Every match that Collingwood plays feels like it's the most important game in the world.
But the truth is that some games matter more than others. And some have impacts that last for decades, even if that significance isn't always apparent at the time.
So here is a trawl through the history books to come up with the most significant games in Magpie history. These aren't just the biggest wins or the most memorable days, but the games that had a significant influence on the club's history.
We've excluded all finals, simply because otherwise the list would almost be completely taken up with premierships and a few painful Grand Final losses. But the home-and-away games covered in this series have had a huge impact on the club – sometimes positively, sometimes negatively. They've led to club turmoil, coaches being sacked, major changes in the game or sometimes set us on the path to a flag.
Whatever the outcome, these games represent major turning points in our club's story. And they're worth recalling.
Farewell to Victoria Park: Round 22 1999
In terms of Collingwood's modern history, the final round clash against the Brisbane Lions in 1999 was as big a turning point as we've seen. But for once it wasn't the game itself that sparked a change in the club's fortunes: instead, that match came to symbolise the change – the decision to stop playing matches at Victoria Park.
Now, nearly 20 years later, it is hard to adequately recapture just how big and emotionally-wrenching a decision this was. Victoria Park had been our home ground since our very first game as a footy club, way back in 1892. And by 1999 we were the only club still playing in its original guernsey, with its original nickname, and at its original home ground.
But as beloved as it was to the Magpie faithful, the clock had been ticking on Victoria Park for the best part of 15 years.
Victoria Park had been at the forefront of club grounds by the end of the 1960s, and remained that way through much of the 1970s. But the 1980s and 1990s were marked more by promises and bold statements, rather than action.
The trouble was that very little actually happened during that time to improve the ground and its facilities, which were allowed to gradually diminish. Instead there was almost constant debate about the club's future at the ground. All the signs were that Collingwood was outgrowing its old suburban home.
There were desperate attempts to keep it viable. Fitzroy shared the ground with the Magpies for two seasons, and a short-lived soccer club was formed too. There was even – bizarrely – President Allan McAlister's grand plans for 'Maggieland', Collingwood's answer to Graceland, to be set within the streets adjoining Victoria Park.
The club faced increasing pressure from the VFL, then the AFL, to move its bigger-drawing games to either the MCG or Waverley, and the 1994 move to play seven home games at the MCG was the thin end of the wdge.
By the late 1990s, even the ground's most ardent supporters had to concede it was no longer up to AFL standards. And the cost of upgrading would have been prohibitive. So it was no great surprise when it was announced that the final round of 1999, against the Lions, would be the last time Victoria Park would host a senior Collingwood match.
The celebrations planned to mark the occasion were extraordinary. Makeshift stands were erected to allow more people in. More than 1200 attended the President's lunch. The cheer squad's banner was a massive 8mx40m in size.
The Collingwood banner for the last game at Victoria Park (AFL Photos)
Tony Shaw's pre-match address was beamed live to both those at the ground and also on TV. A parade of past champions circled the ground, and others recreated some of the most famous moments in the club's history. There was even a wedding at half-time!
The game itself, however, was a damp squib. Brisbane kicked four goals in the opening six minutes and an eerie silence came over the venue that had roared for 108 seasons.
It took Collingwood 17 minutes to get the ball past the half-forward line. Finally, Anthony Rocca kicked Collingwood’s opening goal at the 20-minute mark. A cheer started up in the Sherrin Stand after Rocca’s goal and spread across the ground, briefly ending the silence. But the difference was 33 points at quarter-time; the game was already gone.
At three-quarter-time we still had only three goals to our name. Five goals in the final term added some vague respectability, but the final margin was still 42 points, 8.4 (52) to 13.16 (94) – and we had only our second wooden spoon.
But this game wasn't about the game. Rather, it was a game that symbolised the end of one era and the beginning of another. By the time the Pies next played a senior match, the MCG was its official home ground, and Mick Malthouse had replaced Shaw as coach. Within a few more years, the club had also moved its administrative base, to the Olympic Park precinct, where Collingwood once again established itself as the competition leader in terms of footy facilities.
Within just three years we were back in a grand final again. The increased capacity at the MCG, and the aggressive approach of the newly installed Eddie McGuire regime, saw huge lifts in both memberships and sponsorships. The club once more became not just financially sound, but strong. And the on-field performances followed suit, with a decade of (mostly) outstanding form capped off by a premiership in 2010.
The decision to move from Victoria Park in 1999 was one of the most momentous in the club's history. And as painful as it was, and as much as many of us still yearn for the magic of those days at Vic Park in the '60s and '70s, events since then have shown it to be the right one.
Turning Points
Written by Glenn McFarlane and Michael Roberts
Turning Points: A game of belief.
Turning Points: The first game.
Turning Points: History's ugly repeat.
Turning Points: Honouring the greater good.
Turning Points: A turning point for football.
Turning Points: How we landed McHale.
Turning Points: Ending the Cat empire.
Turning Points: The practice match that led to a revolution.
Turning Points: Starting from the bottom.
Turning Points: Attacking the Cats.
Turning Points: The drama before the revival.
Turning Points: The loss that elevated Lethal.
Turning Points: The miracle of '58.
Turning Points: Whispers lead to coaching roars.
Turning Points: The break that felled Carman.
Turning Points: The Collier ban that cost dearly.
Turning Points: A Tassie turning point.
