The Magpies are 7-2 and equal competition leaders, while the Lions have lost five in succession to drop outside the top eight with a 4-5 record.
Throw in the Lions’ diabolical injury list, which was extended with the fractured foot suffered by vice-captain Jed Adcock last Sunday, and things look grim.
However if the home team is looking for inspiration, it may wish to look back nine years.
In 2001, the Lions were also 4-5 after nine rounds and facing the monumental assignment of playing a rampant Essendon at home.
In a game that became famous for Leigh Matthews’ “if it bleeds, you can kill it” pre-match quote, the Lions won that encounter and the following 15 to claim the premiership.
Just like 2001, the Lions are fresh from a narrow loss to Adelaide and needing some inspiration to turn their season around.
Collingwood have excelled in the early part of 2010 but were brought back to the field by reigning premier Geelong last Friday night.
Forward scout: Collingwood
2010 to date
The Magpies have stamped themselves as legitimate premiership contenders in the first nine rounds. After being thumped in the preliminary final by Geelong last season, the Pies have bounced out of the blocks quickly.
In the off-season they added Luke Ball and Darren Jolly who were expected to add the missing pieces of the puzzle. Collingwood have comfortably accounted for most challengers so far, but they have still struggled in big matches against St Kilda and Geelong, losing heavily and finding it difficult to score.
The coach
With more than 600 games under his belt, Mick Malthouse is one of the most experienced and successful coaches in VFL/AFL history. He has had long stints at Footscray, West Coast and now Collingwood, and while Malthouse hasn’t always been the media’s favourite man, his statistics speak for themselves with a winning rate close to 57 per cent.
He has developed the Magpies into one of the most rounded teams in the competition with a combination of skill development and astute player trading.
The gun
Scott Pendlebury is the class player in an excellent Magpies midfield. The left-footer had an outstanding 2009 and after a quiet first couple of rounds has returned to his best this season. He is good in tight and can win the contested ball, but also delivers it beautifully going forward.
Pendlebury is a barometer for Collingwood, with his only two sub 20-possession performances this season resulting in losses for the Pies.
The sleeper
Time and time again, Alan Didak has proven himself one of Collingwood’s most vital cogs. After making his name as a clever small forward, Didak was thrust into the midfield more in 2009 where he excelled.
It is a role he has continued this season but has still managed to sneak forward and kick more than a goal a game. He is a tricky match-up but has struggled with tight tags on more than one occasion.
The bolter
Southport product Dayne Beams turned his back on an early start with the Gold Coast and was taken by Collingwood in the 2008 AFL Draft. He has not looked back.
Beams played 18 games in his first season and proved tough in the clinches but also capable of using the ball well in the front half. The tattooed 20-year-old is a regular fixture in the midfield and was one of few Magpies to stand tall against Geelong, booting four goals.
Strengths
Collingwood’s strength is undoubtedly their evenness across the park. They rarely rely on one player and have a fleet of medium sized midfielders and small forwards that are hard to match.
The likes of Pendlebury, Didak, Ball, Dane Swan, Leon Davis and Dale Thomas just keep coming all night. You have to be prepared to run hard and be disciplined to match them.
Weaknesses
While the Pies have dismantled most teams this season, when St Kilda and Geelong have put the clamps on, they have struggled to score. If their midfielders and small forwards don’t contribute on the scoreboard, the pressure moves on to the likes of Travis Cloke to take a grab.
It’s far easier said than done, but matching the little men can leave the Magpies short of ideas up forward.
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily of the clubs or the AFL.
