https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au The complete history of Australia's greatest sporting club Tue, 30 Jan 2024 23:13:09 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.0.21 https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/collingwoods-rising-stars/ Sun, 02 Sep 2018 07:41:14 +0000 https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/?p=12926 1. Saverio Rocca, Round 13, 1993 One of Collingwood’s best forwards of the 1990s, Sav Rocca‘s four goals in a losing game against West Coast prompted his nomination after his 22nd game. But his career went into overdrive the week after.  In that game – his 23rd overall – Rocca kicked a bag of 10 goals against Richmond and a fortnight after that he booted another 10 against Footscray on his way to 73 goals for the year. He never got a look in for the overall award though, with the likes of Nathan Buckley, James Hird, Shane Crawford, Glenn Archer, Scott West, Matthew Richardson, Dustin Fletcher and Mark Mercuri making it one of the strongest years on record. 2. Kent Butcher, Round 8, 1994 Twenty disposals in Collingwood’s big win over St Kilda in Kent Butcher‘s 10th game were enough to win the weekly gong. He arguably had a better game the following week, with 26 touches against North Melbourne, but the running backman would manage only another 12 games in black and white before transferring to Sydney, where he did not play a game. 3. Jon Hassall, Round 22, 1994 One of five Magpies to be forever frozen on 50 games with the club, Hassall played 23 games in his debut season with the club in 1994, leaving his Rising Star nomination until round 22. He had 18 touches in the club’s heavy loss to North Melbourne. It was his 20th AFL match and the run-with defender would win the club’s best first year player that season. He would end up playing a further 44 games with Hawthorn from 1997-99. 4. Andrew Schauble, Round 7, 1996 A consistent player in his early years at Collingwood, Andrew Schauble came under notice in his 10th game when nominated for a 14-disposal, one-goal performance in a loss to St Kilda in 1995. It would be the best statistical year of his five seasons – and 79 games – with the Magpies. After a trade to Sydney, he won the Swans’ best-and-fairest award in 2000. 5. Mal Michael, Round 18, 1997 Mal Michael was a three-time premiership player, but sadly not with Collingwood. He won his gong in only his ninth game, after a great defensive game against St Kilda in late 1997, in his debut year. He would manage only 61 games in four seasons in Black and White before his successful move to Brisbane, where he won his flags. Two of them came against Collingwood, which hurt those who fondly remembered him in the No.48 jumper. 6. Nick Davis, Round 5, 1999 Essendon staved off a fast-finishing Collingwood in the 1999 ANZAC Day clash, and while Mark Mercuri would eventually be adjudged the ANZAC Day Medal winner, Nick Davis got his own tick for a strong performance in only his fifth AFL game. Nineteen-year-old Davis had 18 touches and five inside 50s in the eight-point loss and such was his efforts that he was nominated a few days later as the Rising Star of the week. He, too, would be off to a new club after four seasons, heading to Sydney, where he would play in the 2005 flag side. 7. Paul Licuria, Round 18, 1999 After 10 games across two seasons with Sydney, Paul Licuria craved a return to Melbourne and to the club he barracked for as a kid. He got that in 1999, and after only his ninth game with his new club – and 19th overall – he received a Rising Star nomination with a 28-touch effort against West Coast – wearing the unfamiliar No.32 before switching to No.18 the following year. 8. Damien Adkins, Round 3, 2000 Magpie fans wondered if they were witnessing the birth of a new star in Damien Adkins‘ first few games in Mick Malthouse’s first season as coach. He kicked two goals on debut against Hawthorn and a further two and had 19 touches in round three against Carlton, for which the 19-year-old copped his Rising Star nomination. Injuries and inconsistent form cruelled his career and he was gone within three seasons, before being traded to West Coast for Andrew Williams. He played in the Eagles’ 2004 Elimination Final side, but missed selection in the 2005 Grand Final. 9. Josh Fraser, Round 6, 2000 Collingwood’s only No.1 draft selection, 18-year-old Josh Fraser made an instant impact, winning the Rising Star nomination for his Round 6 effort against North Melbourne. He had 17 disposals in the game, kicked a goal and played forward and shared the ruck duties with Steven McKee. 10. Ryan Lonie, Round 4, 2001 Ryan Lonie had a fine debut year for Collingwood, winning a Rising Star nomination in only his fourth game, against Richmond in 2001. He not only ended up playing 21 games in that debut season, his hard-running and long kicking even saw him poll 11 votes in the final tally won by St Kilda’s Justin Koschitzke. 11. Jason Cloke, Round 6, 2002 Collingwood’s massive 83-point win over St Kilda was good enough for Magpie fans, but it got even better on the Monday afternoon when the AFL announced Jason Cloke as the Rising Star nomination for the week after only his fifth game. The defender had 17 touches and five tackles, in a debut season which finished with a heartbreaking suspension in the preliminary final. 12. Mark McGough, Round 10, 2002 You would probably assume that Mark McGough‘s Rising Star nomination would have come from his Anzac Day dominance in only his second game. It didn’t. The 17-year-old school boy had to wait until his seventh game to get the AFL honour, after he had 16 touches against Sydney in round 10. McGough would be a comet flashing before Collingwood supporters’ eyes in only three seasons before moving briefly to St Kilda. 13. Alan Didak, Round 16, 2002 Alan Didak gave a few hints of his brilliance in his five games in 2001, but that just kept escalating in the years to come. In his second season, and in his 16th game, the skilful forward had 13 touches and kicked two goals as a sure sign this kid was going to be a star. And that performance won him a Rising Star nomination. 14. Richard Cole, Round 17, 2003 In his second season at the club, and in a one-sided game against the old enemy Carlton, Richard Cole put his name forward for a Rising Star mention when he had 17 touches and kicked a goal. Frustratingly, his four seasons at Collingwood, and his two at Essendon, did not yield what anyone would have wanted, despite the fact that he polled well in the 2004 Copeland. 15. Matthew Lokan, Round 22, 2003 An unlikely success story for Collingwood in his debut season of 2003, Matty Lokan played every game (including the Grand Final), playing across half-back, won the club’s best first year player and received the final Rising Star nomination that year. Struggled to make an impact after that, but made the most of his AFL career. 16. Guy Richards, Round 9, 2004 The ruckman enjoyed a solid 2004 season, playing 12 games, winning the club’s best first year player, and receiving a Rising Star nomination after having 15 touches, kicking a goal and having 13 hit outs against Adelaide. 17. Travis Cloke, Round 10, 2005 Six games into his AFL career, Travis Cloke won the Rising Star nod for his 15-disposal, six-mark and one-goal performance in the club’s win over Hawthorn. 18. Dale Thomas, Round 2, 2006 His first game produced a screamer and two goals; his second yielded 20 disposals and no goals but won him the Rising Star weekly prize. 19. Heath Shaw, Round 5, 2006 Heath Shaw polled 32 votes – and was third – in the overall count of 2006. He won his nomination in round five, in his 10th game, when he had 23 touches and nine rebound 50s in the clash with Port Adelaide. 20. Scott Pendlebury, Round 4, 2007 Surprisingly, Pendles didn’t get the Rising Star nomination out of nine games in his first year (2006), but he wasted little time in getting the recognition in his second. In round four – his 13th game – the star midfielder had 20 touches and kicked two goals against the Power. Pendlebury polled 37 votes, only seven votes behind the eventual winner Joel Selwood. 21. Marty Clarke, Round 13, 2007 A week after his stunning debut against Sydney, Marty Clarke won the Rising Star weekly tick in only his second game, with a three-goal 19-disposal effort against Hawthorn that had plenty of people talking about the Irishman. 22. Tyson Goldsack, Round 21, 2007 Tyson Goldsack‘s Rising Star nomination in only his 13th game for the club also produced what is still his best disposal count. He had 25 touches against the Swans, and it’s still his personal best for a game. 23. Nathan Brown, Round 10, 2008 Consistency in defence in his first 10 games proved the key to Nathan Brown‘s Rising Star nomination in a 100-point win over West Coast in his first season. 24. Jaxson Barham, Round 4, 2009 Jaxson Barham had the dream start to what would ultimately be a brief AFL career. Wearing his father Ricky’s old No.43, he had 28 touches on debut against Brisbane in round four, 2009, and won the Rising Star nomination from his first game. But not much else followed. He holds the record with St Kilda’s Brodie Atkinson for the least amount of career games for a Rising Star nominee – seven. 25. Brad Dick, Round 11, 2009 Who could ever forget Brad Dick‘s five-goal haul against Melbourne on Queen’s Birthday, 2009, in only his 11th game? But for a few other flashy moments, he never reached those same heights, held back by injuries. He would end up playing 27 games for the club before heading to West Coast where he failed to play a game. 26. Dayne Beams, Round 17, 2009 Two goals and 21 disposals in a big win over Carlton showed Collingwood fans just how good Dayne Beams would become. 27. Ben Reid, Round 12, 2010 He made steady progress during his first three years, but Ben Reid had a memorable 2010 season for many reasons, predominantly the premiership. But he also won a Rising Star nomination after his 17th game. 28. Alex Fasolo, Round 22, 2011 Nineteen disposals, two goals and a Rising Star gong – that all came for Alex Fasolo in round 22, 2011. He had kicked five goals three week earlier but it was not deemed to be his moment. The judges were never going to let that happen this time around, and he capped off a strong debut season by playing in a losing Grand Final side. 29. Ben Sinclair, Round 11, 2012 Playing his 15th AFL game, Ben Sinclair received his nomination for his three-goal effort against Melbourne in Round 11, 2012. It was a perfect Queen’s Birthday for the blond haired man in the No. 28 jumper. 30. Marley Williams, Round 18, 2013 Just five days after his 20th birthday, Marley Williams got a belated present – a weekly nomination for the Rising Star. It was after his good form in round 18, 2013, when he had 16 touches against GWS. 31. Brodie Grundy, Round 22, 2013 Brodie Grundy not only ousted Darren Jolly out of the ruck role in late 2013, he won a Rising Star shout-out for his performance in Round 22, against West Coast. But he only got one vote in the tally at the end of the season, which was won by Jaeger O’Meara (44). 32. Tom Langdon, Round 7, 2014 Tom Langdon won his Rising Star recognition in his seventh game in 2014, when he had 23 touches in Collingwood’s win over Carlton. 33. Tim Broomhead, Round 11, 2015 Twenty five disposals and a goal was enough to lift Tim Broomhead to the Rising Star nomination in round 11 this year. 34. Jordan De Goey, Round 20, 2015 Jordan De Goey got his nomination for his gutsy performance against Sydney at the SCG, when he had 18 touches and kicked a vital goal. 35. Darcy Moore, Round 19, 2016 Darcy Moore played just 34 per cent of the match against West Coast at the MCG. But it was enough for him to kick three goals and two behinds from six marks before injury ended his day. 36. Tom Phillips, Round 9, 2017 The 21-year-old collected 24 disposals, four rebounds and laid three tackles during Collingwood’s thrilling comeback win over Hawthorn. 37. Sam Murray, Round 3, 2018 Months after being traded from Sydney, Murray made his league debut against Hawthorn in round one, and by round three, courtesy of his 21 disposals, seven marks and four tackles against the Blues, found himself on the receiving end of a Rising Star nomination. 38. Jaidyn Stephenson, Round 4, 2018 At just 19 years of age, Stephenson, playing his fourth game, kicked five goals to spearhead Collingwood to its first win in South Australia since 2012. At the end of the season he would go on to become the first Collingwood player ever to win the Rising Star award, with a record count of 52 votes.]]> https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/goals-records/ Tue, 21 Mar 2017 05:02:11 +0000 http://cfc-forever-staging.qodo.com.au/?p=11674 Archie Smith, who played in the club’s first game, was a star of the early years, notching seven club titles and twice winning the VFL’s goalkicking award. But that was just the start. Dick Lee was the game’s first goalscoring superstar, and he was followed seamlessly by Gordon Coventry, who held the League’s goalscoring record for more than 60 years. And he, in turn, was followed by Ron Todd, who might have been the best of them all had he not gone to the VFA. Then in later years, Peter McKenna, Peter Daicos, Brian Taylor and Sav Rocca all made their mark as prolific forwards. It’s a rich heritage, and one we as a club are only too happy to celebrate with the following collection of records. Click here for a list of Collingwood’s leading goalkickers, year-by-year

	Most Career Goals
1299	Gordon Coventry
838	Peter McKenna
707	Dick Lee
549	Peter Daicos
514	Saverio Rocca
453	Alby Pannam
441	Travis Cloke
423	Lou Richards
404	Anthony Rocca
371	Brian Taylor

 

	Most  Goals in a Season
143	Peter McKenna 1970
134	Peter McKenna 1971
130	Peter McKenna 1972
124	Gordon Coventry 1929
121	Ron Todd 1938
121	Ron Todd 1939
118	Gordon Coventry 1930
108	Gordon Coventry 1933
105	Gordon Coventry 1934
100	Brian Taylor 1986

 

	Most  Goals in a Game
17	Gordon Coventry, v Fitzroy R12 1930, at Victoria Park
16	Gordon Coventry, v Hawthorn R13 1929, at Victoria Park
16	Peter McKenna, v Sth Melbourne R19 1969, at Victoria Park
15	Gordon Coventry, v Essendon R11 1933, at Victoria Park
14	Gordon Coventry, v Hawthorn R14 1934, at Victoria Park
13	Peter McKenna, v Essendon R11 1972, at Victoria Park
13	Peter Daicos, v Brisbane R20 1991, at Carrara
12	Peter McKenna, v Essendon R14 1971, at Victoria Park
12	Peter McKenna, v Geelong R9 1972, at Victoria Park
12	Peter McKenna, v Essendon R20 1970, at Victoria Park
12	Peter McKenna, v Hawthorn R1 1966, at Victoria Park
12	Brian Taylor, v Sydney R16 1985, at the SCG

 

	Most  Goals in a Final
11	Ron Todd, v Geelong 1938 preliminary final
11	Ron Todd, v St Kilda 1939 preliminary final
9	Gordon Coventry, v Richmond 1928 Grand Final
9	Peter McKenna, v Carlton 1970 second semi-final
8	Bill Twomey Jnr, v Footscray 1948 first semi-final
8	Ken Smale, v Footscray 1956 preliminary final
7	Gordon Coventry, v Geelong 1927 semi-final
7	Gordon Coventry, v Geelong 1930 Grand Final
7	Gordon Coventry, v Melbourne 1937 preliminary final
7	Des Tuddenham, v St Kilda 1966 second semi-final
7	Peter McKenna, v Footscray 1974 elimination final
7	Peter Daicos, v Carlton 1984 first semi-final

 

	Most  Goals at Victoria Park
679	Gordon Coventry
399	Peter McKenna
334	Dick Lee
210	Lou Richards
200	Alby Pannam

 

	Most  Goals at the MCG
329	Saverio Rocca
302	Travis Cloke
236	Anthony Rocca
156	Gordon Coventry
145	Brian Taylor

 

	Most  Goals in VFA Years (1892-96)
86	Archie Smith
42	George Anderson
19	Harry Dowdall
19	Dick Hall
17	Frank Hailwood

 

	VFL/AFL Leading Goalkicker
1898	Archie Smith 31
1900	Archie Smith (tied) 21
1903	Ted Lockwood 35
1905	Charlie H. Pannam 38
1907	Dick Lee 47
1908	Dick Lee 54
1909	Dick Lee 58
1914	Dick Lee 57
1916	Dick Lee 48
1917	Dick Lee 54
1919	Dick Lee 56
1926	Gordon Coventry 83
1927	Gordon Coventry 97
1928	Gordon Coventry 89
1929	Gordon Coventry 124
1930	Gordon Coventry 118
1933	Gordon Coventry 108
1938	Ron Todd 120
1939	Ron Todd 121
1946	Des Fothergill 63
1958	Ian Brewer 73
1972	Peter McKenna 130
1973	Peter McKenna 86
1986	Brian Taylor 100

• Please note: Ted Rowell (1902), Dick Lee (1910, 1913 and 1915) and Gordon Coventry (1937) each topped the table after the finals in the years noted but not after the home-and-away rounds (which is when the League’s Leading Goalkicker is determined).

 ]]> https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/dethroning-the-king/ Wed, 20 Jul 2016 00:05:52 +0000 http://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/?p=10599 By: Glenn McFarlane of the Herald Sun Tony Shaw knew it was time to pull the trigger. It was early in the first term of Collingwood’s clash with North Melbourne in round 15, and Wayne Carey loomed over this contest almost as large as the MCG light towers. The first-year Magpie coach had to sit and watch Carey kick two goals within four minutes, easily outpointing young Magpie defender Andrew Schauble, to give his team a near-perfect start to the game. Shaw had to make a change, and even if it meant robbing Peter to pay Paul, he knew that only one man could potentially stop, or at the very least, negate the most exciting player in the competition. He sent the runner out, and told the club’s most important player, Nathan Buckley, that he needed to move onto Carey. Yes, Bucks was silk, but he desperately needed him to take on a defensive role this afternoon. Buckley had copped some criticism from supporters at stages of that season, mainly due to the fact that some fans believed he was a certainty to take up an offer to the join the new AFL side, Port Adelaide, for the 1997 season. They had even been a few unfair and uncharacteristic boos thrown in for good measure at times, which seemed ridiculous, and Shaw could barely believe people were questioning Buckley’s form and future. It was July 13, 1996, and the Magpies’ first season under the new coach had long since unravelled. While North Melbourne was on top of the ladder and a clear-cut premiership favourite in the AFL’s centenary season, Collingwood was coming off eight consecutive losses that had pushed the club down to 13th. And going into this game, the injury-hit Magpies hadn’t beaten the Kangaroos in four years, and few people gave them any chance of changing. Few people considered an upset was even a remote possibility, although Kangaroos coach Denis Pagan conceded later that he was a little worried when he saw a few of his players lairising at training during the week. He had issued them a pre-game warning against complacency, saying: “You strive to get to the top of the ladder, then when you get up there, you’re a sitting duck for everybody and you’ve got to pay a price for being No. 1.” North Melbourne was finally looking the premiership side they had threatened to be since Pagan took over as coach three years earlier. The Magpies were in a different phase, many of the club’s 1990 premiership players had moved on, though quite a few remained, and Shaw had replaced Leigh Matthews as coach for the 1996 season. Collingwood had won four of Shaw’s first six games as coach, but that eight-game losing streak – the worse since 1982 – had brought a reality check of where the playing list was at. This was reflected in the changes the coach made for the clash with the Kangaroos. Shaw dropped Paul Sharkey, Chad Liddell, Jon Hassall and Trent Hotton, replacing them with premiership ruckman Damian Monkhorst, who had recovered from injury, former Roo Robert Pyman, Steven Pitt and first-gamer Jason Bevan. This would be one of only two games in Black and White for Bevan, recruited as a midfielder from South Adelaide, and he would be named in a back pocket. He was one of four players that day yet to play 10 AFL games, along with Robbie AhMat (sixth game), Pitt (sixth game), and eighteen-year-old defender Simon Prestigiacomo (fifth game). In all, the Magpies who took the field that day against the Kangaroos had played a collective 1326 games; their opponents had almost 1000 games more experience in their line-up. Gavin Brown and Gavin Crosisca were the most senior Magpies, playing their 175th game that afternoon, while Buckley was representing the club for his 59th game in Black and White. Many thought there would not be much more to come, as the consensus was that the lucrative offer from Port Adelaide would be enough to attract him back to South Australia. Shaw desperately hoped that the club could hold onto to its most exciting player. And Collingwood was backing key forward Saverio Rocca, the club’s Copeland Trophy winner from the previous year, to shrug off a shoulder injury, to make a difference in this game. North Melbourne took the early lead and it seemed as if the football status quo was going to remain. Everything pointed to a Kangaroos’ win and even the Herald Sun preview to the game had forecast: “A quality side in form and seeking to shore up a double chance in September against a depleted, out of form team in decline? No way Pies.” And Carey’s opening to the contest only seemed to highlight the difference between the two sides. But somehow Collingwood managed to claw back to level pegging at quarter-time, even if the Magpies would have been lamenting missed opportunities as they gathered around to hear Shaw’s speech at quarter-time. They had 11 scoring shots to six, but 4.7 had been so wasteful compared to North Melbourne’s 5.1. The Buckley move had been a risk, but a calculated one. Only time would tell if it would pay off. In the meantime, the second term was just as close as the first, even if it was Pagan’s team that was wasteful this time around. The Roos added 2.6 to the Magpies’ 3.1, and the underdogs were a point ahead at half-time. Strangely enough, it was Collingwood, not North Melbourne that seemed to be prepared to do most of the heavy lifting after the main break. The Magpies kicked the first four goals of the third term, and that came off the back of a dominant midfield, sans Buckley, which saw the likes of Scott Burns, Paul Williams (also spending time forward), and a red-headed 20-year-old called Jason Wild, in only his 21st game, performing well. Importantly, Carey was kept quiet. Time and again, Buckley took his opponent deeper up the ground, and it made a difference. The player who had appeared set to become the match-winner was kept in close check. He would kick only one more goal for the game, and his 11 disposals were 20 less than Buckley would have for the Magpies. Asked later about his rationale for putting Buckley (186cm and 91kg) onto Carey (192cm and 96kg), Shaw would say: “He’s got a great leap, he can always get a hand to it and at ground level you’d have to think he’s a bit quicker. And he knows how to read the play.” A young Simon Prestigiacomo marks on the wing in front of Mark Roberts during Collingwood’s upset win over North Melbourne. That’s how it panned out. Carey’s influence waned and Buckley’s shone. St Kilda Brownlow Medallist Neil Roberts, writing in the Sunday Herald Sun, said of Buckley: “It was good to see (him) answer his many critics. He played as though he wanted to kill the ‘King’, and he did. So complete was his eclipse that he cheekily began to run off Carey deep into the forward line as early as the first quarter.” His desperation seemed to sum up Collingwood’s approach. Desperate to win after so many losses, and sensing an opportunity, the Sunday Age declared Collingwood “played like a team fed-up with losing”, while the Kangaroos played as if they were seemingly satisfied, the very mood that Pagan had warned against. An eight-goal third term for the Magpies pushed out the margin to 21 points at the last change, still far from a safe margin, but enough to give the faithful some hope that a breakthrough win might just occur. North Melbourne had kicked a goal via Corey McKernan at the 25-minute-mark of the third term, cutting the difference to eight points, but the Magpies had managed to push it out again by three-quarter-time. Pagan must have hoped that would be the start of a revival to peg back the difference. It wasn’t. Incredibly, it would prove to be his club’s last goal of the match. When Paul Williams exploded away with the third of his five goals within the first minute of the final term, it set the scene for what was to come. Collingwood would kick the last 10 goals of this remarkable game, including seven in the final term. This wasn’t just an upset win; it was a flogging. The Magpies had kicked 15 goals to five in the second half, a 61-point win that shocked the crowd of 34,514 in attendance. Rocca had kicked 41 goals from his 11 games before this match. He had been solid in the first half of the season, but he had a blinder on this afternoon, beating Mick Martyn, and kicking eight of his team’s 22 goals. Williams’ five goals could so easily have been more, as he also finished with four behinds. And the most unlikely source of goals was Pitt, who kicked four goals in a great display. Pitt, the last pick in the 1995 National Draft, had previously kicked only one goal from his first six games. But the 22-year-old South Australian, recruited from Norwood, would produce one of his best games in Collingwood colours. He would also kick four goals a fortnight later against Footscray. This would Pitt’s one and only season with the Magpies. By season’s end, he opted to return to Adelaide, to resume his work as a police officer. He would later play five games for Melbourne in 2000-2001. Pagan was far from impressed with his side’s loss to Collingwood that day, saying: “It was a matter of life and death for them (Collingwood).” “We were in the comfort zone . . . we didn’t have one bloke in the side put his hand up. I had been really concerned … a couple of guys had been lairising at training during the week and we had spoken to the team about the dangers of this game.” As frustrated as he had been with the previous two months, Shaw told reporters after the game: “It was time to stand up and say we’re sick to death of bloody losing and we were going to make a statement. No doubt the group did it as a whole. I look back at the game and see a lot of individual efforts that seemed fantastic.” The return of Monkhorst to the team made a huge difference, as he staged a great duel with Corey McKernan. It was described as the “Monkey the dinosaur versus the mobile McKernan”, but both players played important roles for their team. Shaw said: “Monky is a big part of our team, but we haven’t had him. I think he showed he was going to stand up and the group followed him a lot.” Shaw said he could not believe that some people had questioned not only Buckley’s earlier performances, but also his commitment to the club, saying he had always struck him as a loyal team man. “It’s a tall-poppy syndrome with the kid,” Shaw said. “He’s only had two bad games this season and in all the others he’s been in probably our best three or four players and he’s copped heaps. “It’s a disgrace for the football public. People just don’t see what this kid can do.” The Herald Sun thought his performance might have been part of the farewell tour for Buckley, saying: “It is a tragedy the Magpies will lose him to Port Power next season.” Fortunately, for Collingwood, Buckley turned his back on the Power’s bucks, and pledged his allegiance to the Magpies. Shaw’s team would win five of the last eight games of the season, finishing with a 9-13 record. But that round 15 win over North Melbourne was a high point of Shaw’s first season as coach. Consolidation of that came when the Kangaroos won the 1996 Grand Final, against Sydney, less than three months later, with Pies fans at least able to boast that they had beaten the premiers by 10 goals.]]> https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/sav-sinks-the-dockers/ Mon, 04 Aug 2014 10:10:45 +0000 http://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/?p=4671 https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/dermotts-year-in-black-and-white/ Sun, 03 Aug 2014 04:21:56 +0000 http://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/?p=4195 https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/winning-in-the-dark-at-waverley-park/ Sun, 03 Aug 2014 02:34:51 +0000 http://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/?p=4159 https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/nathan-buckleys-debut-in-black-and-white/ Fri, 01 Aug 2014 00:26:09 +0000 http://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/?p=4090 March 26, 1994 Buckley played his first match in Black and White after a much-publicised move to Collingwood following a brilliant debut season with the Brisbane Bears in 1993. And while Buckley’s Magpie debut game was more a workmanlike performance than displaying the wonders that would come not too much later, it was the start of a relationship that still has at least three seasons to run. Buckley, the player, would become one of the greatest in the club’s history, stretched out across 260 games in Collingwood colours. Buckley, the coach, is still very much an unfinished product, with much promise and the certainty that he will run through until at least the end of the 2016 season. Incredibly, there have been only two years of the past 20 that Buckley has not been at Collingwood – the two seasons he spent in the media and at the AIS Academy in 2008 and ’09. Not even those former Magpie officials (chief among them, Graeme Allan) who fought so doggedly, and to the borderline of AFL rules, to secure him, could have imagined Bucks’ stay would be so long. There had been some collateral damage in the Buckley trade. Collingwood had to compile a list of 10 “untouchables” who were off limits and the rest of the playing list was effectively on the table. That meant the Magpies ended up relinquishing the popular Craig Starcevich and promising young player Troy Lehmann as well as their first draft choice for the readymade star. In hindsight, two decades on, it looks to be one of the trades of the century, even if then coach Leigh Matthews later conceded the zeal with which the club chased Buckley left a sour taste for some players. Buckley had even been heckled by Collingwood players a year earlier when he played against them in Round 12, 1993, especially from Graham Wright, Tony Francis, and, of course, Tony Shaw. “‘Wrighty’ was yelling out ‘I hate you, I hate you’,” Buckley recalled before his first game with Collingwood. “That’s part of the game. It’s business, and out on the field you’ve got no friends on the opposition side.” But the intensely driven young footballer desperately wanted to play for a traditional Victorian club. And while there were suitors aplenty armed with chequebooks ready, willing and able, many suspected it had always been Collingwood who was at the head of the negotiations. As Patrick Smith wrote on the eve of Buckley’s first game: “Distraught wooers of Nathan Buckley, their hearts broken and cheques torn up, will tell you that under the centreman’s Brisbane Bears’ jumper last season beat a heart of Black and White.” Buckley’s recruitment to Collingwood was one of the trade stories of the 1990s. After one season playing for the Bears, he was always going to head to a Victorian club in 1994. What’s more, he wanted to play for a team steeped in history, and the Magpies fitted the bill perfectly. He gave a succinct explanation of his mindset in a “Hero Poster” published in the Herald Sun on the day of his first game, against Fitzroy (who would merge with Brisbane within a handful of years). Asked by Oula, 11, from Spotswood Primary School, why he had left Brisbane, Buckley answered: “I chose to change because I was keen to play for a Victorian club with tradition.” And he gave an indication of his confidence and ambition when he answered questions from Lauren, 12, and Jamie: “Life’s a competition, and once I had the chance, I felt compelled to do it. It’s something I do well.” Buckley wasn’t worried about the pressure or the expectations that would have weighed down others, nor even the suggestion from some that he alone would put the Magpies back in the flag frame. With refreshing honesty that some saw as over-confidence, he would say: “I’ve said 100 times before that the expectations I have of me can’t be outweighed by whatever other expectations might exist. I like to win. “I’m excited with the prospect of playing for a club that has such a tradition of playing important games every week, playing in games when something is riding on it and your reputation has to be proved every time.” His former Brisbane coach Robert Walls predicted Buckley would thrive on the challenge: “He’ll love the big games; the big crowds; the MCG; the 90,000 fans; it will bring out the best in him.” The first time he wore the Collingwood No. 5 jumper wasn’t at the MCG nor were there 90,000 fans in attendance. It was Victoria Park, and 25,602 fans, including this reporter, went to cover the first chapter in Buckley’s life as a Magpie. The chapter would end on a winning note, but only after a bitter struggle against an old rival. If Buckley wanted footy tribalism, this walk down footy memory lane would be right up his alley. He had played earlier in an intra-club at Glenferrie Oval, matched up at centre-half-forward on Michael Christian. There were other non-official games – one against St Kilda in what was Nicky Winmar’s return to Victoria Park after the racial storm from a year earlier, a Foster’s Cup clash with North Melbourne (another team that desperately wooed him), and a clash against Aboriginal All-Star team in Darwin, where he had played some of his junior footy. By the time he ran out for his first official game, the fans were excited by what they had seen in the pre-season and what they could expect to see in the coming decade or so. Members of the so-called “Collingwood unofficial selection committee” – grass roots fans who went by the names of Alf, Brian, Lou, Jack, Bruno and Johnny – were clearly excited, telling one newspaper reporter that “Boom recruit Nathan Buckley’s been a fantastic get. We’re talking Brownlow Medal this year for him. Best recruit since Phil Carman, and a nice bloke with it.” Who knows if it was them, or others, who launched a Brownlow plunge on Buckley that month, backing him to win $55,000, cutting his quote from 25/1 to 14/1? He wouldn’t win the Medal, but he would more than win over Collingwood supporters and his own teammates in the coming weeks and months. Even before that first game, the Herald Sun’s Mike Sheahan forecast that Buckley and Saverio Rocca would become Collingwood’s “most lethal combination” since Barry Price and Peter McKenna in the 1960s and ’70s. Matthews would say of Buckley leading into that first game – “He is not the perfect player. He knows that…that’s what he works at all the time.” Buckley would be overshadowed by an unlikely figure in that opening game for Collingwood, kept relatively quiet by a kid called Tom Kavanagh, who was the son of Brent Crosswell, who had caused his own share of trouble for Collingwood in two Grand Finals – in 1970, for Carlton, and in 1977, for North Melbourne. Fitzroy coach Robert Shaw took the punt on Kavanagh playing on Buckley, and for at least for three quarters, it paid dividends. Collingwood had only played seven of its 1990 premiership team that day. A number of them had moved on, or been moved on, while others were nursing injury and form concerns. One of them, the ever popular James Manson, had transferred to Fitzroy and was playing his 18th game for the Lions. Manson’s unusual kicking gait sometimes proved a frustration to Magpie fans, but nowhere near as much as his 50m-plus goal (yes, it really did happen) for the Lions against Collingwood that day. It was one of the most enjoyable goals he would kick in his footy career. One of the Pies’ 1990 heroes was making a brave comeback from a debilitating illness that day. Graham Wright was playing his first game since being diagnosed late in 1993 with Guillain-Barre syndrome, which had brought about a short-term limited paralysis and a loss of 11 kilos. And on a day that reached more than 30 degrees – prompting Magpies fitness conditioner Mark McKeon to call on the AFL to institute night or twilight matches in early season games – Leigh Matthews wondered post-game whether it had been the right thing to play Wright. He said: “You shouldn’t say it, but I suppose if it’s over 25 degrees, we really shouldn’t play him.” The Fitzroy team had two future senior AFL coaches in their side that day – Paul Roos and Ross Lyon – while the Magpie team would produce Buckley and Tony Shaw as future coaches. Buckley wasn’t the only first time Magpie that day. Jon Hassall played his debut match, while Brett James, Jon Ballantyne, and Stephen Ryan, recruited from Norwood, Footscray and Richmond, also turned out in Black and White for the first time. A kid called Andrew Tranquilli was buttering up for his second game, and he would make it a memorable one, kicking a goal. It was a strangely fluctuating match of many twists and turns. Collingwood led by two points at the first change after a scrappy first term, then Fitzroy responded with seven goals in the second to lead by 14 at half time. Midway through the second term, it looked as if there would be a big upset in the offing, with the Lions leading by as much as 26 points. Then the Magpies edged into the margin, and by three-quarter-time had cut it back to a more manageable, but still difficult 14 point deficit. As the Collingwood team gathered to hear Matthews’ final speech just in front of the Ryder Stand side wing, the Collingwood crowd began to chant and urge the home side onto a special final term. Almost on cue, Buckley began to break clear of his tag, and some outstanding play from the recruit saw him kick the first goal of the final term after only one minute had elapsed. The chant got bigger, and fans were pleased to see the new boy was earning his keep. If there were two turning points, one of them came from Matthews and the other from some undisciplined play from Fitzroy forward Darren ‘Doc’ Wheildon. The first one came in the third term when the coach switched Jason McCartney from centre half-back to centre half-forward, He responded with one of his best performances in a Black and White jumper. The second was when Wheildon “flattened” James after he had taken a mark and the resulting 50m penalty saw James fire the ball off to McCartney, who kicked one of his three goals of the final term. Fitzroy didn’t throw in the towel, though. We should have expected nothing less from a team The Age described as: “a team that refuses to be bowed by defections, disasters, and dire predictions of financial destruction.” McCartney’s second goal 12 minutes into the final term finally gave the home side the lead for the first time since the eight-minute-mark of the second quarter. And then Paul Williams’ fifth goal came from a free kick and it extended the lead to nine points. But the Lions gained one back when the busy Matthew Armstrong set up Ross Lyon for a goal. But Collingwood’s most effective player, Mick McGuane, swept the ball away from the next centre bounce and McCartney outpointed Roos and kicked the sealing goal from outside 50m. The Magpies held on to win the match by 11 points, all due to a seven-goal final term that was partly inspired by Buckley’s best quarter for the match, and some brilliance from Williams and McCartney. Matthews said: “They (Fitzroy) started well and we just never quite picked them up to the very end. We were just fair today, just reasonable.” That might have summed up Nathan Buckley’s game, though it was said a lack of opportunity was as much a cause as the close checking of Kavanagh. It was a start, however, and his 18 touches and 1.3 gave those there that day a glimpses of what was to come from Buckley. And even now, 20 years on, there is still more to come from him at Collingwood. Round 1 1994 Collingwood    3.1, 6.5, 10.10, 17.12 (114) Fitzroy             2.5, 9.6, 13.6, 16.7 (103) Goals Collingwood: Williams 5, McCartney 3, Rocca 2, Ryan 2, Buckley, McGuane, Richardson, Shaw, Tranquilli Fitzroy: Armstrong 3, Boyd 2, McGregor 2, Sartori 2, Hogg, Lyon, Dunstan, Manson, Wheildon, McCarthy, Sporn Disposals Collingwood: Brown 24, McGuane 21, Buckley 18, Fraser 15, Watson 15, Williams 15 Fitzroy: Roos 27, Armstrong 26, Boyd 22, Sartori 18, McCarthy 18 Crowd: 25,602 at Victoria Park on Saturday 26 March, 1994]]>