The Age - Jon Pierik
After three years of missing the finals, 2017 shapes as a defining
season for Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley and the controversial
coaching succession plan.
Finishing position 2016: 12th (9 wins, 13 losses, 95.6%)
Finishing position 2015: 12th (10 wins, 12 losses, 106.3%)
Players used: 39
Debutants: Tom Phillips (round 12, v Melbourne),
Matthew Goodyear (round 3, v St Kilda), Rupert Wills (round 19, v West
Coast Eagles), Ben Crocker (round 7, v Carlton), Josh Smith (round 5, v
Essendon), Mason Cox (round 5, v Essendon)
Retiring/delisted: Dane
Swan's 258-game career effectively ended when he crashed to the turf
and suffered three broken bones in his foot, including a Lisfranc
fracture, against the Swans in round one. While the "will-he, won't-he"
talk of a return bubbled through the season, Swan finally confirmed what
most thought – his time was up. His premiership teammates Brent
Macaffer, with four senior games this year, and Alan Toovey, with eight,
also retired. Macaffer had struggled after a knee reconstruction, while
Toovey had been unable to enjoy a regular defensive berth. Travis
Cloke, after a year of frustration, has sought a trade to the Western
Bulldogs, while Nathan Brown has been linked with North Melbourne.
Jarrod Witts is also assessing his options.
Outlook for 2017: The general consensus is the Pies
will be a legitimate finals contender next season – but the same was
said this year. Indeed, the Pies were even backed to make the top four,
so impressive did their list appear. But concerns about the game plan,
which was reshaped mid-season, Cloke's struggles, the absence of Jamie
Elliott and Swan, and a defensive unit initially hit by injury meant the
Pies limped through the opening couple of months, to the point
president Eddie McGuire was even asked whether he would hesitate in
sacking Nathan Buckley should that be in the best interests of the club.
There will be change among the assistant coaches, with Ben Hart already
gone, while Graeme Allan has – to the surprise of no one – been
shoehorned into the role of football-department chief, replacing Neil
Balme. That reportedly has been a source of angst among some at the
club. The Pies were able to develop their youngsters this year, and
recruit Adam Treloar was a stand-out, so the season was not a total
waste. Provided this development continues, they should challenge for a
top-eight berth next year.
Make no mistake: These
are worrying times for the Pies. That McGuire had to be talked out of
quitting by his two sons after the round-seven loss to Carlton
highlighted the pressure the club was under. Buckley has embraced that
pressure, to the point he has admitted publicly he won't survive 2017 if
the Pies fail to make the finals. Scott Pendlebury (who played with
broken ribs in the opening month), Steele Sidebottom and Treloar are
elite in the midfield but there are questions up forward. Cloke is gone
but who will be Darcy Moore's fellow marking tall? The Pies do not have a
first-round draft selection this year but will add to their stocks
through the father-son selections of club greats Gavin Brown and Peter
Daicos. Overall, it shapes as a legacy, even defining year for McGuire
and Buckley, and the club's controversial call to replace Mick Malthouse
after the 2011 campaign. A failure to make the finals with a team now
far removed from the Malthouse era will mean, certainly in the eyes of
some, that the handover was a failure.
What the coach says:
"There
might be things outside of our control. We need things to fall into
place as a program for us. We need a little bit of luck, we need to be
harder, we need to be more consistent - these are all things that we
know are going to be the difference between us maximising our potential.
It's not a talent thing. I'm on the hook flat out, we're all on the
hook flat out for it and it's really important for us to make this
work." - Nathan Buckley
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