THEY pulled off the upset of the season last weekend and now the Pies will look to make it two in a row against Bendigo at Victoria Park on Saturday, as Samantha Landy reports.
Collingwood stamped itself as an unlikely giant killer when it knocked off Port Melbourne by 21-points last Saturday, ending the ladder leader’s 28-game winning streak.
Tarkyn Lockyer’s lads came out of the blocks quickly, establishing a 13-point lead at quarter time. The Magpies never looked back from here, continuing on to lead at every change.
They were somewhat assisted by the Borough’s startling inaccuracy, which saw the side finish with 10 goals 20.
But it was Caolan Mooney and Kirt Ugle who did much of the scoreboard damage with three goals for Collingwood, while Tom Young (27 touches),WA rookie Marley Williams (26) and Kris Pendlebury (22) tore it up in the midfield. Nick Riddle was crucial in defence, keeping Port star forward Dean Galea to one goal five.
Pies coach Lockyer was thrilled at his side’s consistency throughout the match.
“We have dropped away in patches so the ability to play four quarters of footy was a real highlight,” he said.
Bendigo will be keen to take to the field on Saturday after enduring a bye last week, forcing it to stew over its Round 7 loss to Sandringham for an extra weekend.
The Zebras overran Gold by 38-points, leaving coach Hayden Skipworth lamenting three defensive 50 kick-ins which landed directly in the hands of Sandy players in particular.
“Take care, I said. Take some risks, but if [the player’s] not on, don’t just give it to them,” Skipworth said. “It’s too many in a quarter.”
Justin Maddern (4 goals), Matthew Little (3) and Steven Stroobants (2) provided some joy for Gold up forward, while Mark Baguely (21 possessions), Justin Crow (16 possessions, 31 hit outs) and Henry Slattery (24 possessions, 7 tackles) were among the best.
Bendigo had the wood over the Woodsmen last season, defeating the Pies by 80 and five point margins.
Both sides have had rocky form this season, each notching two wins and four losses with Gold sitting at 9th on the ladder, one rung up from Collingwood.
But if the Pies can bring last week’s form into this match up, Bendigo may be in trouble. Collingwood will also be bolstered by the home crowd and the inclusion of AFL ruckman Cameron Wood and Chris Tarrant, who is returning from injury.
Last Modified on 18/05/2012 17:29