Collingwood v Geelong
MCG 7mate / Fox Footy 7.30pm Weather: Min 11 Max 17 Chance of rain 70%: < 1mm Wind: NW 28kph Betting: Collingwood $1.72 Geelong $2.10 |
Enjoying life in second spot on the ladder, the Magpies had further good news on Monday when Elliott, 22, confirmed he had signed a three-year contract extension, ensuring he remains at the club until the end of 2018.
Elliott, with nine goals this season and a key component of the Magpies' fierce defensive pressure inside their attacking 50, said he had not given any thought to joining another club.
"Three years is plenty for me to see how I go individually but, team wise, we are not getting hyped up about how we are at the moment," he said. "But we are looking very positive and the environment around the club is very good as well.
"In our pre-season – the NAB Challenge – we were a bit shaky and that's where the media jumped on board and wanted to say that we weren't going to do too well this year.
"But we have stuck to how Bucks [coach Nathan Buckley] wants us to play and, if we continue to do that and bring pressure to the game, and fix up and tidy up the little things, we are going to, hopefully, have a really good crack this year and then the next couple of years.
"With the youngsters, and I am one of them, hopefully we develop really quickly and it's going to be successful."
That pressure Elliott has spoken about has resulted in the Magpies conceding just 12 goals in the past fortnight in wins over arch-rivals Essendon and Carlton.
The Pies face another test when they confront Geelong on Friday night, before the fixture potentially opens up again with struggling Richmond and Gold Coast.
McGuire wouldn't buy into suggestions this season had the feel of the unexpected rise of 2002 when the Magpies reached the grand final, but that could change should their good form continue.
Buoyant from securing another major sponsor, La Trobe Financial, McGuire re-iterated his pre-season stance that this was a year when the Magpies could "pinch" what would be a 16th premiership.
"This is the year that any one can pinch it, that there are opportunities and Collingwood needed to approach the year not as if we are young players and looking to the future," he said. "Tomorrow doesn't come in football. You have got to make it happen.
"It's early days yet. But you look at what the Western Bulldogs are doing, you look at some of the more established sides like Hawthorn and Port Adelaide and Fremantle, Sydney, of course, are there. There are opportunities for everybody.
"Teams will come up and down, we all know what happens with injuries. We have had a horror run with injuries in the past three years. With a little bit of luck, I always believed we were there.
"Collingwood is always in contention. Am I surprised? No. Am I delighted? Yes. Is there a long way to go? You better believe it."
The high-marking Elliott, whose No. 5 guernsey is one of the club's top sellers, also believes there is a long way to go in his career, and he hopes this will allow him eventually to spend more time in the midfield.
"If I am looking at the bigger picture, I definitely want to take my game to the next level, and that's where I see my game going," he said.
"At the moment, I don't mind sitting in the forward 50 to be honest. With a few more pre-seasons, hopefully, I can get fitter because it doesn't come naturally to me. So, hopefully, two or three more pre-seasons, I'll get some strong runs in, and then I'll run out the game better and, hopefully, play in the midfield."
Elliott is also clearly one of McGuire's favourites. "He plays the game the way we all wish we used to play it," he said.
To mark Jamie Elliott’s three-year contract extension, Collingwood Media looks at five facts behind the man in the famous No. 5 jumper.The story so far
A small forward with incredible strength and speed, Elliott marks unbelievably well for his size.
His style of play has seen comparisons drawn with Paul Medhurst and Stephen Milne, but it is through his tackling and defensive work in attack that he has impressed his coaches.
In just over 50 games, Elliott has already enjoyed some big outings, none more memorable than his five goal haul against Carlton in 2013, although many may argue his Mark of the Year against Port Adelaide was even better.
Having slotted a career-high 33 goals in 2014, Elliott still appears to have much improvement still left in him and is rightly considered one of Collingwood's most exciting young prospects.
Five facts about our No. 5
1. He hails from Euroa
Elliott grew up in Euroa, a township boasting a population of 3,166 as per the 2011 Census. Located in Victoria’s north-east, it is situated midway between Melbourne and Albury. Appropriately, the town’s football team is known as the Euroa Magpies and plays in the Goulburn Valley Football League.
2. He played for Collingwood before he was actually playing for Collingwood
Make sense? Probably not. Let us explain.
The VFL has a rule allowing clubs to add top-up players from the TAC Cup to their teams during the home and away season. Collingwood’s VFL affiliation with the Murray Bushrangers allowed it to choose Elliott as a top-up player for two games midway through 2010.
Who would have thought that the teenager with the blond tips who ran out alongside Josh Fraser, Paul Medhurst, Shane O’Bree and Jarryd Blair out at Box Hill and Victoria Park would eventually become one of the stars of the show?
3. He has worn three numbers in four years
Several players end up changing numbers as they make the transition from young tyro to senior footballer.
But rare are those who wear three numbers – in four years, no less.
Elliott started in the No. 35 before progressing to No. 19 when Cameron Wood departed ahead of the 2013 season. At the end of 2014, Elliott was approached by the retiring Nick Maxwell, who was keen to ensure the famous No. 5 stayed on one of the club’s most popular backs.
Elliott now follows in the footsteps of Maxwell, Nathan Buckley and Ron McKeown as those to wear the No. 5 in recent times.
4. Don’t confuse him with Jamie Elliott
Long before our Jamie Elliott burst onto the scene, there was another footballer of the same name making waves in the AFL.
Jamie Elliott played 58 games for Fitzroy, Richmond and St Kilda between 1991 and 1996. Touted by then-Roys coach Robert Shaw as a potential future captain, Elliott was beset by injuries. His career finished at Moorabbin in 1998 and he went on to play and coach in country Victoria.
5. He rarely misses
In Elliott’s first season, he kicked six goals and 11 behinds.
In his 42 games since, he has bagged 72.31 with hauls of five in each of the past two years.
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