Prelim Finals Teams: Pies Ready To Rip In, No Excuses Now
Well footy heads, this is it. The penultimate weekend. Prelim final teams are in and my heart rate has definately gone up about forty beats since I saw the team sheets drop.
Four sides left standing, one week from the granny, and every single selection call this week means something. No room for passengers. No room for the umpires to have a shocker either, but we’ll get to that.
The Pies Line-Up: As Good As It Gets
Collingwood have named as close to full strength as you’ll see this deep into September. Carn the Pies, seriously, this is the group we’ve been building toward all year.
The inclusion that’s got everyone talking is the recall in defence. Been carrying a niggle for weeks, finally passed the fitness test on Thursday, and the coaches clearly reckon he’s the bloke to shore up that back six against a forward line that’s been kicking goals in bunches all finals series.
Only out is a bloke who’s been solid without setting the world on fire. Harsh? Maybe. But when you’re one week from a granny, form counts for everything.
- In: the recalled key defender, fitness test passed
- Out: makes way, form-based selection call
- Unchanged: the midfield engine room, thank god
What The Other Prelim Contenders Are Rolling With
Across the other prelim final, we’ve got a line-up shake-up that’s raised a few eyebrows. One club has gone young in the middle, throwing a first-year kid into the deep end against seasoned finals campaigners. Bold call. Could backfire spectacularly or could be the move that wins them the flag. Thats footy for you.
The opposition have stuck almost solid with what got them here. Why wouldn’t they? You don’t mess with a winning formula this late in the piece, do you?
Ins And Outs That’ll Shape The Weekend
Every club has had to make a call or two. Some are injury enforced, some are pure selection bravery (or stupidity, depending which member you ask down the club).
The biggest talking point outside our own group is the experienced key forward who’s been managed all year finally getting the all clear. He’s medium size, this bloke, in terms of the impact he can have. Clubs have tried to shut him down all finals series and mostly failed.
Then there’s the tagger question. Every prelim final seems to have one — the bloke whose entire job is to follow our best midfielder around like a bad smell. Fair enough, that’s footy. But when it tips into holding the ball free kicks that never get paid, that’s when I start shouting at the telly.
The Umpiring Factor Nobody Wants To Talk About
Look, I’m not saying it’s deliberate. I would never say that. But has anyone else noticed how Collingwood seem to cop the 50-50 calls the wrong way in September more often than not?
Maybe it’s confirmation bias. Maybe I’m a rusted-on tragic who sees conspiracy in every free kick count. But when the free kick differential swings double figures in a final and it’s not going our way, you’re allowed to raise an eyebrow, aren’t you?
I’m not having a go at any individual umpire personally. They’ve got a horrendously hard job and I wouldn’t do it for quids. But as a collective, over a whole season, the pattern is there if you want to see it. Plenty of Pies fans reckon it looked soft all year. I’m just saying what half of Victoria is thinking.
Injury Clouds Still Hanging Over A Couple Of Sides
Not every club is at full tote odds this week. There’s at least one prelim finalist carrying a genuine injury cloud into Friday night, with the club only confirming their status a few hours before the deadline.
That’s the cruelty of finals footy. You can play twenty-two good weeks of the home and away season and have your whole campaign hinge on whether a hamstring pulls up right on a Thursday arvo.
Medical staff across the competition have been under the pump this week and fair play to them, most of the calls made public look sound and sensible. But there’ll be a coach somewhere tonight losing sleep over a fitness test result.
What It All Means For The Pies’ Flag Charge
Here’s my honest read. Collingwood’s line-up this week is the best version of this group we’ve seen all year. The forward structure is settled, the midfield rotation is humming, and the back six finally looks like it can match it with the big bodies inside 50 that have caused headaches all finals series.
Do I reckon we’re favourites? I reckon we’re right in it, which is all you can ask for in September. The rest is up to the players and, if we’re being brutally honest, up to whoever’s holding the whistle.
Every prelim final team named this week has a story. Some are about redemption, some are about bold selection calls, some are about blokes who’ve fought back from injury to get one more crack at it. That’s what makes this weekend of footy the best on the calendar, better than the granny in some ways, because everything is still on the table.
Final Word Before The Bounce
Two prelim finals. Four teams. One weekend that decides who gets a fortnight off to prepare for the big dance and who goes home wondering what could of been.
Collingwood’s team sheet gives me confidence. Not blind faith, mind you, I’ve been burned before. But genuine, considered confidence that this group, on their day, with a fair run from the umpires, can go all the way.
Carn the Pies. Let’s give this September the send-off it deserves.
