For the first time this year, The Bogan went to the game. He had plenty of time to regret his decision.
First Quarter
Collingwood played without system except for one passage that began on the defensive 50, ran through the centre and finished with an excellent goal. The only other passage of value came after the next bounce when Fasolo kicked a pretty good pass to Adams who converted.
During most of the second and third quarters, Collingwood failed to trouble the scorers, while the Bulldogs produced a steady stream of goals.
Gleanings
The financial industry is fond of disclaiming with words like past performance is no indicator of future returns. Preseason matches deserve the same disclaimer.
Nevertheless, it seems that the current crop of players will need substantial improvement before Collingwood is in a position to win any games, let alone make the finals. The most positive one could say is that some showed promise (Oxley, Ramsay, Gault).
Of the established players, only Williams played with real enthusiasm and effectiveness. Elliott wasn't bad, but he seemed to roam far and wide. If he is not playing as a forward, God help us. Fasolo was ok, but not more. Blair battled gamely. Sinclair seemed to be having an off night. Toovey might be getting back to the Toovey of old. Swan was pretty effective, but he doesn't seem to be the ball-winner of old. Are his 40-possession days over? Goldsack was serviceable. White did very little.
If Varcoe is going to be of any use to the team, his performance will need to rise dramatically. He looks to me out of sorts, out of position, slow, lazy, unaware, inaccurate, inept and reluctant to engage competitively.
Surprisingly, Grundy probably did all right in the ruck, but twice he had handpasses intercepted, one costing a goal. Unusually, Langdon got beaten one-out - without compensating in any other parts of his game. My heart is in my mouth whenever he is near the ball. Taylor Adams at least has refined one part of his game: when he kicks to an opponent his aim is impeccable.
Captaincy
I've always thought that captaincy in AFL is overrated. After all, how hard can it be to call heads? Choosing ends is no longer an important decision. If it were, the coaching staff would direct the captain. As it is, it looks like Collingwood chooses to kick towards the cheer squad in the first quarter.
But then I saw this game. I've always thought Robert Murphy was a pretty good footballer (and a remarkably insightful columnist), but in this game he played out of his skin. And the commentators agreed. At one point in the game, after a mark and play on, he had time to fall over and still be effective and untackled. But he was constantly doing good things - exemplary things - all around the ground. If leading by example was ever going to lift his team, it surely did in this game.
As far as I could see, Pendlebury offered a single example in the third quarter, ironically, while opposed by Murphy. All night Collingwood could find few avenues to goal. In one play the ball came to Pendles inside F50; he moves to his right, Murphy follows, Pendles steps back and slots a goal on his left. It was the one time Murphy got beaten. The case can be made that he should have done better: he ought to have known that Pendlebury would not prefer his right foot.
Collingwood might have got a lift from that play, but it was far too little, far too late.
Injuries
Last year, injuries ended our season prematurely. This year, we go into the first game missing Greenwood (who was otherwise quite promising and effective), Keeffe, Macaffer and Young (who may not be that much of a loss).
I didn't include Scharenberg because I can't recall seeing him play.
Nonsense
The football experience may be diminished by an innovation I have never seen before. At the ground (but not on the replay), when a player marks in a scoring position, instead of showing a replay of the superb mark, the game screen now shows him walking back while a countdown clock marks the passing of the seconds. Clearly someone thought that this would be riveting television. It isn't.
Dear Mr TFB
ReplyDeleteA bright New Football Year to you.
The countdown is close to the bounce of the ball on our season. Already we are dammed. Unfortunately not by faint praise.
The next 5 or so weeks I hope we see our future great players starting to make their mark.
Unless things have changed in the training, fitness, tactics, brain departments, it will most likely be more of the same.
Sure, practice matches are not any more than tuning things up. On TV I saw little rejigging having been made. It is meant to be a non-contact 100 minutes so that part doesn’t bother me.
What bothers me is the echo I hear from last year.
Allow me to bring up a few of my favorites:
Adams has it 50 % right, in that he gets the ball. He should watch the Sam Mitchell highlights reel over and over again. Never kick it. Handball it perfectly.
When our player is coming through the centre towards our goal, there are 5 things Cloke can do. One is wrong, 4 are right. He can stand where he is and have the ball kicked on to his head – there goes our despair level again.
He can turn around and storm back to goal and get a free kick for being impeded, or he can dash forward for a low 30 meter pass into the bread basket (which is unstoppable), or he can dash to either side, with his two defenders in his wake.
The third bit of despair comes when we get the ball about the centre of the ground, the player looks up and there is no-one between him and the goals. How hard is it for just 1 or 2 players to imagine we will get the ball in a turnover and race towards our goal and so stay in the ‘kicking range’?
There are 4to 5 goals extra just in those three things.
Then we need some tactical imagination – things are crook now, let’s think differently. Why not try Goldsack in the middle? He probably has not much idea where on the ground his true place is. Has White been tried in the centre or in the backline? He can run and catch and spoil.
Then you have brought up the problem of the MCG living space. I don’t want screen ads, loudness, interviews, music, crowd scenes, kiss camera, a countdown clock. I want to be in my own space and enjoy my tribal experience.
But – it’s good to have footy back.
M