AFL Round 1 – Collingwood vs Sydney Match Preview.

Footy is back, and not a moment too soon. The 2016 AFL home and away season gets underway this week as 18 teams begin their quest for the ultimate, the AFL premiership. Once again the off season has been dominated by off field events mainly surrounding one club, Essendon, so it’s a relief in many ways to get back to what the league, and the sport is all about, the actual game itself. The season starts on Thursday night with a predictably one sided game between Richmond and Carlton at the MCG but there are plenty of mouth watering matchups in round 1.

One of those is in Sydney on Saturday night when the Sydney Swans welcome the Collingwood Magpies to the S.C.G. This game was initially scheduled to be played at the Olympic stadium (ANZ stadium) but the AFL, the Swans and stadium directors in Sydney got together and negotiated a shift to the Sydney Cricket Ground. In terms of pure football it’s the best move for the AFL and the Swans, even if the change of venue came a little too late and inconvenienced traveling fans. Either way the game will be played at the S.C.G. on Saturday night, and the Swans will start the game as favorites at home.

The Sydney Swans had a decent year last year, well at least until the finals came about. They finished in 4^th position after the home and away season but lost both their finals to rather embarrassingly go out in straight sets. They had injury and off field problems that were partially to blame but in the end it was a disappointing end to a promising season. Of course Swans fans will point out that at least they played finals, something that Collingwood hasn’t achieved for the past two seasons. The Magpies have followed the same pattern for the past two years, they’ve started will to be inside the top 4 after 11 rounds, only to collapse and miss the finals altogether. 2016 is a big year for both clubs. These two clubs met only once last season, in round 20, with the Swans coming away with an 11 point win at the S.C.G.

 

COLLINGWOOD PREVIEW

The past two seasons have been failures for the biggest club in the land, let’s not beat around the bush. Missing the finals never achieves a pass mark at any club, but especially one who had made the finals in every season from 2006 to 2013. There are signs of life though at the Holden Centre (Collingwood’s training facility) with a list that includes some of the standout young players in the competition looking to dramatically improve on the output of previous seasons.

The young Magpies pre season (7^th youngest list in the AFL) has been impressive with three close wins over classy, more experienced opponents. What has been noticeable in the Pies pre season is the game plan has become more open in both attack and defense. This has led to the Pies being dominated and dominant in patches throughout each of their 3 NAB Challenge games. Whether that game plan is adjusted a little for the regular season will be interesting to observe.

The three close pre season wins are important for the young Pies because last season they lost most of their close games, especially against the better sides. A three week stretch after the mid season bye saw losses to Hawthorn, Fremantle and Port Adelaide by a total of 20 points. This hurt the Pies in more ways than one and they never really recovered.

Coming into the opening round of season 2016 though Collingwood is in a relatively healthy state. In past seasons they’ve started the year well than fallen away mainly due to not having enough depth to cover a rash of injuries. This year though they seem to have a deeper list to choose from, apart from Jamie Elliott and Matthew Scharenberg everyone on the list is available for selection. However there was a setback on Monday with Travis Varcoe suffering a hamstring strain and training and the tough ex Cat will miss at least 2 weeks. Varcoe had been in stellar form in the NAB challenge and his loss is a blow to the Pies for sure. The Magpies midfield will lead the way for them this year and that’s in large part to the addition of an elite 23 year old, Adam Treloar. The recruitment of Treloar was one of two massive moves in the off season (Dangerfield to Geelong the other one) and he’s shown already what he will offer the Pies in 2016 and in years to come.

Against the Swans this Saturday night the Magpies coaches have a tough job on their hand selecting a final 22. There’s the new interchange rules to consider, with the number of changes reduced to 90 and the abolition of the controversial, and silly substitute rule. How that effects the final selection is yet to be known but it may mean that Collingwood’s two promising young rucks, Brodie Grundy and Jarrod Witts get to play together, which was a rarity last season. Other tough choices include who to select in the key position roles down back with Ben Reid getting through an intra club match last Friday and putting his hand up to play at centre half back. No matter what the final selection is for this Collingwood team they will believe a win is within their grasp and will come away disappointed with anything other than the 4 premiership points.

 

SYDNEY PREVIEW

The Sydney Swans looked like a premiership contender for most of season 2015 but fell away rather quickly at the end. They were only outside of the top 4 once (after round 1) yet when it came to finals they were unable to win any. It was a sour end to what could have been another strong year.

Sydney will look to once again be up the pointy end of the table in 2016, the Swans have however lost some experience and talent from their list in the off season. The loss of Adam Goodes, Rhyce Shaw, Mike Pyke, Lewis Jetta and Craig Bird will effect their depth. It’s kind of a mini rebuild for the Swans with a reliance now on their talented youth to regenerate what was an aging list.

Their best 22 is still a very strong unit and if they can keep their best players on the park they will be formidable again this season.

The undoubted strength of the Swans is their midfield. Rolling off the names of their ball winning brigade is mouth watering. Kennedy, Jack (times 2), Mitchell, Heeney, Mills, Parker, Hannebery and McVeigh all get together to create the toughest central grouping in the AFL. In 2015 the Swans were the best pressure side in the competition and the 4^th best clearance team. With the addition of young Callum Mills and Isaac Heeney having one year under his belt this midfield may be about to get even better. The ruck has been an area that the Swans have maintained a competitive rating in for several years, mainly due to the work of Canadian Mike Pyke. But with Pyke retiring they needed to find a replacement, so they went out and got Callum Sinclair, an Eagles ruckman who managed 20 games last season, although it was at the expense of losing Lewis Jetta. The midfield is the area of the ground the Swans will look to dominate in during the 2016 home and away season.

The Swans defense is still holding up it’s end of the bargain. Last season Sydney conceded just the 6^th most total points in the home and away season. They actually led the lead for restricting sides inside 50 attacks too, allowing scores at a rate of only 43% per inside 50 entry. Ted Richards, Heath Grundy and Jarrad McVeigh led the way there and it kept the Swans in a higher position than they would have been otherwise. The problem for Sydney is two of those three players won’t be available this weekend with McVeigh and Richards still recovering from injuries. That presents an opportunity for another new recruit to come in and make his Swans debut though. Michael Talia made the move north in the off season after a bizarre incident at the Western Bulldogs that saw him accused of insider trading with his brother. Talia managed 14 games for the Dogs last season and will fill in nicely for Sydney.

The Sydney forward line should be an area that frightens opposition defences. With names like Franklin, Tippett, Heeney, Reid (likely to miss) and McGlynn it really should be better than it was at times last season. When the Swans brought in Franklin and Tippett to the club on huge contracts, they expected it would increase their output straight away up forward. In fact it’s had the opposite effect with the Swans total points decreasing over the past 3 years. They still managed to score the 6^th most points in 2015 but were significantly off the pace with the three time reigning premiers, Hawthorn. The loss of Adam Goodes from that forward line also creates another hole that needs to be filled. Of course Lance Franklin is back though after missing the back half of last season due to mental issues. Buddy has looked back to his old self in the NAB Challenge and along with a few youngsters may be able to fire up the Swans struggling attack.

Sydney will go into this game worse off than the Pies in terms of the health of their list. The absence of Mcveigh, Reid, Richards and Rohan will leave a hole that may not be able to filled to full effect. Long term though this might be a good thing for a Swans team that wants to quickly regenerate it’s list while still staying competitive. Many have tipped Sydney to slide down the ladder in 2016 so this first game is of vital importance to one of the AFL’s most important clubs.

TEAMS;

Collingwood
B: Jackson Ramsay, Nathan Brown, Tom Langdon
HB: Ben Sinclair, Jack Frost, Marley Williams
C: Steele Sidebottom, Adam Treloar, Levi Greenwood
HF: Dane Swan, Darcy Moore, Jordan De Goey
F: Alex Fasolo, Travis Cloke, Corey Gault
Foll: Jarrod Witts, Scott Pendlebury, Taylor Adams
Int: Brent Macaffer, Jarryd Blair, Jack Crisp, Brayden Maynard
Emg: Brodie Grundy, Alan Toovey, Adam Oxley

New: Adam Treloar (23, Greater Western Sydney)

 

TIP

Sydney will start favourites for this game and they have earned that right. They finished above Collingwood in the past few seasons, have a more mature list and are playing at their home ground. The Magpies have a good record in Sydney though, having won 9 of their past 10 games against the Swans. Of course most of those games have been at the Olympic Stadium and this game will be at the S.C.G. due to a controversial late switch in venue. Even last season though, the Magpies, a team who struggled immensely in the second half of the year, almost beat the Swans on this very ground, only going down by 11 points in the end.

Then there’s the relative health of each teams’ list, which favours the Magpies. With only Varcoe and Elliott missing from their best 22 this Collingwood outfit is as strong and fit as it has been for many a year leading into the opening game. Ultimately that’s the reason why I can see the Magpies coming away with a valuable round 1 win.

MAGPIES BY 9 POINTS

AFL Round 1 – Collingwood vs Brisbane Match Preview.

Footy’s back, and not a moment too soon as the AFL deals with the fallout from yet another drug controversy. It’s round one finally and this Saturday night Collingwood and Brisbane will open their home and away campaigns at the Gabba. Collingwood, the club caught up in the latest performance enhancing drug investigation, travels north with hopes of a better season then they had in 2014. Injuries, form and off field problems meant that the biggest club in the land missed the finals for the first time in 8 seasons. The Lions, still rebuilding after some recruiting mistakes made under previous coach Michael Voss, had a tumultuous season which was basically over before it began as they won only one of their first nine games. The Lions did finish the season better then the Magpies though, with 3 wins in their final 6 games, including a thumping 67 point over Collingwood in round 21. That was the only clash of the season between the two in 2014, and it was a night from hell for the Pies with further injuries and the heavy loss all but ending their finals hopes.

The obvious point of promotion for this game will be Dayne Beams. The star midfielder decided to leave Collingwood during the trade period and the club obliged, trading him to Brisbane. While there will be some ill feeling from Magpie fans towards Beams, it probably won’t spill over onto the field. Beams though is a very handy addition to an already strong Lions midfield.

PREVIOUS FORM

Pre season form can be misleading, but it’s the only form we have to go on leading into this round 1 clash. Collingwood began the NAB challenge in style, disposing of an under manned Hawthorn outfit by 44 points in Launceston. They followed that up with a close loss to Carlton at Bendigo, a result that no one really criticised or applauded. The final matchup of the pre season competition though would be of concern for the coaching staff at Collingwood. They went into the game against the Bulldogs in Melbourne as favourites, yet from very early in the contest it was clear the Magpies were never going to be in the game. The Pies only won one quarter and eventually went down by 61 points in a rather embarrassing performance. The loss wasn’t the worst thing to happen on the night, with tough midfielder Levi Greenwood, joining the Pies as part of the Beams deal, going down with an ankle injury that would rule him out for the first 2 months of the season. It was a poor end to the pre season and really leaves us with no real indication as to just how good (or bad) this Collingwood outfit will be.

Brisbane on the other hand had an impressive pre season campaign. They started off with a close win over St Kilda in Brisbane where Dayne Beams starred with a best on ground performance. Next up was their most impressive performance, a 36 point win over last years’ grand finalists Sydney in Coffs Harbour, where Josh Green showed why he is becoming one of the most dangerous small forwards in the AFL. The Lions finished their pre season fixtures with a game against local rivals the Gold Coast Suns. The game never reached any great heights until the final few moments when instinct took over as both teams fought for a win. When the siren sounded the scores were level and the Lions would have been happy with their pre season endeavours. Based just on NAB Challenge form they definitely look to be ahead of Collingwood at this stage.

COLLINGWOOD PREVIEW

Collingwood enter season 2015 as an under estimated side. There’s yet to be anyone in the media that considers them a chance of playing finals, yet there is intense pressure from the same group on coach Nathan Buckley. That is kind of an oxymoron but internally that won’t have any bearing on what happens this season. What will determine how the Pies go this season is the improvement from within the group. The additions of experienced players Travis Varcoe, Levi Greenwood and Jack Crisp may well help in the short term but it’s the youngsters at Collingwood who will ultimately decide if this club moves forward on field or not. The Magpies have through trading, acquired 7 first round draft picks over the last 3 seasons, and it’s those highly rated youngsters that hold the key to the improvement of the list. The problem with this is that most of those players aren’t ready to be consistent AFL performers yet so it’s most likely the Magpies will have yet another inconsistent season.

Heading into this game the Magpies are relatively healthy with only a handful of first choice players unavailable for the trip to Brisbane. The loss of Greenwood and the unavailability of Reid, Freeman and Seedsman is a concern but there are still a fair group contesting to be selected for this game. Jarrod Witts and Tim Broomhead impressed in a VFL hitout last Thursday and both surely will be close to selection for this game. Whether the Pies choose to go with two permanent ruckman in Witts and Brodie Grundy is one question up for debate, with Brisbane having two very capable rucks of their own (Leuenberger and Martin). The major concern for the Magpies in this game may well be their ability to score, with both delivery inside the forward zone and accuracy when shooting at goal a major problem last season. The reliance on Travis Cloke is still there and the Pies need to find someone to assist him, with White, Grundy, Witts and Gault among those in contention to do so. Collingwood can win this game, it doesn’t mean they will, but by no means are they out of this and if they perform to their best, they will win.

OPPOSITION ANALYSIS

Brisbane go into season 2015 with the hope of improving on a 15^th placed finish. There weren’t too many positives for the Lions in 2014 with only one loss under 10 points and plenty of big margins, but the way they finished the season was better then their start. Coming into this season though they have undoubtedly strengthened their list. The addition of Beams, Christensen and Robinson adds much needed experience to one of the youngest lists in the AFL and makes their midfield one of the more formidable in the league. The loss of Joel Patfull to GWS and the retirement of club legends Jonathon Brown and Ashley McGrath will hurt although the latter two didn’t have much of an impact last season anyway. The Lions self titled “mosquito fleet” is their strength, and while there are questions regarding their key position stocks the Lions will be an exciting team to watch this year.

The return of Daniel Rich will help the Lions for sure.

The area of most concern for the Lions is their defense. Daniel Merrett spent a lot of time up forward last season and it hurt the Lions backline, with Brisbane conceding the third most points of the 18 AFL clubs. The good news is Merrett will return to the backline this season which will help a struggling young defense. Apart from Merrett there is improvement in this area though with high hopes for young key position players Darcy Gardiner and Justin Clarke. The loss of Pearce Hanley with a hip injury will hurt the Lions run off half back but with Adcock, Beams (of the Claye variety) and Daniel Rich slated to play off half back, there should still be sufficient drive out of defense. The Collingwood forward line has it’s own problems with a heavy reliance on Cloke and Elliott so the Lions defense should be able to be effective this weekend.

Without doubt the section of the ground where Brisbane will look to dominate Collingwood, and other teams, is the midfield. Led by two class ruckman in Matthew Leuenberger and Stefan Martin. New captain Tom Rockliff and boom recruit Dayne Beams will lead the mosquito squad with names like Zorko, Taylor, Aish, Christensen, Mayes and Redden making up a very impressive midfield grouping. The Lions midfield possesses the kryptonite of Collingwood if you will, pace. The Pies don’t possess a lot of pacy small mids with their youngsters the quickest of the probable group. The Lions ran the Pies off their feet at the MCG last season and while the predicted wet weather may slow the game down a bit, it’s the one out right area that the Lions have an advantage in. Collingwood though has it’s stars to feed of, with Swan, Sidebottom and the amazing Scott Pendlebury leading the way. Most say a game is won or lost in the midfield and this clash may be no different.

The Lions forward line is a work in progress with the loss of the immortal Jonathon Brown requiring a restructure of their attacking set up. Youngster like McStay and Close will be called upon to fill the void early on in the season but you feel the majority of the Lions scoring will come from their small forwards and midfielders. They do have one of the best small forwards in the league with Josh Green kicking 33 goals last season to lead the club in scoring. The loss of Brown will hurt but his loss was going to come at some point so it’s time to move on for the Lions. The Collingwood backline they will come up against has also lost some experience with Maxwell and Lumumba moving on. That may even the ledger a bit and once again pace will be the weapon the Lions will look to use to exploit the Pies.

Brisbane should be an improved team in 2015 with the classy additions and the natural improvement of their youngsters. Whether that translates to a dramatic move up the ladder or not is yet to be seen but a round 1 win at home would boost their chances. The Lions will start favourites, and rightfully so, but there isn’t any real exposed form so anything can happen on the night.

TEAMS

Collingwood
B: Alan Toovey, Nathan Brown, Ben Sinclair
HB: Marley Williams, Jack Frost, Adam Oxley
C: Travis Varcoe, Jack Crisp, Steele Sidebottom
HF: Dane Swan, Jesse White, Tyson Goldsack
F: Jamie Elliott, Travis Cloke, Alex Fasolo
Foll: Brodie Grundy, Taylor Adams, Scott Pendlebury
Int: Jackson Ramsay, Jarryd Blair, Tom Langdon, Jordan De Goey
Emg: Ben Kennedy, Patrick Karnezis, Corey Gault

NEW: Jack Crisp (21, Brisbane), Jordan De Goey (19, Oakleigh U18), Travis Varcoe (26, Geelong)

Brisbane Lions

B Justin Clarke, Daniel Merrett, Ryan Lester
HB Claye Beams, Marco Paparone, Daniel Rich
C Rohan Bewick, Dayne Beams, Jed Adcock
HF Josh Green, Matthew Leuenberger, Lewis Taylor
F Mitch Robinson, Daniel McStay, Jaden McGrath
FOL Stefan Martin, James Aish, Tom Rockliff
I/C Allen Christensen, Dayne Zorko, Jack Redden, Sam Mayes

EMG Luke McGuane, Harris Andrews, Mitch Golby

TIP

The early rounds of an AFL season are always the hardest to tip especially when you have two teams who struggled the season before. The home ground advantage obviously favours the Lions although they only won 3 of 11 games at the Gabba last season. The Pies generally travel well interstate and the forecast wet weather would favour the visitors more then the locals.

I see the midfield’s as fairly even with both forward lines being flawed in many ways, which leaves the defense as the area where one team might be dominant. It’s in that area, in the ability to restrict a sides score that I favour the Magpies and therefore I believe they will start their season off with a win.

MAGPIES BY 11 POINTS.

AFL Round 1 – Collingwood vs Fremantle Match Preview.

FOOTY’S BACK, and not a moment too soon, as the 2014 AFL Premiership season kicks off this Friday night at Etihad Stadium in Melbourne. In the opening game of the 2014 season Collingwood will host Fremantle in what seems like a tantalising matchup. After a long pre season of weights, running, training and ultimately three practice matches these two clubs’ get the honour of being the first to take to the field in competition for premiership points. Fremantle is coming off it’s most successful season in it’s short history, a season that ultimately ended on Grand Final day as they fell agonisingly short against the Hawks in the big one. It was a disappointing end to a stunning season for the Dockers with inaccurate kicking at goal costing them any chance of walking away with their first flag.

Collingwood had a strange 2013 season, with wins against many top teams including preliminary finalists Geelong and Sydney, but they also lost to clubs who didn’t play finals which left them outside the top 4 for the first time since 2008. The Pies’ then had what can only be called a disaster in their elimination final as the Power dominated the second half to knock the biggest club in Australia out in the first week of the finals. There were rumours and stories galore about a fractious environment inside the playing group all season and these stories were given some credit when it came to trades and de-listings, with plenty of changes to the Magpies playing list in the off season.

What this all sets up is a mouth watering opening round one clash with one club desperate to get back to the big dance coming to Melbourne to face a side in transition but with high expectations of their own. Fremantle has been tipped by the experts to finish top four once again but when it comes to the Pies, opinions vary, with predictions ranging from 3^rd to 10^th, showing just how unpredictable and young this Collingwood list is.

PREVIOUS FORM

Fremantle lost twice to their cross town rivals in the pre season.

It’s hard to line up form in the pre season with both teams completing their three NAB Challenge matches with varied success and results. Fremantle’s three pre season games were book ended with losses to cross town rival West Coast, but from game 1 to game 3 there was a marked improvement. In the first game versus the Eagles the Dockers lost by a staggering 84 points, with very few positives coming out of the game other than they got through unscathed in regards to injuries. The second game saw Fremantle travel to Melbourne for a practice run at Etihad Stadium against the up and coming Western Bulldogs, and this time the Dockers looked more like themselves with a powerful second half performance netting them an 28 point win. There was one significant injury out of that game however with new recruit Scott Gumbleton suffering a hamstring injury which means he will miss the start of the season. In the Dockers final hitout before the season proper begins they faced the Eagles again in very hot conditions at Patersons Stadium. The Eagles led for almost the entire game and recorded a 19 point win, but the second half was a matter of survival in the heat with both teams happy to get out of the game relatively injury free.

Collingwood’s pre season may well be a small indicator of their regular season with somewhat of a Jekyll and Hyde performance over the period of the three games. The Pies’ kicked off their 2014 campaign with a tough and brutal encounter down at Geelong versus the Cats, as both teams through everything at each other for four quarters. Many believed this game to be the closest to a regular season game in terms of intensity and skill in the entire pre season as the Cats won by 2 points in a thriller. The Magpies then had a decent break before their second hitout against the Tigers at Wangaratta in North East Victoria. The Pies’ started the game ok but the second half was all Richmond as the much fancied Tigers ran away with an 8 goal win. Much like Fremantle’s final practice match Collingwood would have been happy to get out of the game with no injuries of note.

For their pre season finale Collingwood headed to the Gold Coast for a week long training camp that would culminate in a game versus the home town Suns on the Sunday, and at half time of that game it seemed as if the Pies’ heads were still at the beach as they trailed by 41 points. Something changed at half time though and Collingwood finally kicked into gear, with the league’s best power forward, Travis Cloke, leading the way with 6 second half goals as the Pies remarkably came away with a 14 point win. It was the perfect way to end the pre season and would have given the whole club a boost of confidence leading into this matchup.

COLLINGWOOD PREVIEW

You could write many an article about the change that Collingwood has gone through in the off season but the one statistic that may be most relevant is that this Magpies list is now the 4^th youngest of all clubs in the AFL. That is staggering considering the Pies’ are only 2 seasons removed from playing in a second consecutive grand final, but it does show you the approach that Nathan Buckley and his support staff are taking with this club.

With all the on field and off field problems of last year, change was needed and with change comes renewal, and that’s what this club will be all about in season 2014, starting afresh.

Heading into round 1 Collingwood have a relatively healthy list to choose from with only a few fringe players ruled out and unavailable for selection. Marley Williams is probably the biggest loss for the Pies this week, but with his troubles it seems as if it’s better that he doesn’t play for the time being. In a big blow to the Magpies chances of an upset round 1 win key position players Ben Reid and Jesse White have been ruled out for this clash. White having arrived from Sydney in the off season and Reid, a player who will play both forward and back this year, are both valuable to a young and developing Magpies outfit and will be sorely missed.

Brodie Grundy is likely to be given the task of stopping Aaron Sandilands.

There are some selection quandaries for Buckley and his team this week though as young rucks Jarrod Witts and Brodie Grundy are both pushing for the position of starting ruck against the man mountain that is Aaron Sandilands. With White and Reid ruled out Buckley may decide to go with both genuine ruckman in the team to counteract the influence of Sandilands at stoppages, although Lynch and Hudson have also been mentioned as possible inclusions. A positive selection problem though is young draftee Tom Langdon, whose pre season form has been so good that amazingly he is a chance of making his AFL senior debut this Friday night. The young half back played in all 3 practice matches, averaging 15 possessions while shutting down an opponent effectively at times. It would indeed be a sign of the times if Langdon was to debut this week. The most positive story of the pre season to date is the return of premiership defender Alan Toovey from a knee injury he suffered during the ANZAC day match last season. Toovey missed the rest of the 2013 season but has impressed and shown his trademark shut down ability off half back, much to the joy of Magpie fans.

While this Magpies list has gone through a change over the past few seasons, there’s one thing that has remained the same and that’s the strength of the midfield. Although last season the Pies struggled at times in the middle without Luke Ball and Dayne Beams for a lot of the season. Add in gun young recruit Taylor Adams though, and a fit Ball and Beams and once again the Magpies midfield on paper at least looks as strong, if not stronger than anything else in the competition. It’s an area the Pies’ will have to dominate if they are to make their 9^th successive finals appearance in season 2014.

OPPOSITION ANALYSIS.

You can’t help but be impressed by what Ross Lyon has done with this Fremantle Dockers outfit in just two seasons, taking them from a side who was perennial bottom of the 8 challengers to being a powerhouse premiership contending team. They are at their peak right now, there’s very little doubt about that and for the next few seasons they will be challenging for their first elusive AFL premiership. They rightfully so head into season 2014 as one of the favourites to lift the cup and they do present a massive first up challenge for the new Magpies. The Dockers possess talent and the ability to dominate in just about every area of their game, with very few apparent weaknesses.

Senior coach Ross Lyon has spoken about scoring conversion off turnovers as being a key area that they need to improve in though, but there’s not a lot of improvement needed to go just one step higher in 2014 for the Dockers.

The Dockers backline is sometimes seen as a weakness that is covered up by Lyon’s defensive gameplan, just like his time at St Kilda, but when you look at some of the names that thought goes out of your head quickly. Luke McPharlin is an elite defender with plenty of experience, Zac Dawson is maligned yet effective and Michael Johnson is one of the more attacking key defenders in the AFL. The support group of mediums and smalls may not be as well known but Sutcliffe, Duffield, Pearce, Mzungu, Spurr and Hill provide a nice mixture of defense and drive off half back. The backline is one area that Lyon will look to exploit Collingwood’s lack of real pace and inability to stop the counter attack at times.

Ryan Crowley has developed into the best tagger in the AFL.

Fremantle’s midfield is as deeply talented as any in the AFL and of course it is led by the humongous Aaron Sandilands who looks to be fit and ready to go this season after an injury effected 2013. The players at his feet must really love the big fella and feed off his ability to win most hitouts. Nathan Fyfe led the way for the Dockers in the middle last year and has developed into an absolute star of the competition in such a short time. He is able assisted by a deep list of midfielders including Crowley. Hill, De Boer, Mundy, Barlow and Pearce. They may not have the high profile names of the Magpies superstar mids but in their own right they are every bit as effective, with an obvious edge in defensive ability over the Magpies midfield. Who Ryan Crowley goes to is a big decision for the Dockers with new captain Scott Pendlebury probably the most likely option.

The Fremantle forward line is unlike any other effective forward unit in the AFL in that it doesn’t rely on key position players to provide it with the majority of it’s score. Last season Walters, Mayne and Ballantyne all kicked over 30 goals with Matthew Pavlich also getting close to that mark. Walters was the stand out small forward in the AFL in 2013 with 46 goals in total and dominated the only time these two teams met last season, with 4 goals in a strong win for the Dockers over the Pies. If Aaron Sandilands can stay fit he also provides another avenue for goal for Fremantle and will cause plenty of headaches for teams throughout the season. If the Magpies have a weakness in defense, it’s containing small and medium forwards, and so it’s not hard to foresee the Dockers forward line causing the Pies backline a lot of trouble in this game. This is one area where Fremantle seems to have a definite edge heading into Friday night.

The Dockers probable team line-up reads very strong on paper and they will provide a real test for the home town Magpies in round 1, of that there’s little doubt. Fremantle will be confident of coming over to Melbourne and winning a game like this, and will see it as a perfect opportunity to start their long run back to the Grand Final with an away win. There are fitness doubts regarding Fyfe and Ballantyne but just like Reid and White for the Magpies whether they line-up or not may not be known until an hour before the bounce on Friday night. Ross Lyon coached teams come prepared every single week and with the chance to make a statement in front of a huge TV audience there’s no doubt the Dockers will be fired up for this one.

Statistical Comparison (2013)

Category	Collingwood	Fremantle
Contested possessions	140 per game (ranked 11th)	142 per game (ranked 7th)
Uncontested possessions	237 (ranked 1st)	220 (ranked 9th)
Clearances	35 (12th)	36 (15th)
Hitouts	31 (18th)	40 (8th)
Tackles	65 (7th)	66 (6th)
Inside forward 50’s	55 (3rd)	47 (15th)
Marks inside forward 50	14 (3rd)	11 (12th)

TEAMS.

 Collingwood
B: Alan Toovey, Nathan Brown, Nick Maxwell
HB: Tyson Goldsack, Jack Frost, Tom Langdon
C: Steele Sidebottom, Brent Macaffer, Taylor Adams
HF: Dayne Beans, Travis Cloke, Jamie Elliott
F: Ben Kennedy, Jarrod Witts, Dane Swan
Foll: Brodie Grundy, Scott Pendlebury, Heritier Lumumba
Int: Marty Clarke, Luke Ball, Clinton Young, Ben Sinclair
Emg: Quinten Lynch, Lachlan Keeffe, Tony Armstrong

Fremantle

FB: Zac Dawson, Luke McPharlin, Lee Spurr
HB: Danyle Pearce, Michael Johnson, Tendai Mzungu
C: Cameron Sutcliffe, Ryan Crowley, David Mundy
HF: Matt de Boer, Chris Mayne, Nat Fyfe
FF: Hayden Ballantyne, Matthew Pavlich, Michael Walters
FOL: Aaron Sandilands, Michael Barlow, Lachie Neale
I/C: Paul Duffield, Stephen Hill, Tommy Sheridan, Jack Hannath

EMG Colin Sylvia, Zac Clarke, Clancee Pearce

TIP.

Fremantle won the only battle between these two sides last season.

Even after assessing all the variables leading into this game, such as form, fitness, location, timing and possible team line ups it is hard to split the two teams. Both teams are likely to go in at about 80% of their full capability in terms of missing players, and while the game is in Melbourne all that does is level the field even more. If this game was to be played at Subiaco in Perth, the Dockers would probably win, but over in Melbourne it brings the Magpies right into it. The loss of Reid and White does make it harder for the Pies though, but there are options to replace them.

One varying factor is that Fremantle are three weeks behind Collingwood in preparations and just maybe that could be the advantage Collingwood needs to get a round 1 win over a top team. To win this game Collingwood will need to deliver the ball inside 50 with absolute precision, just like the Hawks did in the Grand Final.

If there was ever a time to play the Dockers it might just be this week, and with the Magpie Army at their backs and in full voice, I’m tipping the Magpies to start the season in fine fashion.

PIES BY 8 POINTS.