It\u2019s common to reflect on players moving from the VFL competition to the AFL that it\u2019s a different game, in particular faster. I think the reverse also applies to those \u2018usual\u2019 AFL players included. Macrae did well pretty broadly. Hill kicked some goals. And Tom McGuane kicked his first major off the ground from a distance of about a metre (no bounces involved).<\/p>\n
Our VFL side is currently placed 7th\u00a0on the Ladder. The Top 6 automatically go into the Finals; the teams placed 7th\u00a0to 10th\u00a0play off for two positions in the Finals. There are three H&A Rounds left, one of which is a Bye for us (good and bad). R19 is against Williamstown, currently placed 10th; R21 is against Port Melbourne, currently placed 17th. After this Loss to a team placed two spots below us on the Ladder, I\u2019m not sure what either of these results will be.<\/p>\n
Good luck, gentlemen. And to access the games on live, FTA TV, go to\u00a0www.afl.com.au\/fixture?Competition=7&Season=77&Round=1213<\/a>. This site will, eventually, come up with \u201cWatch live?\u201d immediately before the bounce.<\/p>\n Go Pies.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Round\u00a020<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Collingwood 13.15.93 defeated Richmond 8.9.57.<\/p>\n Scoring shots: 28 (us) \/ 17 (them). That broadly reflects average kicking by both sides.<\/p>\n Match Report\u00a0\u2013\u00a0www.afl.com.au\/afl\/matches\/7131<\/a><\/p>\n Coach\u2019s comments \u2013\u00a0www.afl.com.au\/video\/1376349\/full-post-match-r20-magpies?videoId=1376349&modal=true&type=video&publishFrom=1753602725001<\/a>\u00a0with a focus on team development, even at this late stage of the Season.\u00a0Worth watching.<\/p>\n Goals scored:<\/p>\n Q1\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 3 (us) \/ 2 (them). Up and down, a bit. They held the lead late in the Quarter, held until early in Q2. Margin at QT + (positive) 8 Points;<\/p>\n Q2\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 4 \/ 2. More of the same, but better for us. Margin at HT + 20 Points;<\/p>\n Q3\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 5 \/\u00a03. Not much change. Margin at the Final break + 35 Points;<\/p>\n Q4\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a01\u00a0\/\u00a01. After we scored a pair of goals early in the Quarter giving us a 21 Point margin, they responded with four unanswered goals ultimately giving them the lead that we were unable to reverse; and<\/p>\n Total\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 11\u00a0\/ 12. Winning with a margin of 36 Points.<\/p>\n Statistics<\/p>\n Some numbers to seek to identify where there was a substantial difference and how this reflected the game:<\/p>\n Statistic Disposals Hit Outs (HO) Matched my assessment. I thought we were routinely beaten.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Clearances<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Centre clearances:<\/p>\n Stoppage clearances:<\/p>\n 30 \/ 27<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n 11 \/ 9<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n 19 \/ 18<\/p>\n \u00a0 This is a much better measure than the HO and should have indicated a minor advantage to us in the next steps \u2013 Inside 50s and, ultimately, our scoring. The subsequent advantage to us, however, reflected in the Inside 50s was pretty substantial.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Inside 50s \u00a0<\/p>\n Disposal Efficiency (DE)<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n 74.7% \/ 72.9% DE Inside 50 Linking Inside 50s and DE inside 50 mean we got the ball into the 50 (broadly, into a scoring position) more frequently, and we used it far more effectively (scored).<\/p>\n This represents the summing of the different statistics and the irrelevance of some earlier ones.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Goals scored Player numbers with game DE of 80% Free Kicks \u00a0<\/p>\n Contested Possession (CP) I like it when the ball is locked in our attacking half, of course, as it seemed to be for extended periods, but without useful scoring.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Uncontested Possession (UCP) Turnovers Reflecting a willingness to make a mistake?<\/p>\n Possession A small difference.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Marks<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Marks inside 50<\/p>\n Contested marks<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n 97 \/ 93<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n 11 \/ 12<\/p>\n 9 \/ 10<\/p>\n We were marginally dominant in marking.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n The same.<\/p>\n Also broadly the same.<\/p>\n Tackles<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Tackles inside 50<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n 57 \/ 39<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n 8 \/ 5<\/p>\n This is an extraordinary advantage. It highlights our boys\u2019 application. Importantly, the numbers Inside 50s, as above, contribute to scoring.<\/p>\n 1%\u2019ers Best:<\/p>\n The AFL website identifies Collingwood\u2019s Best as:<\/p>\n NickD; The Coaches\u2019 Votes identified:<\/p>\n NickD \u2013 10 votes; A good listing. Good to see, in particular, Quaynor and Long identified. Work by Cameron and Perryman in Clearances and Mihocek and Schultz up Forward are also worthy of note.<\/p>\n Your thoughts?<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Crowd: 59,454. I\u2019m disappointed given this was between two of the largest Clubs, both in Melbourne.<\/p>\n Result:\u00a0This was a challenge to watch, more about reflecting the comparative competence of the teams than who would Win:<\/p>\n I was always pretty confident about a Win. It was the degree of domination that I was concerned at. Even allowing for the Q4 wind down, we were reasonably \u2018in charge\u2019 throughout. The degree that domination is reflected on the scoreboard, however, needs to be pursued. In summary, we Won pretty comprehensively though they never gave up or stopped trying. Watch Richmond in the future.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Round\u00a021<\/p>\n Saturday, 2nd\u00a0August Collingwood versus Brisbane at the MCG; bounce at 7.35pm.<\/p>\n This game is between us in 1st\u00a0place with 15 Wins and 4 Losses with a 135.0% percentage and them in 3rd\u00a0place with 13 Wins, 5 Losses and 1 Draw with a 110.8% percentage. The major difference is that we Lost two games recently and Brisbane Lost their most recent game by a huge margin. The question is, are these Losses significant:<\/p>\n R18\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 GC (placed 5th\u00a0on the Ladder)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 by 6 Points\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 at PFS, GC; and<\/p>\n R19\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Freo (placed 7th)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 by 1 Point\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 at the MCG; and<\/p>\n R20\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 GC (placed 8th)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 by 66 Points\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 at PFS, GC.<\/p>\n Betting: As at 27 July \u2013 $1.59 (Pies\u2019 Win) \/ $2.38 (Lions\u2019 Win) adjusted to $1.60 \/ $2.34 on 28 July. Not sure why.<\/p>\n Them<\/p>\n Brisbane are the reigning Premiers, noting that they achieved this after finishing the 2024 H&A season in 5th\u00a0place on the Ladder. My view is still, they were lucky we missed out on getting into the Finals.<\/p>\n Brisbane started this Season well, achieving five Wins in a row. Then they ran into Collingwood in R6 with a Loss by 52 Points played at the Gabba. Since then they\u2019ve had a variety of Wins, Losses and a Draw. Notable (selected by me based on their opponent\u2019s current Ladder position and\/or where the game was played) amongst the Wins are R8 \u2013 GC at the Gabba, R11 \u2013 Hawthorn at the MCG, R15 \u2013 Geelong at Kardinia Park and R19 \u2013 WB at the Gabba. Notable Losses include us, as above, Adelaide at AO, GWS at the Gabba and the GC, as above. Their Draw was R9 with North in Hobart. The Match Report from their most recent Loss to the GC at \u00a0www.afl.com.au\/afl\/matches\/7132#match-report<\/a>\u00a0is worth reading. It highlights the\u00a0Gold Coast was too physical, too clean and too skilled, with a dominating Midfield. The question for us will be as to whether we can replicate this pressure. My personal belief is that we can.<\/p>\n Brisbane, currently sitting 3rd\u00a0on the Ladder, are facing the following to finish the H&A Season:<\/p>\n R21 \u2013 us at the MCG; It would be expected that Brisbane could be expected to perform better at home than away, though any suggestion of a Gabba fortress is well out of date.<\/p>\n Players to watch:<\/p>\n Bailey \u2013 Centre \/ Wing; Also keep an eye on Cameron \u2013 HF, because of his scoring potential, and Starcevich \u2013 HB, because of his family connection with the Pies.<\/p>\n This collection from their Best listings is indicative of a focus on their Midfield plus some key positions. So, win the Midfield battle and unlike last week against Freo, take control of the corridor.<\/p>\n Us:<\/p>\n Context?\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0We are now back to one game clear at the top of the Ladder plus percentage over most teams, but not all. We need to get ready for the Finals plus demonstrate we are the undisputed Premiership favourite. We need to Win each of these last H&A games.<\/p>\n Changes?\u00a0\u00a0Watched the very interesting TV discussion a week ago between a couple of commentators I respect, suggesting that NickD, looking a bit slow and jaded and facing action every week, should be rested, plus maybe Elliott too. The source \u2013 Hurd (spelling corrected from last week) with Cornes\u2019 agreement. Therefore:<\/p>\n Outs: McCreery (injury), NickD and Elliott, each managed, plus Sullivan and Allan.<\/p>\n Ins: De Mattia, Grey, Frampton, Mitchell and Hill.<\/p>\n Game Plan. As per the above, McCreery had a great return game. It could be considered pushing him into the Back 6 to add a little \u2018grunt\u2019 increasing the Back 6 to 7 rather than pushing one of the current ones out.<\/p>\n Your thoughts?<\/p>\n Game Plan\u00a0\u2013 No changes of substance from past weeks. A couple of points, as usual:<\/p>\n Application. Nothing is more important. Well demonstrated in our last few games. And Attitude is King.<\/p>\n Taggers. Tagging roles might be useful, including an occasional hard lock-down role on their Forwards \/ Midfield? And protecting our players? That should also be key.<\/p>\n Midfield Management. Pendles guidance \/ on-field coaching to the collective Midfield.<\/p>\n Passing. Accuracy of passes by foot and hand critical \u2013 see comments above regarding Freo\u2019s clean ball handling.\u00a0Critical.<\/p>\n Drive. Drive out of the Backline is a key part of our game plan. Be prepared to cross the field, even to kick backwards to change the direction. Kick-ins are a continuing issue \u2013 we need to have a plan that everyone knows.<\/p>\n Kicking for Goal.\u00a0This is critical.\u00a0Ball delivery needs to be to the best goal-kicking position. Importantly, scoring a Behind is a waste \u2013 for 1 Point you hand over ball-possession to the opposition. It\u2019s not worth it \u2013 get the ball into a better position \u2013 be willing to pass within\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 the 50.<\/p>\n Tackles. A major success (see last week\u2019s numbers) but still some opponents are spinning out of tackles. Maybe watch Frankston in last week\u2019s Reserves\u2019 game? Love the multiple tacklers.<\/p>\n Our Aim?\u00a0Be happy.<\/p>\n Summary?\u00a0Again, this is our game to Win\u00a0by a good margin when\u00a0we decide that and implement our Game plan throughout the four full Quarters. Brisbane are the reigning Premiers but are not the best team in the competition; that is us, potentially challenged by a couple of others that don\u2019t include Brisbane, particularly not away from their home. We need to scare the rest of the competition as we head towards\u00a0the Finals.<\/p>\n Winning Selection. Collingwood to Win by 23 Points. BOG \u2013 Pendles\u00a0with 20\u00a0touches, including 10 Clearances. Goal kickers include Mihocek \u2013 5.<\/p>\n TV: No FTA again. Go to Kayo or Fox Footy; Binge missing from this one too.<\/p>\n Weather: Low chance of light rain on the day following dry days before it. Plastic boots okay.<\/p>\n Ground Reports?\u00a0Reports please (after or before)? I\u2019d especially like to hear from the armchair warriors watching from afar?<\/p>\n Other:<\/p>\n VFL \u2013 As above. Next on Saturday, 2ndAugust against Williamstown (9thversus our 7th) at the DSV Stadium; bounce at 2.05pm. Good luck, boys.<\/p>\n VFLW team \u2013 Sitting 2nd\u00a0on the Ladder with one game to go. Next is also on Saturday, 2nd\u00a0August against Williamstown (sitting 5th\u00a0on the Ladder) at DSV Stadium; bounce at 10.05am. Maybe get to watch the two games? This game is the competitions last H&A game.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Remember the Top 6 go into the Finals. Our team is currently placed 2nd\u00a0on the Ladder so are assured of making the Finals. Good luck.<\/p>\n Anything else, everyone else?<\/p>\n Next:<\/p>\n Round 22. Thursday, 7th\u00a0August Hawthorn versus Collingwood at the MCG; bounce at 7.30pm.<\/p>\n This is our year. Always believe; never, ever give up! Go Pies.<\/p>\n Cam<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n To return to the www.footyalmanac.com.au<\/a>\u00a0 home page click HERE<\/a><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Our writers are independent contributors. The opinions expressed in their articles are their own. They are not the views, nor do they reflect the views, of Malarkey Publications.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Do you enjoy the Almanac concept? \u00a0<\/p>\n Become an Almanac (annual) member \u2013 CLICK HERE<\/a><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/RICvCOL.png\")
<\/p>\n
\nUs \/ Them
\n\u00a0
\n\u00a0
\nComments<\/p>\n
\n423 \/ 365
\n\u00a0
\n\u00a0
\nReflecting control of the game. Handball \u2013 190 \/ 166.<\/p>\n
\n30 \/ 38
\n\u00a0
\n\u00a0
\nA not-useful number decided by whichever ruck touches the ball first. A better assessment is \u2018HO to advantage\u2019, which I don\u2019t have. And a much, much better measure is under Clearances, below.<\/p>\n
\n\u00a0
\nOur marginal dominance of Clearances is evident here. This should have been of some concern, though the next step reflecting Inside 50 numbers, solved any problems.<\/p>\n
\n56 \/ 43
\n\u00a0
\n\u00a0
\nThis was a huge difference positively reflecting that we had far more entries into goal-scoring positions. See DE below regarding how we used them.<\/p>\n
\n\u00a0
\n\u00a0
\nAcross the whole game. Not hugely different. Next is what counts.<\/p>\n
\n53.6% \/ 41.9%
\n\u00a0
\n\u00a0
\nThis difference here is huge. This reflects an overall huge advantage to us.<\/p>\n
\n13 \/ 8
\n\u00a0
\n\u00a0
\nThe result. And frankly they scored a number of soft goals, including a 50m penalty shot.<\/p>\n
\n10 \/ 11
\n\u00a0
\n\u00a0
\nNot substantially different.<\/p>\n
\n13 \/ 19
\n\u00a0
\n\u00a0
\nThese numbers didn\u2019t surprise me. I observed to one of our members that the umpires in considering an event requiring an assessed judgement nearly always penalise our players. In addition, it was the offences not identified rather than those that were that rankled. Consistent areas of concern \u2013 caught with ball, failure to dispose correctly, in the back in tackles, etc. There were a number of \u2018late pushes after a mark\u2019 not penalised; and some that were. Critically, it was the Frees awarded \u2018at the death\u2019 or close to our opponent\u2019s goal that were of most concern.<\/p>\n
\n139 \/ 133
\n\u00a0
\n\u00a0
\nInteresting \u2013 we marginally dominated CP and dominated UCP by a greater margin. It reflects different styles of play with us happy to work in the midst of players; for them with greater emphasis on getting out of the crush.<\/p>\n
\n278 \/ 226
\n\u00a0
\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n69 \/ 76<\/p>\n
\n41% \/ 43%<\/p>\n
\n49 \/ 54
\n\u00a0
\n\u00a0
\nSpoils and defensive actions. Not too different.<\/p>\n
\nJoshD;
\nQuaynor;
\nMitchell;
\nLong; and
\nMaynard.<\/p>\n
\nJoshD \u2013 3 votes;
\nQuaynor \u2013 3 votes;
\nMitchell \u2013 2 votes; and
\nMaynard \u2013 1 vote.<\/p>\n
\nThe Winning margin could have been substantially greater.
\nThe speed with which we launched attacks out of the Midfield and Backline was fantastic \u2013 well done. See comments below regarding entry into the 50. But they, against the flow of the game, were able to use the corridor to achieve quick, accurate passes resulting in scores. Need to look at how to halt this.
\nOur substantial dominance in Inside 50 numbers should be seen as a substantially greater number of times we were in a position to score. That, linked with our huge Inside 50 Disposal Effectiveness, resulted in our scoring dominance.
\nWe still badly need to put together a \u2018Kick-in\u2019 plan, both as a negative to stop their kick-ins and as a positive to facilitate ours. The kick-in following the scoring of a Behind is a cheap way of transferring ball-possession; the most critical part of using the ball.
\nHigh kicks into the 50 to packs is not the best avenue to the Forwards (or out of our Backline) even with Cox (if playing) or Cameron as targets. Much better avenues are lower, harder kicks to specific targets. The speed of high kicks is also allowing defenders to intercept or, at the least disrupt, the passage of the ball.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/R10-COLvBRI.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
\nR22 \u2013 Sydney at the Gabba;
\nR23 \u2013 Freo in Perth; and
\nR24 \u2013 Hawthorn at the Gabba.<\/p>\n
\nDunkley \u2013 RR. May warrant a tag;
\nZorko \u2013 BP;
\nBerry \u2013 Wing;
\nL. Ashcroft \u2013 FP;
\nW. Ashcroft \u2013 Wing;
\nNeale \u2013 Rover;
\nFletcher \u2013 HB \/ Wing \/ FB;
\nMcLuggage \u2013 Centre \/ HF; and
\nRayner \u2013 FP.<\/p>\n
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<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"G\u2019day True Believers. A funny thing happened on the weekend. Prompted by one of our group, many thanks,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":27079,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[560],"tags":[638,64,63,55,639,85],"class_list":["post-27078","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-afl","tag-afl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-australian-football-league","tag-australianfootballleague","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27078","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27078"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27078\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27079"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27078"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27078"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27078"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}