Now, that’s the Collingwood of old!
The much-anticipated Anzac Day game was done and won after the first quarter. Collingwood had kicked 52 points to Essendon’s 7.
It was Collingwood’s highest first quarter score under coach Nathan Buckley.
Travis Cloke was dropped for the game. He’s been struggling of late, with just five goals and three contested marks in the opening four rounds, yet some still suggested it was the wrong move to drop him for this particular game.
He’s been horribly out of form, but the Anzac Day game is huge. Dropping your $800,000 forward to the VFL on a Sunday afternoon, on the eve of Anzac Day – is it the right move?
Cloke only managed two first-quarter goals and five disposals for his first VFL game. With 17 goals to four after the quarter-time break, the Collingwood twos were thrashed, losing to Essendon by 85 points.
Quality ball supply was hardly forthcoming, but surely a more dominant display was expected of Cloke, especially against such lowly opposition.
American-born and raised, Mason Cox was called in to take Cloke’s place for the Anzac Day clash against Essendon. His parents had flown in from the US to watch their son make his long-awaited AFL debut.
As if a script was written, Cox would kick the first goal of the game. The crowd would rise and cheer. His teammates would gather from everywhere to congratulate him. Yep, that happened.
Up until now, Collingwood have been stagnant, lack-lustre and slow. Today they were back to the Magpies of old. Fast, enthusiastic, team-spirited and playing on at all costs. Their ball movement was exceptional.
A 76-point margin at half time, Collingwood dominated in all areas. It was a one-way street.
What’s changed for Collingwood? Two things.
Essendon’s inexperience could have possibly made Collingwood look better than they actually are and Travis Cloke, their star forward, their go-to-man to kick the goals needed to win games. He’s gone.
After a dominant 69-point win, clearly they don’t need him. Maybe, just maybe, they were even hampered by his presence.
Were Collingwood clogged by Cloke? Could the answer be that easy? There’s still a lot to prove, and next week, against the West Coast Eagles (at home) will truly tell us if a corner has been turned for the Magpies.
Aransan
Guest
Michelle, I wasn't aware of Heppell's reason. I believe this is complicated by insurance and again can this only be resolved with the initiation of the legal process? If Heppell has lost money through his loss of sponsorship then he should be recompensed. If the appeal against the CASA ruling succeeds won't that mean the reinstatement of his sponsorship? And if the appeal succeeds and CASA appeals against that judgment .. well, words fail me. If this were to be fought out bitterly in the courts then I agree Heppell wouldn't be able to return to Essendon, but wouldn't it be more likely that it would be resolved by agreement and without rancour?
Michelle Vogel
Roar Pro
Isn't Heppell suing for a million because of his Adidas contract being cancelled? It's hard to see how these players are going to sue Essendon, then come back to play for the club they've taken legal action against.
Aransan
Guest
I don't expect to see Watson play again if the CAS appeal fails. Essendon has just announced that Hooker has signed a 5 year contract to the end of 2021, Hocking and Colyer have already re-signed. A major problem for all clubs is that player agents benefit from players changing clubs for more money and the agents are smart enough to get into their players heads to help that happen. I suspect that many players are unaware that they are being manipulated in that way, and often the greed will cause players to overlook the fact if they are being paid top dollar then that will reduce the likelihood of future success of their club. I believe this manipulation has caused players to be disgruntled in the past, other murmurs of discontent have frequently come from agents whose charges have been at risk of being delisted. I am unsure about players sueing Essendon. The players have to be paid for 2016, is Essendon allowed to pay them and be ASADA/WADA compliant? If not, is the only way for them to be paid through a legal process? Hopefully this can all be settled by agreement, otherwise the only winners will be the lawyers who have been very successful so far.
Michelle Vogel
Roar Pro
It's a unique and rather strange experiment. Certainly one we've never seen before now. How many of the suspended Essendon players do you think we'll see back at the club? Surely, some will be fed up and want to start someplace new. Watson has got to be 50/50 on coming back at all?
Aransan
Guest
I guess some of the older top-up players are happy to just have another year in the AFL, although I wouldn't be surprised to see James Kelly picked up by Essendon or another club for 2017. All these players can ask for is an opportunity to show their wares and I believe this will happen. Regular players on Essendon's list should be in no doubt that if they have trouble breaking into the AFL side this year then their futures will be uncertain indeed. The circumstances this year will give opportunities but it will also enable Essendon to better determine who should be shown the door. This will likely create a couple of extra places on Essendon's list and opportunities for top-up players apart from opportunities for these players on other clubs lists.
Samantha
Roar Rookie
Keep in mind after October 31st Essendon do not retain rights to any top up players. What is unclear is if Essendon would be allowed to sign any of them up on another contract prior to that date.
Michelle Vogel
Roar Pro
Absolutely, Aransan. There are some wonderful stories to come out of this...my concern is what happens when/if the suspended players come back? Are these guys then cannon fodder? Tossed on the scrap heap. Some of the older top-ups will be happy to see out the season and retire, but the younger guys who've really shown something, I do hope they reward that with senior games when the other players return. They've got a tough gig this year. It'd be nice to see them win a few once the team is back to its best.
Aransan
Guest
Thanks for that Michelle. It is also easy to forget that a number of the top-up players are trying to re-establish their careers and this is an opportunity for them, let alone the opportunity given to McDonald-Tipungwuti (Walla) who probably wouldn't have played a game if not for the suspensions but who is now firmly in Essendon's top 22 and that is a terrific story. On another note, I had the pleasure to meet the father of Michael Hartley and his friend Robert after the Anzac game. Michael is a 22y.o. tall player who has been in the system for a few years without being able to break into an AFL side, he was selected with a pick in the 60s by Essendon in last year's draft. He played his first game in the victory over Melbourne and the smile on his father's face in the dressing room after the game lit up the room. Over the last couple of years his father has been travelling down from NSW to support Michael in his VFL and now AFL games. That is incredible devotion and again the suspensions have given Michael the opportunity to show his talents, he has now well and truly earned his spot in the 22 and will only get better taking into account that bigger players take longer to develop.
Michelle Vogel
Roar Pro
Yep, there's a lot of young players with bright futures, Aransan. Agree on that. I think Essendon have to take it quarter-by-quarter, as clichéd as that sounds. Five games in and no one expected them to have a win all season. They have leapt over that hurdle with one win on the board, so they're already ahead of where most thought they would be. Small steps. It's going to be a long season for Essendon supporters, but there will be positive glimmers of what could be, and will be, in the near future (within 3-5 years).
Aransan
Guest
Essendon haven't been able to play many top-up players so far because of their late starts. The season is still important for Essendon in terms of developing their young players -- Parish, Francis when available, Langford, Laverde when available, McDonald-Tipungwuti, Hartley, Fantasia, Zac Merrett, Daniher are just some of the players. They will need to be rotated to varying extents and the stronger bodies of the top-up players will be needed to assist them. Essendon were competitive for significant periods in their first four games, they were only competitive in patches against Collingwood and I don't think the young players would have gained much out of that game. I don't mind losing but it is important that Essendon are competitive in as many of the remaining games as possible this year to provide a good learning environment for the younger players. I hope we don't have too many more Collingwood type games this season. Supporters should take pleasure in seeing these young players develop.
Col from Brissie
Roar Guru
Gee I am glad Malthouse is no longer at Carlton as he probably would have offered our first round pick for Cloke.
Michelle Vogel
Roar Pro
Collingwood have been doing the same thing, up until yesterday, Liam. It's a frustrating game plan, if you can call it that.
Michelle Vogel
Roar Pro
Yep, I agree, Paul D. No matter how bad Collingwood played in previous weeks, if they didn't put Essendon away yesterday, there'd be even more questions asked. It's not a true indication of a turnaround because the opposition was virtually zero. There was no pressure. They were pretty much allowed to do as they pleased. The stagnant game plan had been ditched though, which was good to see. They were much faster at moving the ball. More kicking, less handball, and that frustrating backward ball movement had disappeared. Making a switch is fine, but Collingwood were playing the one step forward, two steps backward game and they'd inevitably turn the ball over and the opposition would score. It HAD to change. Hope we don't see anymore of it.
Michelle Vogel
Roar Pro
Honestly, great choice Pumping Dougie. I've always liked the way Maxwell goes about things. This latest win by Collingwood will by no means get Buckley out of the woods (excuse the pun). It's just loosened the noose for a few weeks.
Pumping Dougie
Guest
Er ... or maybe the Pies could appoint Nick Maxwell to takeover from Bucks.
Ian_W
Guest
Oh noes. The cat B rookie on minimum wage can be countered. All Cox did was present as a forward, take a couple of grabs, provided a contest in the ruck and in packs. If I was the Pies, I'd be ecstatic. And they are.
Aransan
Guest
I will agree that Hartley is already a competent player in his fourth game who will get better. There is a lot more to being a good ruckman than being very tall, it took Sandilands and Gawn years to develop their ruck craft however I agree that Gawn is a very dangerous player and it would have been worth playing Cox in an effort to reduce his effectiveness. Bombing the ball to a tall target in the forward line is rather too obvious to an opposition and can easily be countered with multiple opponents.
Gecko
Guest
I think Luke Beveridge could make a lot more money coaching the Pies. Now would be a good time to point that out to him.
Michelle Vogel
Roar Pro
Agree, Aransan. His height means he "lopes along," a bit like a giraffe in motion, but his tap-ons in the forward line were good and resulted in a couple of goals to team mates.
Pumping Dougie
Guest
Aransan, strange as it might sound, I have no dislike for Collingwood. But I've always thought Buckley was over-rated as a player (I rate him as very good, but unworthy of a Brownlow and Norm Smith and too reliant on team-mates winning the footy for the first 90% of his career). And I could never see the wisdom in replacing the highly successful and respected Malthouse with an unproven novice. So I find the outcome of that decision bemusing. But I have no dislike of Collingwood. P.S. Plus I always thought Cloke was over-rated. His best two years were when Collingwood were dominant and delivery to Cloke was excellent. He was never the type of key forward who could stand-up and perform against the flow or at crunch moments and his goal-kicking has always been less reliable and equally comical as Richo.