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Collingwood Magpies: 2012 season preview

Roar Guru
22nd February, 2012
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Travis Cloke marks for Collingwood. Slattery Images.
Roar Guru
22nd February, 2012
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Collingwood are an obvious player on the finals poker table. The biggest story going into 2012 with the Pies surely has to be the Kirribilli agreement – Mick Malthouse, second at the club in most games as coach, and Nathan Buckley, club record holder in most games as captain/acting captain.

Mick departed, deciding not to stick around for a further three years as the Pies’ director of coaching, a role which might have crowded Bucks in his new role as head coach.

Yet Buckley will still have experienced people around him, including recent addition Rodney Eade, fresh from the reigns of the Western Bulldogs.

Rocket joined Collingwood as a football and coaching strategist. Another former Bulldogs coaching signing is Mitch Hahn, who takes on the position of forward development coach.

Down back, Bucks will have Ben Hart in charge of captain Nick Maxwell, Heath Shaw, Ben Reid and co. Former St Kilda star Robert Harvey will assist as midfield coach – a similar role he held at Carlton and with the Saints.

Former Blue Matt Lappin, local favourite Tarkyn Lockyer, Craig McRae, Anothny Rocca and 2011 TAC under-18 premiership-winning coach Dale Tapping will also be in the box come game time.

The coaching change brings about many questions.

What will be the same? What will be different? What will Bucks tinker with or overhaul? We will soon find out.

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Buckley is in a similar position to what Geelong head coach Chris Scott had before him at the start of 2011. Scott made only minor changes as he respected what was already in place. The rest is history.

Last year Collingwood lost only three games – all to Geelong with margins of three, 96 and 38 in the grand final. The Pies had an average winning margin of 53 points and although they weren’t the best team in the preliminary final, they still managed the beat Hawthorn with three excellent minutes of football – not to mention several costly mistakes from the Hawks.

Collingwood has a complete team. Last season they had six All-Australians, four players with 10 or more votes in the Brownlow Medal count, and the Brownlow Medalist in Dane Swan with 34 votes.

They have an awesome midfield. They have a terrific and solid back line. They have a lethal and powerful forward line. They have depth. They have youngsters – they fielded five debutants last year and have an average list age of 23 years and 266 days; All-Australian defender Ben Reid is arguably one of the youngest elite players in the league.

This Magpies team is expected to be major players in the finals for easily the next three years.

Over the off-season the changes to the squad have been minimal. Leigh Brown (retirement), Leon Davis (personal reasons), Brad Dick and John McCarthy (both delisted) were the only ones to leave the Westpac Centre.

Collingwood open their season with a preliminary final rematch against Hawthorn and will again play Geelong twice, in rounds eight and 16. The Pies have a very tough schedule, arguably the toughest, with return encounters against five of the 2011 finalists – Geelong, Hawthorn, West Coast, Carlton and Essendon. However, with Pendles, Swanny, Daisy, Shaw, Cloke, Reid, Ball and Harry, I am sure they’ll get by.

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Players to keep an eye on this year for Collingwood are a fit and in-form Dayne Beams and Nathan Brown, who could be treated almost as a rookie as he returns from injury. Marty Clarke could be the replacement for neon Leon, while question marks remain over whether Alan Didak can come back or not.

Meanwhile, many will be watching the progress of Kirk Ugle and Jarrod Witts (209cm), two 19-year olds. Ugle is definitely one to watch after an impressive year in the VFL last season. Likewise Witts could be anything, perhaps even the the next Sandilands?

In summary, Collingwood have the game plan, the experience and an outstanding list that will get them to the final four once again.

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