It's going to be a tough trip to the west this Friday Night against the Eagles, the perfect opportunity to show the competition why they're wrong about the Pies. 

Here's everything you'll need to know before the big game. 

Last Time We Met

Collingwood 76 defeated West Coast 75

What an awesome trip to WA it was in the first week of October last year. The Pies upset the Eagles in their own back yard, backs against the wall, with all the doubters saying it wasn’t possible.

Unfortunately this time around the Pies will be without Taylor Adams who was the star last time out, with 25 disposals and a goal. Jack Crisp was a pressure animal with 8 tackles off half-back. The big men, Cox and Mihocek both kicked 3 on the night.

Marquee Match-Ups

Brodie Grundy v Nic Naitanui

It’s the headline match-up for Friday night’s game, and the entire AFL community’s eyes will be locked onto the centre circle of Optus Stadium when Grundy and Naitanui leap at the ball. Grundy has been labelled as somewhat of a barometer for the Pies by Nathan Buckley during his press conference on Tuesday afternoon.

• “It’s become increasingly clear that his form is a big part of our winning.”

It’s hard to seperate the two when comparing them on paper:

Key defenders v Darling and Kennedy

The dynamic duo of Jack Darling and Josh Kennedy has given the AFL nightmares for the best part of a decade now. In order to beat the Eagles, nullifying the key forwards is an essential part of the game plan. This was done quite well by St. Kilda who were able to keep Kennedy and Darling to just 4 goals between them in the Saints’ come from behind victory last weekend.

So far this season, Darling has kicked 10 goals and Kennedy has kicked 12.

Obviously, the ability to defend as a team will coincide with how well the Collingwood key defenders are able to shut down Kennedy and Darling. However in 1v1 aerial battles, the likes of Jordan Roughead and Mark Keane will be vital in ensuring the West Coast strike force aren’t able to get on top.

Keane hasn't played in the senior side since he debuted in Round 9 against Fremantle last season. The defender has impressed down back since returning from a finger injury that saw his preseason significantly interrupted. In the VFL practice match against Richmond, Keane's clean skills and rebounding kick was particularly impressive and will add a different dynamic to the Pies defence. After Friday night, Keane will have played two games for the Pies however is yet to play a game in Victoria, hopefully the Western Australian Magpie Army can continue to cheer the Irishman on proudly. 

Wings of the Pies v Wings of the Eagles 

In the battle of the birds, it’s no surprise that the wingmen for both sides will play a significant part in who comes away with the four points on Friday night.

West Coast have arguably the best wingman in the competition at the moment, with Andrew Gaff averaging 22.3 disposals this season, 14.8 kicks and 8 marks. Due to injuries impacting the Eagles’ midfield depth, players such as Liam Duggan have found opportunities to push up the ground on the wing. Gaff and Duggan have been supported by experienced players such as Jamie Cripps, Dom Sheed and Jack Redden.

The wing role has yet to have been snapped up by a Collingwood player so far this season. Jack Madgen’s 25 disposals and an epic goal from the boundary will likely see him retain his position on the wing. Chris Mayne has always been a consistent performer on the wing for the Pies averaging 17.5 disposals so far this year, 3 above his career average disposals. After a break-out season on the wing last season, Josh Daicos has spent a considerable amount of his game time forward so far in 2021. Daicos has been hitting the scoreboard but his impact on matches is arguably not at the standard that it was throughout last season.

Look Out For

Finlay Macrae in the big time

Macrae’s debut has been one of the most highly anticipated announcements of the Collingwood 2021 season so far. When the Pies selected Macrae with the 19th pick in last year’s draft, the whole club, fans included, were ecstatic with the selection.

Macrae’s inclusion into the midfield with provide the team with a boost in enthusiasm, speed, clean ball use and a natural ability to find the footy. Playing all three VFL practice matches against the Western Bulldogs, Richmond and Geelong, Macrae has shown his talent and prowess around the contest.  Lining up against Geelong superstar Patrick Dangerfield in the VFL practice match last weekend, Macrae was able to gain some experience against one of the best midfielders in the competition.

The Inside Word

Darcy Cameron - the key to defeating the Eagles?

When the Pies defeated the Eagles in last season’s Elimination Final, Darcy Cameron was given a huge amount of responsibility when it came to quelling Nic Naitanui’s influence in the ruck. Grundy played 63% of game time while Cameron was given 46% of game time, including a series of key centre bounce ruck contests against Naitanui throughout the final stages of the match.

Speaking to the decision on handing Cameron the ruck duties during the match’s press conference, Bucks outlined how the coaching panel believed “the balance was right to share the load among those two boys and try to keep the heat on [Naitanui].”

Cameron was also impressive in his performance against the Eagles in Round 8 of 2020. Despite the Pies going down to the Eagles by 11 goals, Darcy kicked 2 goals himself and had 2 contested marks. 

His performances in training and in the VFL practice matches have constantly kept Cameron in the discussion for selection. Bucks’ decision to put Cameron into the side for this Friday night is a reward for his consistently strong showings throughout the first part of 2021.

Pies Priority

Compete, Contest, Consistently,

The Pies were flat out beaten around the contest for most of the game last time out against GWS.

Friday night is where the Pies show the rest of the competition that they mean business, and are capable of competing consistently for 4 quarters.

It’s not going to be easy, Collingwood take on an Eagles side desperate to win after a disappointing loss to St Kilda last weekend, supported by a 100% capacity Optus Stadium.

Collingwood v West Coast
AFL Round Five
Friday 16 April
Optus Stadium, 8.10pm AEST