Round 13 – Melbourne V Collingwood

Great Game, Wrong Result

Liam Chambers

Good start for the Dees with both sides even at quarter time

Arguably the most important game of our season is the Round 13 clash against Collingwood. It’s definitely the most passionate. This time last year we were at the start of a downward spiral where we only won four of our last twelve games. The Pies beat us by thirty eight points on that occasion; our only consolation being Collingwood also failed to make finals that year.

This year has been a bit of a rollercoaster for us, with wins over Fremantle, Brisbane and Sydney, after a disastrous five losses in a row to start the season. Despite last week’s defeat at the hands of St Kilda, we have been playing some impressive footy lately. Also, the underdog status suits us well, and I was expecting a performance along the lines of our rampaging final quarter victory in Round 10 over the reigning premiers.

Tom Sparrow has kicked some great goals from the 50m arc, and he did it again to give the Demons their first major on the scoreboard. Melbourne was playing competitive footy and looked impressive, tackling hard and restricting the Pies from playing their favoured transitioning game.

In fact it was nearly twenty minutes into the first quarter before Collingwood registered their first goal, after Daniel McStay received a handpass in the pocket and kicked from 40m, sending the ball through the uprights.

With just under four minutes to go, Jamie Elliot wrong footed the Dees’ defence and took an uncontested mark in the pocket. With his 2025 record of successfully converting set shot opportunities, it was a foregone conclusion that Elliot would hit the target from 35m.

Melbourne’s response was immediate. Having won the hitout, they were straight back down the ground where Koltyn Tholstrup was award a free kick for his tackle on Harry Perryman. The young forward then went back and made sure with his 45m set shot.

Collingwood gain the advantage with a little help from their friends (in yellow)

With the Demons languishing behind Collingwood in the kicking efficiency stats, Kozzie Pickett’s soccering kick off the ground from 45m out looked more an action of hope than intention, but when the sherrin crossed the line, we all knew that he meant to do it. Unfortunately, the scores were back to even steven when Beau McCreery’s running kick from 52m also found the space between the posts.

Collingwood fans were expecting their team to be several goals ahead by this late stage in the second term, but twenty minutes were gone before they managed to kick a second major. Steele Sidebottom’s kick from just inside the 50m line, made it a four point game in favour of the Pies. Then two minutes from half time, that annoying rule about not moving off the mark (except when it favours the Dees) gave William Hayes a relatively easy set shot in front of goal.

Not to worry though, as Kozzie responded by scooping up the bouncing ball, then turning and snapping from 30m out to notch up his second of the quarter.

The Umpires were fast proving themselves to be Collingwood fans when Jake Melksham was penalised for being pushed into Jeremy Howe by Darcy Moore; it was beginning to look like serial favouritism. Just saying…  

Then, of course, Collingwood got the ball back up to their end of the ground and Tim Membrey marked it inside 50. His kick after the siren went through to make it an eight point game at the main break.

Demons win the quarter by a single point.

The Pies had the perfect start to the second half when Brody Mihocek marked in the pocket and converted the difficult 35m set shot. When Ned Long snapped a goal from 15m, it seemed that Melbourne’s hopes of causing a major upset was dead, buried and cremated.

The Demons of Rounds 2 to 5 would have by now been packing their bags and heading for the exits, after trailing by twenty points to the competition leaders. The Demons of Round 13 however are made of much sterner stuff and decided to ignore the negative vibes buzzing around their heads, instead choosing to get straight back into the game.

Having won the hitout, Christian Petracca and Clayton Oliver combined perfectly to get the ball inside 50, where Jake Melksham ran out to take the mark. His set shot was clean, and it was back to fourteen points. Next it was Bailey Fritsch’s turn to mark the ball in a scoring position. He was thrown to the ground after the mark and awarded a 50m penalty (the good kind, as it favoured us).

Now it was a seven point game. The Dees’ momentum was temporarily halted when Bobby Hills legs taken in a tackle inside 50, and the medium forward didn’t waste his opportunity

With just over a minute left on the clock, Harrison Petty was “surprisingly awarded a free kick” in front of goal after being held while attempting the mark. His set shot was on target, and we were back in the competition.

So close

When Bailey Fritsch opened the scoring, four minutes into the final quarter, Collingwood and Melbourne fans alike were wondering if they were dreaming.

Ed Langdon had been making a terrific contribution to the Demons’ game, shadowing Nick Daicos all afternoon. Somehow the Umpires had missed what a great job Ed was doing in restricting Collingwood’s best player in the first half, but were certainly making up for it in the second. Langdon was admittedly in the wrong, but Daicos was awarded a very generous 50m penalty, ensuring the goal was a fait accompli.

Despite the setback, Bailey Fritsch quickly returned the margin to a single point when he snapped from the top of the square, after Jake Melksham had punched the ball directly into his path. Then it got even better when Kozzie collected the bouncing ball and snapped from the pocket, landing the ball into the square and across the line.

Just when it looked like we were on the verge of an upset for the ages, Daniel McStay took a contested mark and converted from 20m, effectively ending the fairytale.

It was a fantastic performance from Melbourne and every fan will be proud of the players for the effort and determination they showed against a side that will probably win their second premiership in two years.

Next, we travel to Adelaide where we face the unpredictable Power. It won’t be easy but if we show the same commitment against Port, then I sense another victory is on the cards for Melbourne.

Go the Mighty Dees!!!

Round 12 – Melbourne v St Kilda

Demons All At Sea In The Dry Centre

Liam Chambers

St Kilda own the first quarter after a slow start

With five wins from the last six games, Melbourne has made its mark as one of the inform teams in the competition. A win against the struggling Saints would put us inside the top ten and set us up for the more difficult match against table toppers Collingwood next week. It was a perfect start when Bailey Fritsch took an uncontested mark and converted the 50m set shot.

The Dees were looking good early on, with a few chances to extend their lead, but it was St Kilda who kicked the next major, when Max Hall found himself with plenty of space behind the Melbourne defence. He took an uncontested mark and played on, tapping the ball from the top of the square and across the line.

The goal had an instant inspirational effect on the Saints. After winning the hitout, St Kilda headed straight back towards goal, where Isaac Keeler took a hand pass from one the pack of players on the ground. His quick turn and snap gave the visitors they’re second six pointer in less than a minute. Dan Butler was deemed held at the top of the square and his subsequent set shot gave his side a thirteen point lead. Suddenly it was all Saints.

St Kilda’s next goal was messy and chaotic but they got the job done when, after many fumbles and drops, Isaac Keeler took a hand pass on the edge of the line and snapped through the ballWhen Tobie Travaglia snapped one from 20m, the Saint had five in a row and were twenty five points in front. Just when we thought it couldn’t get any worse, Max Hall kicked a second when he launched from 40m.
Jake Melksham clawed one back right on the siren, when his 45m set shot from deep in the pocket sailed through, reducing the margin to four goals even.

Demons launch comeback, stumble, then relaunch

The Saints started the second with the wind at their backs, metaphorically speaking. Melbourne needed to put early goals on the board, but it was St Kilda who kicked the first when Hunter Clark’s hopeful snap from 15m just managed to cross the line.

Despite all of the Demons’ defensive pressure, they only added three minor scores for the first ten minutes of the term.

Then Christian Petracca took a mark inside 50 and made sure with the 45m set shot. When Kade Chandler made it three in a row with his running snap from 20m in front, it looked like the Dees were on track to take back control from St Kilda.

Melbourne had a couple of scoring opportunities but the accuracy hoodoo that has afflicted the Dees for a long time was again rearing its unwelcomed head.

Unfortunately, accuracy was not a problem for the Saints. Dan Butler marked the ball at the top of the square, then had little problem chipping it through from directly in front.
Butler next found himself in an almost identical position when he again took a mark and kicked the goal from point blank range.

After all Melbourne’s hard work, they found themselves two points worse off than they were at quarter time. Tracca decided he’d had enough, and when presented with a scoring opportunity, he launched from 52m to reduce the deficit to twenty points. Harry Sharp almost made it back to back for the Dees, but his excellent shot hit the post for another minor score. Aiden Johnson’s set shot from the pocket was on target though and his effort made it a thirteen point game.

Melbourne unable to capitalise on their opportunities

Both sides started the second half with the best of intentions but the space between the uprights was proving elusive for all concerned. The Dees seem to be having the best of the play though.

Just as Melbourne looked to be taking control, Brad Hill decided to kick a difficult 48m set shot from the pocket.

Harrison Petty kept the Dees in the running with his around the corner snap set shot, making it a two goal game. Then it looked like Xavier Lindsay was about to kick his first AFL goal, but the accuracy jinx struck again and the ball went behind for another minor score.

Dan Butler’s new best friend was the top of the square when he scored his fourth after collecting the ground ball, then turning and snapping from 10m out. Margin back out to seventeen.

Dees throw everything at St Kilda, but the visitors lead only mounts

It seemed to be a perfect start for Melbourne when we won the hitout and Daniel Turner ran out to take the mark. Disappointedly he hooked the shot and the minor scores continued to build up.
Less than a minute later, Jake Melksham had a free kick awarded for interference on his attempted mark. Again the ball veered right.

Up the other end Mitch Owens ran out to mark before converting to stretch the lead out to twenty one points.

Xavier Lindsay was left to continue the search for his maiden AFL goal after his latest attempt drifted left. Tom Sparrow’s set shot from 52m fell short and was rushed behind.
As the seconds continued to tick down, the finish line appeared further away than ever.

Then Isaac Keeler’s round the corner set shot gave the young forward his hat trick and effectively sealed Melbourne’s fate.

Judd McVee and Christian Salem each had a scoring shot in the final minutes but sadly, it was not to be. Caleb Windsor’s effort was on target but was touched on the line.

In the end, St Kilda took their chances and Melbourne was left to rue what could have been. Our inaccuracy in front of goal has haunted us for a long time and I don’t know what can be done to remedy this problem. Our game is strong and the players are talented, but the lack of confidence in front of goal is really hurting us.

We will be the underdogs again for our game against Collingwood. Like our performance against Brisbane in Round 10, the pressure is off. When that happens, don’t rule anything out.

Go the Mighty Dees!!!

Melbourne v Collingwood – Rivalry in red, blue, black and white.

Nigel Dawe

According to Western folklore, the word ‘rival’ stems from the old Roman word ‘rivus’ (meaning stream, river, or water source) and by extension ‘rivalis’ meant “one who uses the same stream as another [for sustenance and survival].” In the same vein, some of the oldest definitions in English for the word and notion ‘rival’, denote it as “having the same pretensions or claims, holding the position of rivals… To stand in or enter into competition with another; to strive to equal or emulate.”

Which could not more encapsulate what the Collingwood Football Club has meant to the Melbourne Football Club since having first met ‘in earnest’ on the 19th of June in round 6 of season 1897. That day Melbourne came away 7-point victors, but that initial success was far from how things would pan out across the years.

As such, our record against the Magpies is the worst of any team we have played. In the 246 official encounters against Collingwood, the MFC have left the ground only 85 times with a ‘W’ in their win/loss column. But fascinatingly, and this is where the necessary friction and deep factional divides are required for a rivalry to take flame; Melbourne have the best record against Collingwood when it matters most – that being in the beautiful month of September.

Of the 23 times we’ve played Collingwood in a final, the Demons have won on 16 occasions and drawn once. That draw (in 1928, the first in a finals match, let alone in a Preliminary Final) signaled, albeit demarcated a point (and pardon the pun) of no return in the rift that still healthily exists between the two clubs.

That day, which was defined by scribes as being gale force to downright dangerous (with scraps of paper and debris of all kinds swirling about and above the MCG) ended in a draw that should’ve resulted in a one-point win to Melbourne. Incredibly, a point was awarded to Collingwood’s Bruce Andrew after the 3-quarter time siren. In his later years, Andrew embellished his version of events with the stipulation that the point was never awarded, but that’s the nature of research-based evidence, it does eventually catch up to what is said with regards to what actually takes place.

In itself it ‘wasn’t much’, but if that solitary point hadn’t been awarded in 1928, then Collingwood’s famous ‘Machine’ that won a record setting 4-premierships in row, from 1927 to 1930 would never have occurred. The following week, history shows that Collingwood won by 4-points, going on to then beat Richmond in the Grand Final. But luckily for the rest of the competition, Melbourne had also won the 1926 Grand Final against the ‘Pies, ensuring that we didn’t have to hear all about their potential 5-peat for the next hundred years.

And there’s the rub, rivalries aren’t concocted or manufactured overnight, and if they are – then they simply aren’t! True rivalries are built piece by piece and rivet by meticulous rivet, from the ground up, on a traded blow-for-blow basis; they evolve, take emotional shape and are constructed upon their own comparative, and collective accord. Parts equally equal the whole, as the whole more than equals its parts. That Norm Smith grew up following Collingwood, as did Christian Petracca, gives an insight into the personal and at times conflictual nature of playing for a club and being loyal to it, in a sport as traditional, and as time-honoured as ours.

No discussion of a Melbourne-Collingwood rivalry could exclude the ‘upset of the century’, that being the 1958 Grand Final, the unlosable one really, for Melbourne, and the one that would’ve earned us the mantle of winning an eventual 6 flags in a row (from 1955-60). But such is the nature and the brutal meanderings of rivalry; full credit to a young Magpies side who had suffered 9 losses and a draw in their previous 10 encounters with Melbourne leading up to that big dance, a dance they would win by an ‘all-or-nothing’ 18-points.

History shows that Collingwood bashed and crashed their way to defending their 4-peat of premierships that day, but it also created a fire-brand resolve in the Melbourne side that saw it train over the summer months of ’58 and early ’59, for the first time in its history. The Demons of course came storming back to win the next two pennants, but to a player, those two premierships never erased the disappointment of losing the ultimate of battles with destiny itself in 1958. Up to the day Ron Barassi died, he would mention that if he could do just one thing over again – it’d be to play that 1958 Grand Final, and win! He even suggested that at some stage he might get the chance to do so, up in heaven.

When it comes to the greatest individual performance by a player in a red and blue guernsey against Collingwood, it would have to go ‘hands-down’ to our first dual Brownlow Medallist – Ivor Warne-Smith. In the dying stages of the Preliminary Final of 1925, Warne-Smith (who unbeknownst to trainers and officials, had sustained broken ribs the previous week against the Cats) with just 15 players on the field (through injury), he took 9 marks in an 11-minute spell during the dying stages of the match, a match that saw Melbourne soundly defeated, which makes his ‘efforts’ all the more admirable, if not outright extraordinary – that he refused to give in, even when all hope of victory was lost.

The celebrated Frenchman Victor Hugo once said of his beloved Paris, “He who contemplates the depth of Paris is seized with vertigo. Nothing is more fantastic. Nothing is more tragic. Nothing is more sublime.” And when it comes to ‘unpacking’ the Demons – Magpie rivalry it feels very much the same, there is just so much you could touch upon that still wouldn’t suffice for scraping the surface of such an enthralling topic.

That half of Norm Smith’s 10 premierships (as both a player and a coach of Melbourne between the late 1930s to the mid-1960s) came against Collingwood as a direct opponent, goes some way to explaining what ‘part’ this black and white-hued club played in the mind, not to mention the legacy of our game’s greatest ‘coach of the century’. Fittingly, Smith would often respectfully bellow: “You’re not a footballer until you’ve played Collingwood at Victoria Park. If you could hold your head high after a match there…you were a man.”

And with that said, my favourite image of this wonderful rivalry, and the above sentiment of Norm Smith’s, is of Ian ‘Tiger’ Ridley in the 1956 Grand Final (a game which saw hundreds, if not thousands stream onto the ground after having stormed the gates to see the two mightiest teams compete for the ultimate prize). But Ridley is literally looking up to the heavens, with his head held high, exhausted – seemingly imploring the gods and himself to get the job done, all while being held aloft by his Collingwood foe, without whom the spirit and pure impetus of competition would not exist.

And so, may these two ‘rival’ teams long have each other in their sights, bringing out the best in themselves, and all that the game means to those of us who revere it.