Click here to watch Gavin Brown address the media after the matchA HEROIC comeback came to nothing as Collingwood's 2010 NAB Cup campaign ended at the first skirmish.
The Pies overcame a 43-point deficit to hit the front late in the final term. But a goal to Adam Schneider was enough to give St Kilda a one-point win: 2.13.4 (100) to Collingwood's 1.13.12 (99).
Stand-in coach Gavin Brown said there was no one player to blame for allowing the St Kilda goalsneak free.
“You just can’t pick a bloke Schneider was supposed to be on. It will be a team structure thing we didn’t get right. We’ll have a look at the tape over the weekend and find out exactly who was in the wrong spot and who switched off,” Brown said after the match.
“It’s disappointing to lose games but when you lose them like that there is a bit of soul searching. We have to go back and have a look at exactly why that happened - who switched off at the wrong time.”
The match was a thriller, but fans of both sides came to this one to see how Luke Ball would perform. It didn’t take long for the former Saints captain to get a touch - a quick handball under pressure straight after the first bounce got him on the stats sheet.
Ball was at his most influential in the second term when the Magpies kicked three goals. But he was the centre of attention for the wrong reason when one of his handballs was intercepted by Leigh Montagna deep in defence, resulting in a goal to the Saints.
Click here to watch Heath Shaw in the rooms after the lossApart from a few minor wrestles with Nick Riewoldt and Brendon Goddard, there was no malice from the Saints towards their former captain.
Riewoldt controlled the match whenever the footy was in his vicinity. He seems to have lost a few kilograms over summer and was a tough task for the myriad Collingwood defenders rotating off him. He finished with four goals.
Adam Schneider looked the goods for St Kilda. He spent plenty of time in the midfield in an unfamiliar role for him since joining the Saints two years ago. St Kilda was missing eight players who played in last year’s losing grand final against Geelong but their youngsters Alistair Smith, David Armitage, Rhys Stanley and Jack Steven showed plenty of promise. Steven’s chase down tackling was a highlight of the night until he left the field with an ankle injury.
Dane Swan’s gut running out of the midfield was at its usual peerless standard as was Nick Maxwell’s tenacity and ability to create contests across half-back. Recruit Darren Jolly rucked well and pushed forward to create scoring opportunities. Travis Cloke had plenty of chances but was inaccurate, finishing with 2.5.
The Saints looked to have sewn the game up with the first four goals of the third quarter. But Collingwood hit their stride, moving the ball quickly and breaking tackles to kick the next six.
The Saints will take on the winner of the Sydney Swans and Carlton next Saturday at Etihad Stadium.
St Kilda 1.5.1 1.7.1 2.10.3 2.13.4 (100)
Collingwood 0.2.2 0.5.4 1.9.8 1.13.12 (99)
GOALS
St Kilda: Nine-point goals: Schneider 1, Blake 1 Goals: Riewoldt 4, Schneider 2, McQualter, McEvoy, Montagna, Koschitzke, Stanley, Milne, S. Fisher
Collingwood: Nine-point goals: Jolly 1 Goals: L. Brown 4, Medhurst 2, Cloke 2, Jolly, Lockyer, Swan, Ball, Beams
BEST
St Kilda: Riewoldt, Blake, Smith, Schneider, Armitage, Gilbert
Collingwood: Maxwell, Jolly, Brown, Swan, Shaw, Ball
INJURIES
St Kilda: Steven (ankle)
Collingwood: Nil
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Rosebury, Meredith, Bowen, Jennings
Official crowd: 29,801 at Etihad Stadium
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
