2018 Round 9: The Team, Preview, Injury List

2018 AFL Round 9 COLLINGWOOD v ST KILDA Time & Place: Saturday May 19, 7:25pm EST Etihad Stadium TV: Fox Footy 7:20pm EST Weather: Min 9 Max 15 Chance of rain 40%: <1mm Wind: WSW 11kph Betting: Collingwood $1.32 St Kilda $3.40

B: Sam Murray, Lynden Dunn, Jack Crisp

HB: Travis Varcoe, Matthew Scharenberg, Jeremy Howe

C: Steele Sidebottom, Scott Pendlebury, Tom Phillips

HF: Jordan De Goey, Will Hoskin-Elliott, Alex Fasolo

F: Josh Thomas, Mason Cox, Jaidyn Stephenson

Foll: Brodie Grundy, Daniel Wells, Adam Treloar

Int: Flynn Appleby, Chris Mayne, Taylor Adams, Tom Langdon

Emg: Jarryd Blair, Callum Brown, Josh Daicos, Brody Mihocek

IN: Alex Fasolo, Tom Langdon, Scott Pendlebury
OUT: Darcy Moore (hamstring), Callum Brown, Ben Crocker (omitted)

COLLINGWOOD NEWS Collingwood has made three changes for Saturday night’s clash with St Kilda at Etihad Stadium. Scott Pendlebury returns after recovering from the leg injury he suffered against the Brisbane Lions in round seven, while Tom Langdon is back after overcoming a leg injury of his own. Langdon’s most recent AFL appearance was in the win over Essendon on ANZAC Day. Fasolo, meanwhile, will play his first AFL game since round 21 last year. He has been named on a half-forward flank. Darcy Moore (hamstring) is out injured, while Callum Brown and Ben Crocker have been dropped. Brown is among the emergencies, along with Jarryd Blair, Josh Daicos and Brody Mihocek. Tom Phillips has been cleared to play despite suffering concussion in the loss to Geelong on Sunday. FAZ RETURNS After a pre-season interrupted by shoulder surgery, Alex Fasolo been building his form in the VFL in recent weeks. He has played up forward and averaged 17 disposals and four tackles across five games. He has also kicked 11 goals. Now the 25-year-old, who was Collingwood’s leading goalkicker in 2016, gets his chance to show once again that he belongs at the highest level.

AFL PREVIEW ROUND 8 COLLINGWOOD V ST KILDA AFL LAST FIVE TIMES R4, 2017, St Kilda 9.15 (69) d Collingwood 7.13 (55) at Etihad Stadium R3, 2016, St Kilda 18.11 (119) d Collingwood 14.6 (90) at the MCG R3, 2015, Collingwood 21.14 (140) d St Kilda 10.6 (66) at the MCG R11, 2014, Collingwood 21.14 (140) d St Kilda 8.6 (54) at Etihad Stadium R6, 2013, Collingwood 15.13 (103) d St Kilda 11.11 (77) at Etihad Stadium LADDER POSITIONS Collingwood: 11 St Kilda: 16 INJURY LIST Tom Langdon (leg) – Available Tom Phillips (concussion) – Test Scott Pendlebury (ankle) – Test Ben Reid (Achilles) – Test Jamie Elliott (hamstring) – TBC Darcy Moore (hamstring) – TBC Max Lynch (ankle) – 1 week Brayden Maynard (ankle) – 1-2 weeks Josh Smith (hamstring) – 5-6 weeks James Aish (knee) – 8-10 weeks Kayle Kirby (medical condition) – 12-14 weeks Tim Broomhead (broken leg) – season Tyson Goldsack (knee) – season SUMMARY It's been a brutal season for St Kilda, which has not won since round one against Brisbane. The Saints are bereft of confidence but their third term in last week's loss to Fremantle, when they kicked six goals, should give them some hope. Fixing their kicking, both in play and when trying to score, is critical. Meanwhile, Collingwood has shown signs they can be a good team but injuries to key players have hurt. While the Pies were 11th going into round nine, they were 4-4 with a percentage of 102. It's a decent position to be in but with Darcy Moore and Jamie Elliott succumbing to hamstring injuries and Ben Reid unavailable as he deals with an Achilles issue, they're missing talent up forward. Nathan Buckley will need to find a way to manufacture goals, although St Kilda is the lowest-scoring side in the competition this year, so that might not be a significant problem. AFL THE SIX POINTS When these sides met in 2017, St Kilda had 27 more disposals, 43 more marks, laid 31 more tackles and had 16 more inside-50s. Jack Billings notched up 28 disposals, 10 marks and one goal. The Saints are ranked last for points per game with 64. Collingwood is mid-table, averaging 86 points. St Kilda has won the past two clashes between the two sides, ending Collingwood’s dominance after it won seven straight matches in 2010-15. Nothing separates these teams at Etihad Stadium – they have each won six times. St Kilda has one win from five games at Etihad this season while Collingwood has won three of its past four matches at the venue. This could be a high handballing game: no team handballs more than Collingwood, averaging 192 per game. St Kilda is second with an average of 178. In-form Collingwood ruckman Brodie Grundy is ranked No.11 in the Schick AFL Player Ratings – a career-high. IT'S A BIG WEEK FOR …Collingwood's medical and fitness staff With talented forwards Darcy Moore and Jamie Elliott suffering hamstring injuries again last week, in the AFL and VFL respectively, the club will review its practices and can ill-afford to lose more guns to injuries. PREDICTION: Collingwood by 15 points.