Collingwood forward Jack Buller slotted four goals as the Pies go down by a point to the Bombers at Windy Hill.

A slow start for both teams, it took 10 minutes for the Sherrin to find the goals which came courtesy of Buller.

Collingwood managed to lock the ball into their front half, however Essendon’s final line of defence didn’t allow the Pies to have too many opportunities to increase their lead.

The Bombers kicked their first goal of the match just shy of the 17-minute mark, while a goal in the closing minutes saw them sneak a six-point lead at quarter time.

Brynn Teakle started strongly in the backline, quickly racking up eight intercepts.

Essendon started to look more damaging in the second quarter, this time not allowing Collingwood to cleanly exit their defensive 50.

Just like the Pies in the opening quarter however, their attempts at goal were unsuccessful as they quickly added three behinds to their tally.

Collingwood found their tune, capitalising off a turnover in Essendon’s forward 50 to kick their first of the second quarter thanks to Xavier Laverty.

Harry Mahoney successfully found brother Max Mahoney, who kicked his first of the afternoon to bring the Pies the lead, however four quick goals to the Bombers to end the half saw them clinch a 20-point lead approaching the main break.

Mahoney quickly found the goals again to kick off the second half, while Wil Phillips and Buller managed to draw the Pies level.

Buller went on to find the goals another two times, bringing his third quarter haul to three and his match total to four to bring the Pies to a 17-point lead as they entered the final term.

Despite a total of eight goals being kicked by the Pies in the third term, the fourth remained relatively quiet as Mitch Podhajski being the sole goal scorer for the Pies for the term.

It was a similar story for the Bombers too, unable to capitalise on their opportunities to close the gap as they peppered the goals with behinds.

Two late goals to the Bombers in the dying minutes helped them get over the line however, with the Pies going down by a point at Windy Hill.

MATCH CENTRE: ESSENDON V COLLINGWOOD

The numbers:

Jack Buller was once again impressive in front of goals, finishing his day with four including three in the third term.

20-year-old Max Mahoney (three goals) continued his strong form in front of goal with the forward pulling together a strong month of football, kicking 11 goals in his last four games.

In the absence of a slew of AFL-listed defenders, Brynn Teakle stood tall as he finished his afternoon with 20 disposals and 15 intercepts.

Collingwood will now turn their attention to their final home and away clash of the VFL season next week, facing Port Melbourne at ETU Stadium on Saturday 15 August.

ESSENDON             2.2       6.7      7.9      10.15 (75)
COLLINGWOOD      1.2      3.5      10.8     11.8  (74)

GOALS
Jack Buller (4), Max Mahoney (3), Mitch Podhajski, Will Phillips, Harry Mahoney, Xavier Laverty