In 2013, following the shock loss to Port Adelaide in the elimination final, Nathan Buckley said something to the effect that the loss proved that Collingwood could not simply hold onto the past.
In 2021, three years on from the agonising narrow loss to the Eagles in the 2018 grand final, a similar view can be put forward.
This club is desperately in need of change – everywhere. The biggest concern I have is the absence of flair and dare.
This is reflected in so many ways: on match day, in recruiting, in selection and in game style and plan. I am deliberately not focusing on culture, salary cap issues, and possible morale implications of the Adam Treloar departure, although these factors are part of the overall picture.
It is time to throw out the stodgy, stale and predictable game plan. We were told over the summer that the team was going to play with a much faster, more direct game plan, but apart from the Carlton game, really, we have seen more of what we have witnessed since the end of 2018.
It seems that under pressure, the team reverts to type with the predictable systems, structures and processes mantra.
Where is the dare?
Clearly, the club has never heard of the saying, “who dares wins”.
History is replete with radical change during a game, notably Ted Hopkins off the bench in the 1970 grand final, Shane Ellen’s five goals in the Adelaide Crows’ win against St Kilda in the 1997 grand final, Kevin Sheedy upending the Essendon team structures in the last quarter in the 1984 grand final – the list goes on.
To be sure, not all of these things work but clearly just doing the same thing over and over is not the answer. In commenting on Monty Panesar’s 50th Test match, Shane Warne said something like Monty played one Test 50 times, and so it appears with Collingwood.
(Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)
Why the reluctance to move Darcy Moore up forward during the game? Sure, he is integral to the backline but Collingwood really did not look like scoring except for a brief flurry.
Why not have Mason Cox in the ruck more often, even with Brodie Grundy as a utility, in the Mark Blicavs manner, or play Grundy up forward more? Cox actually looks like a natural tap ruckman.
The game on the weekend had eerie similarities to the preliminary final in 2019, when on that occasion as well there was a reluctance to swap Darcy Moore and Brody Mihocek when the latter was clearly struggling in the forward line.
On recruitment, recognising that the club has not had access to top ten picks recently and that it’s way too early to tell about the most recent draftee crop, there’s the complete inability to recruit key position forwards or goal sneaks.
We were told last year that key or power forwards were passé, yet nearly all clubs featuring heavily in last year’s finals had at least one strong key forward: Tom Hawkins at Geelong, Charlie Dixon at Port, Tom Lynch at Richmond, Eric Hipwood at the Lions and Max King at St Kilda.
The club’s performance in trading in key positions has been poor. In fairness, though, the club has been better at exiting players in general, but even that is not really a ringing endorsement of the club. I would not even know where to start with the club’s inability to recruit indigenous players.
(Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)
Of the draftees and recruits, it is highly probable that all of them passed the requisite beep tests, skinfold criteria, vertical leap performance indicators etc, yet does that say anything truly about the ability to turn a game in the course of a quarter or in minutes?
It seems like ‘hunch’ recruiting for the big stage has given way completely to data science, analytics, health professionals and the like. Of course, this would not be at Collingwood alone but the club’s inability to recruit players with X-factor is apparent.
One of the most dreaded phrases is ‘role players’ and there seems to be a plethora of these at Magpie land, in some ways reminiscent of Tom Hafey’s battlers of the late ’70s and early ’80s, who tried hard but were ultimately outclassed.
Those sides gave more than their all but it is hard to say that about the 2021 Pies.
If we look at roughly a three to five-year horizon when Collingwood could be a premiership threat, I find out of the 22 who represented the Magpies over the weekend, only nine would be in serious contention for being in that side – less than half of the team.
These are Brodie Grundy, Josh Daicos, Jack Crisp, Taylor Adams, Darcy Moore, Brody Mihocek, Brayden Maynard, Jordan de Goey and Isaac Quaynor. With wear and tear and attrition, the number could be even less.
The Pies have a demographic problem, with a relative absence of middle-aged players.
This leaves these options: hoping against hope that the young draftees make their presence felt sooner rather than later, landing a big fish or two through free agency or trades, or hoping against hope that the older players do not fade quickly.
Too much focus is placed on the 2018 season, and the win in the elimination final in Perth last year – both of which, to be fair, were fine accomplishments, however, increasingly, they look like outliers.
Any way you look at it, the club is in for some soul searching.
The debut of Beau McCreery was positive, though and it is true, as Port Adelaide shows, a good haul from one draft can be pivotal.
Blooding more of these players as soon as possible to learn from the older players while they can would appear to be the most fruitful course of action, even if it means missing finals action in the short term.
Greg
Roar Rookie
Damn! I'm pissed off.
Greg
Roar Rookie
That's it for me Bucks, the sooner you are gone the better. Dropping Mason Cox and not combining him and Darcy Cameron goes beyond the pale. This grandfather says 'kick it'. Your ar#e that is.
Vicboy
Roar Rookie
I am not a Collingwood fan, but the club have dared to win a flag, it just didn’t come off. Dayne Beams, Travis Varcoe, Daniel Wells, etc older players to top off the list and win a flag. But when you gamble and lose, you are in the doghouse. Geelong may not have the public acrimony, but as far as list management goes, adding Mumford in the mid season draft is the last piece in the puzzle!
Gerry
Roar Rookie
5 Articles on Collingwood that’s boring more than anything. Geez there are 18 teams in this competition aren’t there?
Kevo
Roar Rookie
Plenty of good Pie articles this week, pity it's our losing prompting them. I think Buckley is a perfectionist who's wired to hate losing and this stops him taking risks and being creative. It never made an ounce of credible sense to me when he took over and said he intended to improve our game plan (after consecutive GFs), which he hasn't done. He found some sort of spiritual mojo in 18 and became a better coach and a happier human being it seems. Wisdom in hindsight is a wonderful thing, Eddie did so well but stayed way too long, and Bucks looks like he needs a rest.
Mooty
Roar Rookie
How can you criticise Melbournes delivery into their forward line, given they haven’t lost a game this season.
Peter the Scribe
Roar Guru
I don't get why Buckley is playing Tyler Brown and Madgen on the wing. I get Madgen did ok on the wing but why put slow players there? Wouldn't you want pace and skills for delivery on a wing?
dab
Roar Rookie
Any side with players that can kick something other than a high floater to their forwards would welcome Cox. The delivery to their forwards is almost as bad as Melbourne's They have sufficient talent. Their coaching group sucks.
Magden had 56% disposal efficiency. Why are people saying it was a good move. Get Daicos back on the wing.
Spot on. We have the talls to play the game via the corridor. Get the kids in and let them run fast and kick. I would like to see Moore and Quaynor running directly out of defence and kicking straight through the middle instead of these ridiculous handpasses and chip kicks sidewards to set up the forward pressure. We need to take the two risks you have identified: 1. Play directly; 2. Play the kids.
Footyguy
Guest
Josh Thomas should have been traded off not Stephenson Sidebottom should have been traded off not Treloar Hoskin Elliott should have been traded off instead of Phillips I know trading off sidebottom off but the difference with sidebottom and treloar is sidebottoms only got maybe 1 year left of good football after this year in treloars got 4 years left of good football after this year Sidebottom could have prolonged his career if he went to North melbourne, Fremantle or Gold Coast
Chip
Roar Guru
Thanks Tommy, totally agree
Chip
Roar Guru
Thanks Peter, yes very frustrating to watch the same thing over and over, especially either chipping it around and/or then just bombing to an aimless contest. The few times that they look any good are when Moore delivers to Howe through the middle, in which case I am unsure why Magden is the outlet player (admittedly he was on the wing and played a reasonably good game).
Mooty
Roar Rookie
Ghost you miss the point with Collingwood in Grand Finals, that being the amount they keep losing, which gives all us other supporters great satisfaction
Clayton Cross
Roar Rookie
The Collingwood style of play is terrible. Wrong game plan for the players. Though Collingwood has taken over from the focus of Richmond finishing 9th each year. Richmond finishing 9th used to the national past time.. Now we just get to watch really average people run a really average club. Would you take anyone from Collingwood to another club? Scott Pendlebury still? De Goey looking at jail time.. the X factor already traded out for the salary cap. The loyalist kicked out for being a soft target. Players are lining up to leave the club already... glorious to watch mediocrity in action.. Bring Eddie back, sign Buckley for 10 more years..
The Ghost
Guest
I am sick of this club getting nigh games. They have won two premierships since 1958. Get this boring club off our TV sets!
Peter the Scribe
Roar Guru
Not sure about the recruiting via stats and measurements. The club was already decided on Aaron Naughton in the Stephenson draft and someone invoked the “Patrick Cripps” rule. That “rule” was brought in to always draft the best “footballer” rather then those with the best stats, metrics and measurements after the Pies (and several other clubs) passed on Cripps to metrics. Hence the change from Naughton to Stephenson. Stevo clearly had and has X factor but can you imagine Moore at CHB and Naughton CHF for the next decade at the Pies? I agree totally on the lack of dare. The definition of stupidity we all know is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Buckley for ten years now after a loss says “we lost at the contest”. Right. So if we don’t have the inside mid beasts then what do we do? Find them? Try a different style? Allow the opposition first possession but then close them? Have Grundy do a Keating and simply bang it forward 20 metres? No, and any criticism of Grundy by the way Buckley defers to “Brodie does try this, does try that”…like he has license to do what he wants. I’d rather play the kids this week and simply belt everything forward down the middle. If we lose by 100 at least there’s game time in the kids and we are trying something…anything.
Tackling a major problem. Too many are sliding off when tacking.
Grundy is really only a one position player - and certainly not a million dollar player. Better to run Cox and Cameron in the ruck and interchange them through the forward line. Collingwood need to rethink DeGoey and get him more involved in the game - this might mean playing as a deep full forward or in the centre or as an attacking winger but they need to get him involved.
Greg
Roar Rookie
Where you been Chip? Your colleague Les Zig has been courageous in his persistent criticism of every facet of the club.