Collingwoodfc.com.au takes a look at the Magpies’ 47-point defeat at the hands of Hawthorn at the MCG on Saturday afternoon.

The Result
Collingwood 13.13 (91)
Hawthorn 21.12 (138)

Goals - Beams 4, Swan 2, Jolly 2, Sidebottom, Cloke, Dawes, Tarrant, Thomas
Disposals - Swan 49, Beams 34, Pendlebury 34, Sidebottom 29, Shaw 22

Saturday’s clash was hardly a match that Collingwood supporters are going to slip into the DVD player and reabsorb from the couch in the years to come. The Magpies were soundly beaten over four quarters; holding the Hawks at bay for the first half before getting put to the sword thanks to an eight-goal-to-two third term.

Click here to watch the CTV highlights.

The Magpies remain in the top four despite losing two of their past three games. Recent losses suffered by the West Coast Eagles and Essendon mean that Collingwood still sits a game clear in fourth spot, equal on points with Hawthorn who boast a percentage of 156.6. Sydney and Adelaide share top billing with 13 wins each.

Bucks’ take
“Clearly if we want to get to where we want to get to, you've got to beat the best opposition. So we've had a real good look today and you go assess your systems and your processes and what's working and what's not, what was in our control and what wasn't” - Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley.

Hear more from Bucks in his post match press conference.

Over the fence
“Just the fact that everyone played their role and made contributions at critical points was heartening. We also know it's a home and away game and another game we need to try to secure four points and build our wins to give us an opportunity to finish top four.” - Hawthorn coach Alistair Clarkson.

Read the match report here.

What did we say about records?
Seven days ago, this paragraph was titled ‘the records mount’. We told you that Dane Swan had amassed 40 possessions in five matches this year, with three in his past five games. One week on and we have even more reason to sing his praises. Not only did Swan gather more than 40 touches for the sixth time this season, but his 49 disposals is the latest high watermark of his glittering career. Swan’s previous career-high was 48 disposals in the 38-point win against Port Adelaide in a twilight match at the MCG in 2009. Three years on, he took it one step further and had 49 for the day. In a 47-point loss. It might prompt the usual questions over the impact of a player who earns so many possessions in defeat, but as with Gary Ablett’s 53-possessions against the Magpies earlier this year, you can only admire Swan’s excellence.

The year of his life
In any other year, Dayne Beams would arguably be Collingwood’s best player. But when you’ve got Swan and Scott Pendlebury for company, the spotlight has to be shared. Fortunately, the 22-year-old has earned plenty of praise this season for his consistency, which again shone through during Saturday’s loss. Beams still managed 34 possessions and four goals on a day when the majority of the traffic was flowing in the opposite direction.

View the best photos from Collingwood's 47-point loss.

A painful half hour
Hawthorn had the ascendency for most of the first half but turned a ripple into a wave in the third quarter when it slammed on eight goals to two. The Hawks opened with the first five goals of the term and their run was punctuated by late goals to Dale Thomas and Dayne Beams, by which point the brown and gold horse had well and truly bolted.

The medical room
Collingwood did not report any injuries of note in either the AFL or VFL on Saturday. Alan Didak returned from his adductor tear at Victoria Park on Saturday morning and was a solid performer in his side’s loss.

Mitchell madness
Sam Mitchell loves playing Collingwood. Saturday’s match was the seventh time he has won 30 or more possessions in 16 games against the Woodsmen. He hasn’t gone without breaking the 30 barrier since round 16, 2009, when he still managed 25 touches and three goals. His most controversial performance was saved for round 10, 2005, when he had 39 touches of the leather in defeat. Outspoken Triple M commentator Sam Newman awarded him ‘worst on ground’, claiming the possessions were without value considering the result. But the umpires saw things a little differently, awarding him the three Brownlow votes.

Watch the CTV highlights, including Dayne Beams’ four goals, here.

Consider this
@js_kay Wins v Collingwood in past 56 games: 3 - Geelong; 3 - @HawthornFC; 2 - Carlton; 0 - Rest of comp #AFLHawksPies
A tweet by Josh Kay, Channel Seven’s master statistician, at 4:27pm on Saturday afternoon.

What does it mean?
-    The football world has some thinking to do. Only two games separate first from sixth on the ladder and we’re 17 games into the season.
-    Can prolific midfielders be just as effective when deployed in attack? Jordan Lewis’ five goals and 20 possessions suggest they can.
-    Collingwood can pull a crowd. More than 83,000 crammed into the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Saturday afternoon. It was still 9,221 short of the record between the two clubs recorded out at Waverley Park back in round 11, 1981.

VFL
The VFL Magpies were totally outclassed by a powerful Box Hill outfit that recorded a 116-point win over Collingwood at Victoria Park. Importantly for the Magpies, Alan Didak made a successful comeback from the adductor injury that he sustained on the Queen’s Birthday. Jackson Paine was the side’s only multiple goal scorer with two majors.

Looking ahead…
A test of a different kind presents itself on Saturday evening as Collingwood makes the trip up to the Sydney Showground Stadium (now known as Skoda Stadium) to take on Greater Western Sydney. The Magpies are yet to face the Giants in a match for premiership points, but learned a little about each other in the opening round of the NAB Cup at Blacktown when the Pies got over the line by seven points.