![\"Andrew](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/ddb439a35602544b713c38672523d9b13febc6cda49bcf2dcf93af2f2438157f.png\")
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Remove items from your saved list<\/a> to add more.<\/p>\n AAA<\/p>\n Nick Daicos, Scott Pendlebury and Jordan De Goey amassed 100 possessions between them. All three were among the best players on the ground at Marvel Stadium on Saturday night, and it still was not enough for Collingwood to beat the Western Bulldogs, another team in wildcard territory.<\/p>\n Coach Craig McRae conceded the Magpies had become a \u201cmiddle of the road\u201d team. He also repeatedly described his side as a \u201cwork in progress\u201d.<\/p>\n Such assessments are befitting of teams on the rise, but not for a side that made last year\u2019s preliminary final and who are regularly fielding the league\u2019s oldest and most experienced 23s.<\/p>\n The Pies\u2019 four point loss \u2013 14.13 (97) to 13.15 (93) \u2013 leaves them clinging to a spot in the 10 and below parity with five wins and a draw from 12 games. Of their past 21 games, they have won just eight.<\/p>\n Bit by bit, the aura of McRae\u2019s men is fading. They were once the kings of the close finish. Dogs coach Luke Beveridge remarked, \u201cIt was almost like they were toying with the competition\u201d. Not any more.<\/p>\n The Pies have now failed to win four of their past five games decided by a goal or less; their only victory coming against Carlton after youngster Talor Byrne could not convert after the siren<\/a> to draw the game.<\/p>\n As close as they were to knocking off Sydney, Fremantle and Hawthorn, the reality is the highest-ranked side the Pies have beaten so far this year is St Kilda in 11th.<\/p>\n The contrast with the Bulldogs could not have been more striking during a frantic finish that had the crowd of 43,430 on the edge of their seats until the final siren.<\/p>\n Beveridge is not afraid of picking inexperience. His premiership team in 2016 is among the youngest in the 18-team era.<\/p>\n When the game was on the line, the Dogs had Will Lewis, the final player drafted onto their list and who was playing top-level VAFA football last year, and Michael Sellwood, a mid-season pick from last season, stepping up.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve always had the attitude that you explore the promise,\u201d Beveridge said. \u201cYou don\u2019t see what it\u2019s like if you don\u2019t play them. When the kids show good signs, it\u2019s so important, you got pressure for spots.\u201d<\/p>\n One of the knocks on McRae at selection is his reliance on experience over youth. Their kids tend to need injuries to senior players before they get a chance.<\/p>\n It\u2019s staggering that of their draft picks since 2019, only Daicos and Beau McCreery are regular first-team players. This is the generation that should be supporting Daicos in his prime years.<\/p>\n Editor’s pick Against the Dogs, their five least experienced players \u2013 Wil Parker, Roan Steele, Harvey Harrison, Angus Anderson and Ed Allan \u2013 were their five with the fewest minutes on the field.<\/p>\n There may be good reason for McRae\u2019s reluctance to play the fledglings, even if he is aware of the unhealthy reliance on Daicos. The Magpies do not have pressure from below. Their VFL team is 20th of 22 with two wins from nine games.<\/p>\n There are glimpses of progress. In his fourth season, Allan, a No.19 pick in 2022, kept Marcus Bontempelli to just two disposals in the final term. Anderson, a mature-age pick from last year, booted two goals. Steele is a running machine who looks at home on the wing.<\/p>\n \u201cRole players are starting to maybe do a little bit more than just their role because you know there\u2019s a heavy reliance on some at times,\u201d McRae said.<\/p>\n \u201cNick\u2019s \u2013 his highs and lows aren\u2019t too high and low, are they? They\u2019re always high, and Jordy\u2019s in that space too. So we\u2019re working towards that.\u201d<\/p>\n The leaning towards senior players delivered the club a flag in 2023 and kept them in contention last year, but the end of the road is fast approaching for some. Aged 35, Steele Sidebottom\u2019s rate of decline is accelerating. He had little impact against the Dogs.<\/p>\n After a distressing six-week block in April and May, the Dogs head into the winter months revitalised after holding on. For that, they can thank Lewis and Sellwood.<\/p>\n Ed Richards was their most influential player, and Bontempelli was excellent until three-quarter-time in a game where the Dogs dominated clearance, but the heroics of Lewis and Sellwood sealed victory just as it appeared Beveridge\u2019s men were grinding to a halt.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Lewis was in the right place at the right time, and somehow alone, to crumb and snap the goal that put the margin above a straight kick. He has come a long way in a short time from Old Brighton.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you don\u2019t believe you can have an impact, I guess you\u2019re not going to stay at the level for very long,\u201d Lewis told this masthead in the rooms.<\/p>\n \u201cIf I was to come in here and just think they\u2019re all better than me, or I\u2019m not at the level, then I wouldn\u2019t get very far.<\/p>\n \u201cBeing a bit older, it also helps. It\u2019s just knowing and having a feeling that you are better in some aspects, [and] then just using that to the best of your ability.\u201d<\/p>\n Sellwood\u2019s mark, with 50 seconds left on the clock and a four-point margin to protect, was Leo Barry-esque. From the moment Darcy Cameron\u2019s quick kick left the boot just inside the square, Sellwood had his eyes locked on the Sherrin.<\/p>\n \u201cI just saw the ball and realised that I had to go here, and if I went, I had to mark it as [Patrick] Lipinski was probably at the drop of the ball,\u201d Sellwood told Kayo Sports.<\/p>\n \u201c[I\u2019m] glad it stuck. The rest is history.\u201d<\/p>\n Beveridge\u2019s initial hope was for Sellwood to spoil and clear the ball out of the danger area \u201cbut you\u2019re pretty happy and content with him coming down with the ball in his hands\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s pretty, pretty pivotal in the end, isn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n Keep up to date with the best AFL coverage in the country. Sign up for the Real Footy newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n Save<\/p>\n You have reached your maximum number of saved items.<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/b99ccf09d8b7c1bafaee5d54c1a3febfd99cc389.jpeg\")
The dejected Magpies after their loss to the Bulldogs at Marvel Stadium on Saturday night.AFL Photos<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/149c12e846b3c714e6a90ba0cebdae3c4cb05584.jpeg\")
The unheralded Will Lewis had a night to remember for the Western Bulldogs.Getty Images<\/p>\n![\"Nick](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/91979422b212d5b67aa351d17fba5c89693a1aac.jpeg\")
Nick Daicos can only be expected to do so much on a weekly basis.AFL Photos<\/p>\n![\"Michael](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1780164914_66_6f834e71e3cb43a7826a16104e5cad9e2acd8b8e.jpeg\")
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