Collingwood vs StKilda Match Review, NAB CUP Round 1.

By mattys123

I thought I’d watch the replay before giving a thorough review of the match and each Collingwood player, and it was a good thing I did, because some of the frustration of a close loss weeded away and everything seemed a bit clearer.

Anyway, the make up of this review will be a quarter by quarter summary of what occurred, and then a review of every Collingwood player who played on Friday Night.

Quarter by Quarter.

1st Quarter.

Collingwood started fairly well, winning the ball out of the middle several times, with Jolly winning ruck contests, and Swan and Ball getting their hands on the ball early. Our forward line looked woeful though, Leigh Brown and Medhurst were the only competitive players inside 50, and we struggled to convert our inside 50 advantage in the first minutes. As so often happens in the AFL, StKilda started to get their hands on the ball, and Riewoldt and Schneider were both dangerous inside 50, with Nathan Brown completely helpless in stopping Roo.
Quarter time.
StKilda 1.5.1 – 40
Collingwood 2.2.14

2nd Quarter.

Once again the pies started better then the Saints, but missed out on goals with their first 2 scoring opportunities. Leigh Brown eventually goaled, but the side was now struggling to win the ball out of contests, and StKilda were surging forward. Wellingham, Reid and Sidebottom were positives at this stage, all having an impact on the game. 2 goals to the Saints were answered by Brown and Lockyer to keep the pies in the game at half time.
Half time.
StKilda 1.7.1 – 52
Collingwood 5.4 – 34

3rd Quarter.

MaCarthy was substituted for Beams, and it had an immediate impact, with Beams winning the ball out of the middle on several occasions. Once again though, our forward conversion let us down, with 3 misses in a row allowing StKilda to open up a big lead with 4 straight goals. As the Saints built a 43 point lead, enough was enough and Prestigiacomo was subbed on for Nathan Brown, who had 5 goals kicked on him by 2 opponents. Presti immediately had an impact, setting up 2 goals out of the backline, and when new pie Darren Jolly got the house rocking with the pies first 9 pointer, the pies had got themselves back into the game. 2 more goals to Cloke from the boundary, and Jolly from dead in front, left the pies closing in, but still down 14 points at the last change.
3 Quarter Time.
StKilda -2.10.3. – 75
Collingwood – 1.9.8 – 61

Final Quarter.
The game was officially “on” now, and the first few minutes were tense. Ball and Swan had started to assert themselves in the midfield, and the pies pushed forward, and wily old Tarkyn Lockyer snapped over his shoulder to find Ball on his own 30 out, brining boos from the saints ferals and cheers from the pies fans. Ball goaled, but Milne followed up quickly with one of his own, and the saints still held a 2 goal lead.
Cloke missed one from outside 50, but then Leigh Brown took a great pack mark, went back and slotted truly to close the gap to single figures. At this stage, the pies looked well on top, and the Saints looked tired, but they were never going to just give up, and this showed when Peake turned Maxwell inside out on the poor surface, and found Fisher on his own 30 out, who goaled to lengthen the margin once again.
Our run out of defence was causing problems for the saints, with Maxwell, Wellingham, O’Brien and the standout Shaw using the ball well of half back, and this lead to another forward foray where Beams went in like a mad man and got a well deserved free 40 out. With the poise of a
200 game player, he kicked the ball perfectly and the pies were still alive, more then halfway through the last quarter.
The next few minutes were frantic, Kositzhcke missed from 5 metres, and the pies went forward several times, but then Swan won a contested ball on half back, handballing clear to Johnson who kicked long to half forward, the ball bounce past Didak and Gwilt, but landed perfectly for Medhurst, who swung onto his right foot, stepped inside 50 and delivered truly to place the pies in front for the first time since early in the first quarter.
The pies, now up by 5 points, held the Saints up for several minutes, but bad use of the ball by Ben Reid, who showed his lack of experience by kicking to a contest instead of an open player short, led to a contested ball on StKilda’s forward 50. O’Brien attempted a tackle but It was deemed too high (rightly) by the umpire. Armitage, the recipient of the free, feigned a shot at goal, but at the last moment saw Schneider, Buckleys’ opponent at the time, 20 meters clear, and only 30 metres out.
Schneider, as expected, goaled truly to place the saints 1 point up due to the super goal advantage.
The pies got the ball forward, but only had one clear possession, a snap over the shoulder from Shaw, and with no marking forward in site, the saints cleared and the siren went, leaving the pies with a 1 point loss to open the season, and end their NAB Cup campaign for 2010.
Off to Alice Springs it seems now.

Final Score Details.

Stkilda 2. 13. 4. – 100
Collingwood 1. 13. 2. – 99

Best;
Collingwood; Shaw, O’Brien, Cloke, Ball, Jolly, Swan, Wellingham, Pendlebury
StKilda; Riewoldt, Montagna, Schneider, Goddard, Smith

Goals;
Collingwood; L.Brown 4, Medhurst 2, Cloke 2, Jolly 2, Swan , Ball Lockyer
StKilda; Riewoldt 4, Schneider 3, McQualter, McEvoy, Kositczhke, Montagna, Stanley, Fisher, Milne.

Collingwood Player Review and Ratings.

Simple rating out of 10.

1. Leon Davis. (9 kicks, 6 marks, 2 tackles, 2 behinds). Leon seemed a little short of a run early, but got into the games as it went, should have kicked one, but really didn’t have a huge impact on the game. One that will be clearly better for the run. Rating = 5/10

3. John McCarthy (2 kicks, 3 handballs, 2 marks, 1 tackle, 1 behind). Started the game ok, but then seemed to fade as the Saints got on top. Needs more game time to develop confidence and stamina, and was substituted at half time for Beams. Rating = 3/10

4. Alan Didak (4 kicks, 5 handballs, 1 mark, 1 tackle) Shut down by Jones for most of the night, although still showed small patches of the talent he has, pretty hard to face one of the leagues best taggers first up, but that’s what he is going to have to learn to cope with. Rating = 4/10

5. Nick Maxwell (8 kicks, 11 handballs, 7 marks, 2 tackles) Was just the typical consistent performance for Maxwell, we expect nothing less now, and he delivers most weeks. Held a young opponent in the first half, and then had moments on Riewoldt, before playing as a loose man in defense late in the game, a role he relishes. Set up a number of scoring opportunities, and was the marshall of the backline once again. Rating = 7.5/10

7. Paul Medhurst (7 kicks, 4 handballs, 7 marks, 2 tackles, 2 goals) Should have been the match winner, and he showed he is back in top form, with an effort that got better as the match went on. Should have had 3 goals but for a “steal” by the umpire. Looked dangerous most of the night, he is back. Rating 7/10

8. Harry O’Brien (12 kicks, 10 handballs, 8 marks, 2 tackles) He loves playing on Milne, beat him easily again, and also gave us plenty of attack out of defense. Started a little shaky, but never let Milne get the better of him, and was consistent all night with his ball use. Has improved again. Rating = 8.5/10

10. Scott Pendlebury (11 kicks, 9 handballs, 6 marks, 3 tackles) Boy how he need this run. He was running up and down on the spot early, but got back to his normal self as the game went by. Worked well with Swan, Ball and Jolly late, which was great to see, and will only get better. Looks bigger then last year, which might be a good thing. Rating = 7/10

12. Luke Ball (15 kicks, 7 handballs, 5 marks, 6 tackles, 4 frees for, 1 goal) Was nervous early, but got into the game late, as is his trademark. Had a brilliant last half, and was outstanding late in the match, really stood up and helped drag us back into the game. A very handy pick up in deed. He will also only get better once he starts to “gel” with other mids around him. Rating 7.5/10
13. Dale Thomas (7 kicks, 4 handballs, 5 marks, 2 tackles) Another one who looked to be struggling with match fitness, but at times he showed his usual bursts. Was given a defensive job on several players at times, including Montagna, and did well in these situations. Struggled to have a real offensive impact, and will be criticised again by the unknowing for that. Rating = 6/10

15. Leigh Brown (6 kicks, 5 handballs, 6 marks, 1 tackles, 4 goals) Wow, what a game from Leroy, he just keeps giving his all and results keep coming. Knew he had to prove himself, and out of the players that had to perform to cement a place, he shone brightly. Started along Medhurst as our only target early, and got assistance from Cloke late, but his physicality really helps our forwards out.
Rating = 8.5/10

16. Nathan Brown (2 kicks, 2 handballs, 4 marks) Hard to know what to make of his game. Just couldn’t compete with Riewoldt, who beat him everytime bar one, and Nathan just looked to lack the athletic ability required to go with champs like Roo. Substituted for Presti in the 3rd, so didn’t get the opportunity to perform on a lesser player. Needs more time it seems. Rating 3/10

17. Dayne Beams (4 kicks, 7 handballs, 1 mark, 3 frees for, 1 goal) Subbed on at half time. Almost turned the game when he came on, was brilliant at times, and tough as always. Swapped with Sidebottom on the ball a lot, and both had large impacts on the game at different times. His goal in the last was, well to put it simply, was Scott Burns like. Only getting better, and will be a star. Rating = 6/10

18. Darren Jolly (4 kicks, 5 handballs, 20 hitouts, 2 goals) We have a ruckman, of that there is just no doubt, and he is a goal kicking ruckman in that. Started slowly, some would say poorly, but still won more hitouts then any of his opponents. Warmed up after half time, with 2 goals in the 3rd, including the highlight of the night, the great nine pointer into the cheer squad. Will only get better like Ball as he “gels” with the team, but will assist us back to top 4 again. Rating = 7/10

19. Cameron Wood (2 kicks, 3 handballs, 1 mark, 13 hitouts) Actually rucked well, especially around the ground, but he still has to improve his movement and capacity to gain the ball around the ground. Dropped a crucial mark in the last, although was unlucky not to get a free for a high tackle straight after, but he needs to play more physical to cement a spot in the side. Rating = 5/10

20. Ben Reid (7 kicks, 3 handballs, 5 kicks) Started very well, beating Kositzchke to the point where Kosi was taking out of the forward line. Didn’t have the full offensive impact most wanted to see, but I think that was due to the quality of the opposition. Good first performance at CHB at senior level, could not have expected anything else. Needs to get a little smarter with the ball, but his disposal by foot has improved. Our future, maybe even current CHB. Rating = 6/10

21. Sharrod Wellingham (8 kicks, 5 handballs, 4 marks, 3 tackles) Started very well, but seemed to fad out of the game late. Showed early that his defensive side to his game is improving, and that he can win the ball out of packs in the middle. A definite part of our midfield rotation, gives us that much needed pace and skill we require also. Will only get better with time, but needs to run out games better. Rating = 6.5/10

22. Steele Sidebottom (6 kicks, 8 handballs, 2 marks). Similar to Wellingham, started very well, and kept us in the match early while our gun mids were finding their feet. Not used a lot later in the game, but still showed his football intelligence in the use and control of the ball in tight situations. A pure mid if their ever was one, I would have also liked to see him forward a little more. Rating 6/10

24. Tarkyn Lockyer (13 kicks, 4 handballs, 4 marks, 1 goal) He just keeps going, and uses his brain better then anyone on the field. Obviously lacks pace, but intelligence can make up for that, and his set up of Luke Ball’s goal in the last said everything about why Lockyer is still in our best 22.
Rating = 7/10

26. Ben Johnson (8 kicks, 7 handballs) Was given a defensive role to play all night, on several opponents, and did the majority of them well. Restricted Montagna and Schneider at times, with those players breaking free only when BJ went off them. Had a bit of the ball too, and looked potent late, leading up to Medhursts’ goal. Maybe our best option as a tagger. Rating = 6.5/10

30. Brent MaCaffer (7 kicks, 3 handballs, 2 marks, 4 tackles) Started very well, but seemed to fade out of the game late. Was given a defensive role to play early, mainly on Montagna, but struggled to keep up with the top liner. Tried all night, but just seemed to be a level below the top players. Rating = 5/10

32. Travis Cloke (14 kicks, 1 handball, 10 marks, 2 goals, 5 behinds). Killed the “ghost” in Zac Dawson, it was like he didn’t have an opponent for a lot of the night. Too good of a player to abuse too much, but his kicking is still his biggest liability. Having said that, his knee seemed to stand up well on the terrible surface, and 2 of his missed were from outside 50, and one was a poster. Good performance, assisted Meds and Leroy really well at times with body positioning too. Rating = 7.5/10

34. Alan Toovey (6 kicks, 11 handballs, 2 marks, 2 tackles) Was just “Tooves”, not a lot more you can say. Didn’t see him get beat one on one all night, which is Toovey like, and tried hard all night. Went for one or two runs, which always gets the crowd going, and has cemented that half back flank for himself. Rating = 7/10

35. Simon Prestigiacomo (2 kicks) Subbed on halfway through the third, and somehow changed the game. I think it was more of a “hey Prestis’ here” type of mentality that gave other players more confidence, but he was still Presti, stopping Riewoldt from having any impact on the game late. Good to see he was a sub too, go light on him early, and use him wisely, and he may have 2-3 years left in him yet. Rating 6/10

36. Dane Swan (13 kicks, 8 handballs, 5 marks, 1 goal, 2 behinds) As Swan does, got better as the game went on, and will get better the more game “miles” he gets into those ungamely legs. Was immense in the last quarter, ripping the Saints to bits really, and should have been the difference in the game. Is back and fit, and that’s all you really need to know about Swanny. Rating 8/10

39. Heath Shaw (19 kicks, 11 handballs, 7 marks, 3 tackles) Simply the best would be the way to put it. Along with Maxwell and O’Brien has formed a formidable partnership across half back, that will take us a long way. Used the ball well, broke the lines at times of importance, and got backed and assisted the young backs, especially Reid on Kosi. Seems he may take another level to his game, moving into the midfield and looking at ease straight away. Will play midfield when he gets a hard tag off half back, and it seems like a great idea. Rating 9/10

41. Simon Buckley (3 kicks, 6 handballs, 1 mark, 2 tackles) Looked like a player who has only played a handful of senior games. Had his moments, but just needs more time to build his touch and confidence, as you can see his has size and ability, he just has to back himself a little more. Was caught sleeping at the last moment when Schneider got the mark inside 50, but he wasn’t alone there. Will improve with VFL game time, and might still be a handy pick up, because he is young and can improve dramatically. Rating = 3/10

As you can see, a lot of our players have come back better then ever, and with the 2 new additions of Ball and Jolly, everything looks “rosy” again down at pieland.
Will still rely on old Presti and Lockyer at either end of the ground for stability, but they don’t seem to be fading one bit.
The continued improvement of the likes of Sidebottom, Beams, Wellingham and now Reid also will add depth and strength to our side.
Always hard to lose by a point, but under the circumstances and where we are “at” in regards to fitness and improvement, a good performance which could have gone either way.
Oh, and by the way, take away the supergoals, and return to the correct rules, and we win by 2 points.