Notable:
- Sunday’s win has been touted as Collingwood’s most complete performance of the season so far. And on stats alone, it’s difficult to disagree. The Magpies smashed Essendon in several key categories, winning contested possession 155-145, inside 50s 63-46, marks 110-58 and tackles 81-51. The only area in which Collingwood struggled was the clearances (beaten 28-42), although the differential may be partially explained by Essendon’s more experienced ruck combination of Patrick Ryder and Tom Bellchambers.
- Collingwood’s tackle count was simply outstanding. Only one player (Travis Cloke) went without a tackle. Jarryd Blair and Heath Shaw led the way with eight each. It was the equal-most amount of tackles Shaw has laid in a single game. In fact, 14 of the 22 players laid three tackles or more. Importantly, 12 tackles were laid inside 12 with Blair (four) again setting the standard.
- Sam Dwyer continues to stand out with his clean hands and refusal to panic under pressure. He had another three score assists against Essendon, taking him to 25 for the season. He has led the way in this department all season, a title he now shares with Dane Swan who recorded five assists on Sunday.
- Poor Travis Cloke has endured a rough run in front of goal in recent weeks. Since kicking 5.1 against the Bulldogs and Carlton mid-season, he has found the going tough. He kicked 2.5 against Adelaide and 2.4 against Gold Coast but returned to his best with a haul of 5.0 against the Dons. Cloke sure loves playing against Essendon. He averages 2.7 goals per game against them since 2005 and has now kicked five goals in three of his past seven outings against the red and black.
- One man who deserves a round of applause is Ben Sinclair. The 21-year-old made an impression as a small forward last season but a slow start to the season saw him demoted to the VFL. It was at that level that he was able to reinvent himself as a back pocket and within six weeks was becoming a fixture at senior level. He had 20 disposals in a match for the first time on Sunday and his numbers across the board have improved dramatically on what was considered by most as a very solid season last year. Sinclair’s disposal efficiency has risen from 65.9% to 82.8% and his tackle average has risen from 2.2 to 3.1 per game. He is also providing plenty of run from the defensive 50m and has taken at least one bounce in each of his past five matches.
- Most importantly, it was Collingwood’s best all-round match of the season so far. Its 20.13 (133) was its highest score of the season and its highest against a finals-bound side since it kicked 16.19 (115) against Hawthorn in round one last year. On the other side of the ledger, the Magpies were able to restrict Essendon to 7.12 (54) – its lowest score of 2013 and its lowest against Collingwood since kicking 4.9 (33) on ANZAC Day 2002.
Remember to vote for your top three players from Collingwood’s 79-point win over Essendon.
| Player | K | H | D | M | HO | FF | FA | T | G | B |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 36. Dane Swan | 21 | 9 | 30 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| 22. Steele Sidebottom | 19 | 11 | 30 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| 10. Scott Pendlebury | 13 | 14 | 27 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 1 |
| 8. Harry O'Brien | 17 | 10 | 27 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| 17. Dayne Beams | 19 | 8 | 27 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| 12. Luke Ball | 12 | 10 | 22 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 0 |
| 46. Marley Williams | 12 | 9 | 21 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 21. Quinten Lynch | 13 | 8 | 21 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| 28. Ben Sinclair | 14 | 6 | 20 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 41. Sam Dwyer | 8 | 11 | 19 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 39. Heath Shaw | 16 | 2 | 18 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| 23. Lachlan Keeffe | 14 | 2 | 16 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 5. Nick Maxwell | 8 | 7 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 11. Jarryd Blair | 9 | 6 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 1 |
| 16. Nathan Brown | 9 | 5 | 14 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 32. Travis Cloke | 13 | 1 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 20. Ben Reid | 10 | 4 | 14 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| 6. Tyson Goldsack | 6 | 6 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 35. Brodie Grundy | 5 | 6 | 11 | 4 | 19 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 19. Jamie Elliott | 7 | 4 | 11 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| 3. Brent Macaffer | 5 | 4 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| 24. Josh Thomas | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Key
K: Kicks, H: Handballs, D: Disposals, M: Marks, HO: Hitouts, FF: Free Kicks For, FA: Free Kicks Against, T: Tackles, G: Goals, B: Behinds.
