This season's Queen's Birthday clash takes place at the SCG for the first time in its history. A match that is played for reasons that are bigger than footy, the Big Freeze for MND will be an occasion worth watching.

Last Time We Met

Melbourne 100 defeated Collingwood 44

It was a tough evening at the GABBA last season against the Dees. The Pies weren’t able to keep up with Melbourne’s manic pressure as they ran away with a 56 point victory.

Steele Sidebottom was valiant in defeat, with 29 disposals. Brodie Grundy got on top of Brayden Preuss, with 15 disposals, 35 hit-outs and 8 clearances. Taylor Adams had 30 disposals and a goal, alongside Scott Pendlebury who had 28 disposals.

Marquee Match-Ups

Max v Max

After coming up against Rielly O’Brien last week, Max Lynch will have another fantastic opportunity to test his game against one of the best in the business; Max Gawn.

Gawn has arguably been the best players in the competition this season, the 29-year-old helping Melbourne climb the ladder in 2021. The ruckman is averaging a career high 18.83 disposals, to go with 33 hit-outs and a career high 5.67 marks per game.

Lynch played just his second game last week against the Crows, and his third time out on an AFL scene will be another great challenge for Max. In his 6th season at the club, Max has spent a lot of time building his body and growing his game in preparation for match-ups like Gawn. Expect Max to go head to head with the Melbourne ruckman and compete with Gawn all afternoon.

Jordan De Goey v Christian Petracca

Petracca’s ability to balance his impact between the midfield and the forward line has been particularly impressive this season. With Jordan De Goey also balancing his time between the forward line and the midfield, it will be interesting to see which star player can have a bigger impact on Monday afternoon.

Petracca is averaging a career high 28 disposals per game in 2021, including averaging over a goal a game. Add 13 contested possessions to that, with 6.75 clearances and 7.33 inside 50’s and Petracca’s ability to dominate matches becomes evident.

De Goey hasn’t had the same output as Petracca in 2021, however that is not to say he isn’t capable of a similarly match-winning performance. Pies fans saw De Goey at his damaging best against Carlton in Round 2 and North Melbourne in Round 8.

Can De Goey rise to the occasion on Monday afternoon and put on a show for the Pies fans?

Jamie Elliott v Michael Hibberd

Billy returned in style last weekend against the Crows, and he will look to continue his red hot form this weekend against the dangerous Dees.

His dynamic ability to mark overhead, combined with his speed and agility makes him a match-up nightmare. It looks likely that Melbourne’s Michael Hibberd will get the task on Elliott, with the veteran defender proving his ability to lockdown on the competition’s best.

Hibberd shut down Richmond’s Dustin Martin when the Dees faced the Tigers, so it wouldn’t be far fetched to assume Hibberd will aim to do the same on Monday afternoon.

Look Out For

Beau is back

Beau Mccreery was causing serious issues for opposition backlines before a calf injury kept him on the sidelines for the last 2 weeks.

Unfortunately for the Dees, Mccreery returns to the side and will play alongside Jamie Elliott for the first time in his career. As the Pies gradually regain fallen troops from injury the side looks continuously more dangerous, particularly up forward.

Mccreery brings an elite level of forward pressure, he averages the most inside 50 tackles in the competition. He has also provided an additional route to goal for the Pies, something that has been an issue in the weeks without him.

The Inside Word

Versatile Pendlebury

Captain Scott Pendlebury has had a variety of roles throughout the 2021 season. Starting the year in his regular role as a full time midfielder, Pendlebury found himself playing more down forward and then against the Crows spent the first half across half-back.

Look out for Pendles to take his position across half-back again this weekend in a bid to utilise his leadership and decision making behind the footy.

Pies Priority

Maintain that winning momentum is the number 1 priority this week.

Keep the focus on-field and take it up to the top side in the competition. The Dees will bring intensity and heat on the footy so the Pies will need to be at their best to prevent Melbourne from doing what they did last time.

For the full team lists click here

Collingwood v Melbourne
AFL Round 13
Monday, June 14
SCG, 3.20pm AEST