Pies Belt The Blues Again And Honestly, Does It Ever Get Old?
Twenty one points. Against the Blues. In front of a packed house that started the day thinking it was their turn. Carn the Pies, because that is exactly what we do to Carlton these days.
I’ve watched a lot of these rivalry games over the years and there’s always a bit of biff about them, always a bit of needle, always some bloke in a navy scarf telling you this is finally their year. It never is. Not against us, not lately.
How the game actually went
Carlton came out with some real zip early, I’ll give them that. They had the ball inside their forward 50 more than I liked in that opening term and for a good ten minutes there you could feel the crowd getting twitchy. Then Collingwood did what Collingwood does under Craig McRae – settled, trusted the system, and just gradually turned the screws.
By three quarter time the margin was building and you could see it in the Blues players’ body language. Heads started to drop. Vision like that never lies. When a team has spent the whole week hearing how big this one is and then finds themselves getting run down in the third term, that’s when the belief goes.
Final margin was 21 points and if I’m being honest it probably should of been more. We left a bit out there in front of goal, which is becoming a bit of a theme this season if you ask me.
The bits that had me up out of the chair
Our midfield brigade absolutely won us this contest. When our on-ballers get first use going forward we are a serious headache for anyone, let alone a Carlton outfit that likes to play high pressure footy of their own. We matched their intensity and then some, which is exactly what you need to do in a game like this.
Defensively we were outstanding too. The back six read the ball beautifully and shut down what is normally a really potent Carlton forward set up. That doesn’t happen by accident, that’s coaching and it’s discipline.
Now can we talk about the whistle for a second?
I try not to bang on about this every single week, I really do. But there were a couple of contact decisions in that final quarter that had me shaking my head. Carn the Pies got the job done regardless, so I won’t die on this hill today, but plenty of Collingwood supporters near me were convinced the umpires have had a soft spot for Carlton’s stars all season. I’m not saying it was deliberate bias, I’m just saying it raised eyebrows in our bay, and it wasn’t just me either.
Look, we won comfortably enough that it didn’t cost us. But you wonder how many free kicks a marquee Carlton player has to get before people start asking the same questions we’ve been asking about our own blokes for years.
Brisbane sweating on the Eagles
Elsewhere round the grounds, Brisbane needed to work harder than expected to see off West Coast, getting there by 24 points in the end. Now on paper that sounds like a comfortable Lions win and I suppose it was, but anyone who watched it knows West Coast had a real crack and made the reigning contenders sweat for large stretches.
That’s the interesting thing about this competition at the moment. The teams that everyone assumes will cruise through September calibre opponents are finding out that even sides down the ladder can bite if you switch off for a quarter. Brisbane will take the four points and not lose sleep over the manner of it, and fair enough too, a win’s a win this time of year. But if I’m a Lions fan I’m not feeling as comfortable heading into the business end as I was a fortnight ago.
What this means for the top of the table
Collingwood’s win over Carlton does a couple of things. First, it keeps our finals position ticking along nicely, which is exactly what you want against a rival that’s been building some momentum of their own. Second, and maybe more importantly for the psyche of this footy club, it sends a message.
Carlton have been talking themselves up as genuine flag contenders. Definately some of that is fair, they’ve got some serious talent on that list. But there is a difference between having talent and being battle hardened enough to go toe to toe with a team that knows how to win the tight ones. We’ve been there. We’ve done the hard yards in tight finals footy recently and you can see it in how our players react under pressure. Carlton still look like they’re figuring it out.
Where does it leave the ladder picture
With Brisbane grinding out a win despite a scare, and us doing the job on the Blues, the top four is starting to take some real shape. It won’t stay settled for long, this competition never lets you get comfortable, but Collingwood fans can walk around with a spring in their step this week and that’s not something you get to say every season.
Final word
Is Carlton going to be dangerous come finals time? Probably. Are we worried about them right now? Not after that performance. When it mattered, our best players stood up, our system held firm, and we found a way to make it hurt for a rival that wanted this one badly.
Twenty one points against the Blues never gets old. Carn the Pies, onto the next one.
