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Michael Gardiner of St Kilda and Darren Jolly of Collingwood in action during the 2010 Toyota AFL Grand Final between the Collingwood Magpies and the St Kilda Saints at the MCG, Melbourne. Slattery Images
Unbelievable. After a massive build-up and four quarters of incredible footy, the 2010 AFL Grand Final ended up a draw. Collingwood and St Kilda will return to the MCG next week for a replay, the first since 1977.
The result is sure to be a huge talking point for the next seven days. What will the fallout be? How will the two teams respond? Should the replay be ditched for extra time?
Minutes after the final siren, Collingwood captain Nick Maxwell labelled the situation “an absolute joke” in an interview with Channel Seven. The rest of the players were all clearly shocked.
Fans, too, were shocked. A mix of stunned silence and boos filled the ‘G after the game.
This might just be the result that changes the way the AFL handles drawn Grand Finals forever. The already-heated reaction to today’s result suggests there is going to be a lot of pressure placed on the league this week to change a system that has often been criticised.
Of course, Andrew Demetriou and his team probably wouldn’t mind this situation. The opportunity to fill out the ‘G one more time and have the nation’s attention one more time would have him licking his lips.
But there will be some strong opinions aired over the course of the next week.
The league should be grateful an interstate team was not involved – the fury of fans who’d travelled so far only to be asked to do it again would’ve surely been too much to handle.
As for the game itself, the remarkable statistic was that Collingwood led for 115 minutes, while St Kilda led for only six.
The Pies started strongly, but arguably should’ve been more than a goal up at quarter time. A similar sentiment could be expressed at half time, after the Pies dominated the second quarter but simply could not convert that into scoreboard dominance – highlighted by Travis Cloke’s two crucial misses before the break more than anything else.
The Saints kicked three goals to none in the third term after really tightening up as the game progressed. While inaccurate kicking wasn’t a huge issue, you could say the amount of rushed behinds they conceded – there were at least six – cost them.
There was some big moments in the final quarter – Leon Davis’ surprise goal, Lenny Hayes’ bomb, Brendon Goddard’s amazing mark, Travis Cloke’s goal – but there wasn’t that one moment we’re used to in Grand Finals that would prove to be the difference between winning and losing.
When the final siren went, scores were level.
Now next week, they’ll have to do it all again.