The Result
Collingwood 9.8 (62)
Carlton 18.14 (122)
Goals - Sidebottom 2, Beams, Cloke, Dawes, Fasolo, Goldsack, Shaw, D.Thomas
Disposals - Swan 31, Beams 22, Shaw 22, D.Thomas 22, Sidebottom 21
Any loss to Carlton leaves a bitter taste in the mouths of Magpie fans, but Friday night’s 60-point defeat will sting more than most. Collingwood, aside from a purple patch in the second quarter, were comprehensively outplayed by a Carlton side at the top of its game. Collingwood won’t be the last side to be troubled by the pace of the Blues’ midfielders and small forwards.
Click here to watch the CTV highlights.
The hopes and dreams of the season ahead were dealt a blow when Luke Ball tore his anterior cruciate ligament. He will require surgery this week and will spend the remainder of the season in the grandstand. The Magpies’ injury toll grew further when Ben Reid headed down the race and reappeared in the red substitute’s vest at quarter time. He has injured his quad, meaning he will miss the next 2-3 weeks.
Bucks’ take
"We've had a fairly big wake-up call tonight. Things just don't happen in this game; things change pretty quickly. We clearly haven't got the gap that we enjoyed towards the end of 2010 between where the club was and the competition. That gap clearly whittled away to nothing towards the end of last year, and perhaps we've got some catching up to do."- Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley.
Over the fence
"It's only round three. There's a lot of footy to be played and people can get carried away with things. We don't want to be getting fat heads or anything like that; we want to make sure we stick to the task. It will be really important, and this group will be outstanding in making sure we stay focused on what we have ahead of us." - Carlton coach Brett Ratten.
Stats of note
One player who might assume greater responsibility in the absence of Luke Ball could be Steele Sidebottom. He’s already made big improvements to his game this year, highlighted by his disposal efficiency of 90.5 per cent against Carlton, up on his 2011 season average of 74.6 per cent.
Some good signs on the tackling front. Alex Fasolo kept the forward pressure up with a game-high five tackles, equal with Sharrod Wellingham, who gathered 16 disposals in a solid return to senior football.
Listen to Nick Maxwell post-match.
The Brownlow Medalist sure knows how to shake a tag. Dane Swan has gathered 94 disposals in three games to sit level with Carlton skipper Chris Judd as the equal fifth most prolific player in the league. He currently averaged 31.33 disposals per game, having added 31 to his tally on Friday night.
The medical room
As touched on previously, the Magpies will be without inspirational midfielder Luke Ball for the rest of the season and will miss Ben Reid for at least the next fortnight. No other fresh injuries arose from the weekend’s AFL and VFL matches. Chris Tarrant remains on track for a return from his calf injury in rounds 6-7 while rookie defender Michael Hartley is set to return to the VFL action after a two week lay-off with a shoulder injury.
Take note
With Tarrant already sidelined and Reid subbed out of the game at the first break, Pies fans may have feared the worst as Carlton’s Jarrad Waite and Shaun Hampson threatened to cut loose. But in only his eighth game of senior football, Lachlan Keeffe managed to hold the backline together.
Read Keeffe's thoughts on his development here.
The 204cm celebrated his 22nd birthday the day after the loss but his spirits wouldn’t have been dampened by his own performance, gathering 16 disposals and 10 marks at centre half back. What was just as impressive was his composure and refusal to panic under pressure, illustrated by his ability to hit targets with his left foot coming off half back.
Welcome back skipper
Captain Nick Maxwell was welcomed back into the side with open arms, and he didn’t disappoint. The skipper had 13 disposals and held five grabs but most importantly helped steady the side when Carlton bombed the ball deep into attack, giving the Blues’ tall forwards plenty to contend with. Maxwell’s intensity alone with act as a huge inspiration to players and supporters alike.
The influence of Pendles
Strange things happen on Friday the 13th, and the football gods didn’t miss Scott Pendlebury. The vice-captain and arguably the side’s best player in the first fortnight recorded only 15 disposals. It was his lowest tally since the 2010 drawn Grand Final when he managed 19, and you have to go back to round 21, 2009 against the Sydney Swans to find a smaller total (13). But if history is any guide, ‘Pendles’ will fight back with a vengeance this week. Seven days after he gathered 19 touches in the 2010 draw, he collected a Norm Smith Medal courtesy of 29 possessions in the replay victory.
Consider this
The win was Carlton’s first over the Magpies since round eight, 2009, when they defeated Collingwood by 51 points.
The significance of that result? It set Collingwood off on a seven game winning streak. We’ll soon find out if history can repeat.
What does it mean?
- Opportunities. The result will have the 22 players who ran out against the Blues keener than ever to re-establish the side as a contender and to shore up their roles within it. On the flipside, the current members of the VFL team will be eyeing off their moment in the sun when the match committee presents its findings on Thursday night. Something for everyone this week.
- The search for the perfect ruck combination in the post-Leigh Brown era is still yet to finish. After Chris Dawes relieved Darren Jolly around the ground in the first two rounds, traditional ruckman Cameron Wood was given his first crack of the year on Friday night. The big man had eight hitouts and 11 disposals, but the Pies were kept on their toes courtesy of Carlton’s 56-26 ruck domination.
- Did we mention opportunities? Ball’s injury means that several younger players will be clamouring for greater responsibility in the middle. Jarryd Blair, Sharrod Wellingham, Dayne Beams and Steele Sidebottom, despite feeling sympathy for Ball, will no doubt be eying off his position as the midfield hard nut.
VFL
The VFL side brought a smile to everyone’s face when it recorded its first win of the season when it defeated the Northern Blues by seven points on Saturday. Bolstered by the appearance of three senior players in Alan Didak (22 disposals), Ben Johnson (19 disposals) and Nathan Brown (16 disposals), Collingwood had some added potency in attack courtesy of Sandringham recruit Matt Boland who booted six goals.
Looking ahead…
Collingwood will look to have the ledger back on square at 2-2 by 5pm on Saturday when it clashes with an improved Port Adelaide at Etihad Stadium. The Magpies have not lost to the Power in their three meetings at the venue and will look to get back to their best immediately.
Much intrigue will then surround the way both Collingwood and Essendon (who face Carlton on Saturday afternoon) manage their four day turnaround before their Anzac Day clash on Wednesday 25 April.
