Voting for the Magpie Army Player of the Year Award is underway for 2015.
Collingwood Media looks at the performances of some of the players who were among the best in the Magpies 23-point loss to the Western Bulldogs under the roof at Etihad Stadium.
Collingwood’s top performers
22. Steele Sidebottom
Statistics: 21 kicks, 12 handballs, 33 disposals, 4 clearances, 1 goal.
Sidebottom once again staked his claim as Collingwood’s most dominant player in the second half of the season. He now has a disposal average of 33 in the past month, and has had six 30-plus games in 2015. Sunday’s game also produced his fifth goal of the season. With the Magpies trailing by 17 points midway through the final term, Sidebottom gathers the ball on the wing and sent a low kick in the direction of the leading Alex Fasolo. He followed up the effort and received a handball in the same string of play, before sidestepping two Bulldogs defenders and kicking the much-needed goal.
30. Darcy Moore
Statistics: 7 kicks, 2 handballs, 9 disposals, 6 contested possessions, 5 goals.
Arguably the most highly-touted player in last year’s draft, Moore officially arrived against the Bulldogs at Etihad Stadium. He was the shining light in a dark performance, kicking five goals in just his third AFL game. After originally being overlooked to fill the role of the injured Travis Cloke, Moore certainly made the most of his opportunity. The first goal of his short career came at the 19-minute-mark of the second quarter as he ran into an open goal to cut the Western Bulldogs lead to just 11 points. As scoring dried up, the 19-year-old seemed to be the Magpies only option. He kicked four of the last five Collingwood games of the match to put his name in the box-seat for this week’s Rising Star nomination.
36. Dane Swan
Statistics: 13 kicks, 20 handballs, 33 disposals, 9 clearances, 7 inside 50s.
After a quiet game against West Coast in round 16, Swan returned to his busy best under the roof against the Bulldogs. He accumulated possessions evenly throughout the match and remained a constant presence even when the Bulldogs had control of the game. Despite failing to hold control for the majority of the game, Collingwood won the clearances 36-34. Swan was a contributing factor towards this, with a game-high nine. This number was five more than any of his teammates, with Steele Sidebottom the next best with four.
4. Brodie Grundy
Statistics: 12 kicks, 8 handballs, 20 disposals, 6 inside 50s, 2 goals.
The absence of Travis Cloke, plus the impressive ruckwork of Jarrod Witts in recent weeks allowed Grundy to spend an extended period of time playing as a forward against the Western Bulldogs on Sunday afternoon. He kicked two of Collingwood’s four second quarter goals and provided a focal point in the forward line. 20 disposals came with the two-goal performance, a total that was Grundy’s highest since round three against St Kilda.
How the voting system works
Head to fansmvp.afl.com.au/collingwoodfc/ and register your account. Then, assign three votes to the player you deem to be the best Collingwood player for the game, two votes to the second best player and one vote to the third best.
About the Magpie Army Player of the Year Award
The Magpie Army Player of the Year Award is received by the player deemed the most influential of the season by the Collingwood supporters each year.
In 2015, two tickets are on offer to the E.W. Copeland Trophy Dinner in October for those who cast their vote during the season.
The winner, selected at random, will be afforded the opportunity to present the Magpie Army Player of the Year Award to the winning player, plus receive a photograph with the winner following the presentation.
