, who has been a strong supporter of Lumumba and his family – and subsequently both parties are now reconsidering whether there is a future for the former All-Australian at Collingwood.
It was rumoured earlier in the week that a senior player had walked out on the football club and at the time that was denied, although it was admitted there had been issues with Lumumba but that those issues had been worked out. Later this week there have been further discussions between the player and the match committee and it is becoming increasingly likely that Collingwood will now seek to trade the defender and wingman.
If Collingwood trades the 27-year-old it will be the second time in successive years the club has sought to jettison a contracted premiership player after becoming frustrated at dealing with them off the field. Last year the club eventually traded Heath Shaw to GWS for Taylor Adams.
Like Shaw last year, if Lumumba wishes to stay as a contracted player he is entitled to insist on his contract being honoured and remain at the club.
Lumumba's manager Ben Niall, who coincidentally was also Shaw's manager, said the player and club were both considering their options.
"Heritier and the club have had some issues and yes a bit of history there and now it is coming to the point where he is contracted for next year but both parties will decide whether it is best for Heritier to be there next year," Niall said.
"Both parties are going to spend some time thinking about what they do from here. Do they both decide they can work through this or is it time to go their own way and maybe he has to move to a new club?
"Heritier can decide to stay if he wants and he is a contracted player and the club has said go away and think about whether you want to stay and commit to Nathan Buckley and the Leading Teams system or do you decide at the end it's time to open a new chapter at a new club?
"Heritier loves Collingwood and respects Nathan Buckley and he acknowledges that the way he expresses himself at times can be problematic and he needs to modify how he expresses himself going forward whether that is at Collingwood or at another club."
Lumumba took time away from the club last year for personal reasons and had lengthy discussions with Nathan Buckley when he returned about re-committing to the club. "I think when you go through those times, I mean I had to work out – H and I both had to work out – if we thought that we had a relationship that could continue," Buckley said earlier this year.

2014 LADDER: ROUND 23

Pos Position    C Change from last round    P Played    W Won    L Lost    D Drawn    F Points for    A Points against
% Percentage    Form Past five results    Next Next opponent    Pts Points