All Eyes On... Joel’s Record Collection 

By the time Joel Selwood takes the field on Saturday against Collingwood, he will have celebrated his 33rd birthday and be playing his 311th game, so it’s no surprise that he’s beginning to stack up a few records along the journey.

Last week was his 100th game at Kardinia Park, and his 89th win at the ground. Pretty good. It was also his 211th game in charge of the Cats, placing him ahead of Michael Voss for the most games captained in AFL/VFL history with only names like Whitten, Riewoldt, Reynolds and Kernahan remaining ahead of him.  

This weeks’ broken record is a joint one with his great mate Tom Hawkins, where the pair will pass Corey Enright & Jimmy Bartel for the 11th most games played as teammates in League history, sharing the podium with Bombers Simon Madden and Garry Foulds on 271 games.

But if anyone thinks this is some kind of John Farnham, KISS-style farewell tour here’s last week’s stats:  39 disposals, 17 contested, seven tackles, ten clearances, four inside 50s, six score involvements. And probably three Brownlow votes.

All Eyes On… Centre Square Blitz

If the skipper didn’t get the votes last week, it just might have been Mark Blicavs who put in an almighty performance in the ruck against the Suns.

Sharing the duties with Esava Ratugolea, he picked up 34 hitouts and six clearances to go with 18 disposals, six marks, and six tackles.  Once the ball hits the deck, Blicavs has been collecting most of his possessions in the back half, while Big Sav has been getting them in the middle, highlighting the chemistry that’s already developed between the two big men.

The big challenge this week will be Collingwood colossus Brody Grundy who has hit some form and was the key reason the Pies almost knocked over premiership fancies Port Adelaide last week.

If the Cats are going to feed the three-headed monster up forward they’ll need to win the middle, and this is where it will begin.

All Eyes On… 50 for Lukey Dahl

The energetic former Leopold Lion will play game number 50 in the hoops this weekend since crossing from the Western Bulldogs ahead of the 2019 season.

He’s the ultimate team man, Dahl, and his teammates love him for it as this video shows, and that’s playing out on the stats sheet this season where he has been elite in team first-metrics like forward pressure, where he ranks #2 at the Cats this season.

In his time at Whitten Oval, the 28-year-old played predominantly as an in and under midfielder who swung forward, whereas at the Cattery he’s settled into a high half-forward role. His energy and attack on the footy is contagious and these numbers highlight his value.

- #2 for FWD Half pressure
- #6 for pressure
- #3 for F50 tackles
- #6 for creating a turnover that results in score
- #2 for IN50 kick retention

It’s not a traditional milestone, but well worth a tip of the hat. Go well, Lukey.

All Eyes On…  Fast & Furious Pies

There’s been a touch of Vin Diesel’s Dominic Toretto to the Pies this year, living a quarter-mile at a time.

Their fast starts have gone a bit unnoticed, but they’ve come out genuinely blazing against quality opposition like Port Adelaide, Sydney, West Coast and Brisbane at different points this season. Granted, on most occasions they’ve fallen by the final bell, but with key players like Grundy, Darcy Moore and Taylor Adams putting in big performances against the Power, it’ll be a confident Magpie outfit that runs onto the MCG on Saturday afternoon.

Their performance in the first term against the Power was notable not just for their scoreboard pressure but their work on the other side of the footy, where they kept the Power scoreless. Much like the Cats against the Swans a few weeks back, by game’s end they had beaten them in a roll call of key metrics, including inside 50s and clearances, but fell painfully short on the scoreboard.  

The good news is after detours to the Gabba and Optus Stadium, it’ll be back to the MCG for the first time since 2019, where every game has been played between the two sides since 2006, and the Cats have won the last three

GEELONG survived a late Collingwood surge to record its fourth consecutive victory with a 10-point win in their Round 11 Sir Doug Nicholls Round clash at the MCG on Saturday.

A superb defensive display by Geelong in the opening half helped setup the victory with Collingwood held goalless in for the first two quarters for the first time since 2005 at the MCG. 

Last year's Grand Finalists weren't necessarily firing on all cylinders, but barely needed to escape second gear to cruise to a comfortable 8.13 (61) to 6.15 (51) victory.

A neck injury to dual Collingwood best and fairest Brodie Grundy, which forced the two-time All-Australian to be substituted out of the match midway through the third quarter, compounded issues for the Magpies.

Brandan Parfitt (30 disposals, five clearances) gave the contest a touch of class that it desperately needed through the midfield, while Tom Hawkins (21 disposals, three goals) was the side's premier forward threat.

But the play – or, rather, lack thereof – was focused on the other side of the ground as the Magpies were held to just six goals for the afternoon in another seriously worrying and seriously impotent display.

If the warning signs were only flashing at quarter-time, with Collingwood again held goalless and only having Geelong's own wastefulness to thank for the margin not being greater, then they were blaring by the main break.

Tall trio Jeremy Cameron, Rhys Stanley and Hawkins added three goals in six minutes for the Cats midway through the second term, extending the lead to 31 points and threatening to completely break the game apart.

Collingwood chipped away at the deficit, kicking its first goal for the game early in the third term and ultimately going on to win the inside-50 battle and eventually draw level for scoring shots.

But it was an indictment on the side's first half performance that Geelong, who only kicked eight goals itself throughout a match that was often hard to watch, was largely untroubled for much of the afternoon.

Perhaps the lack of a crowd due to Victoria's COVID-19 lockdown lulled the Cats into a false sense of security, as the Magpies eventually whittled their lead back to 10 points. But the result had been a foregone conclusion for some time by that point.

Cats go full Cats before the bounce

Mark Blicavs underwent a rigorous last-ditch fitness test under the watchful eyes of coach Chris Scott and football boss Simon Lloyd 90 minutes before the bounce, ultimately withdrawing from the contest soon after due to what appeared to be a calf injury. Rhys Stanley was his replacement, despite Darcy Fort coming into the 26-man squad on Friday. Cam Guthrie, who had spent the week dealing with a shoulder injury, was also withdrawn amid a double late change from Geelong, with his brother Zach Guthrie replacing the important midfielder. Blicavs and Cam Guthrie had previously been named in the Cats' side on Thursday night.

Scoring woes hurting Pies

There was a lot of 2020 about this game … and this performance from Collingwood. Not only was there no crowd in the wake of Victoria's snap COVID-19 lockdown, but the scoring issues that have plagued the Magpies throughout last 18 months continued. A worrying goalless half to open the game, Collingwood's 14th and 15th terms without a major since the start of last year, meant it was the first time the club had been without a goal to the half-time break since 2005. Meanwhile, only last year's wooden spooners Adelaide has had more goalless quarters in that period with 16. Eventually, after around 56 minutes of game time, the Pies got on the board through Brodie Grundy. Needless to say, it was never going to be enough to inspire an almighty comeback.

COLLINGWOOD     0.3     0.7     1.11     6.15 (51)
GEELONG               2.3     5.8     5.11     8.13 (61) 

GOALS
Collingwood: De Goey 2, Grundy, Hoskin-Elliott, Mihocek, Maynard
Geelong: Hawkins 3, Cameron 2, Dahlhaus, Ratugolea, Stanley 

BEST
Collingwood: Mayne, Moore, Quaynor, Crisp, Bianco
Geelong: Hawkins, Parfitt, Selwood, Tuohy, Stewart, Narkle

INJURIES
Collingwood: Grundy (neck)
Geelong: C.Guthrie (shoulder) replaced by Z.Guthrie in selected side, Blicavs (calf) replaced by Stanley in selected side

SUBSTITUTES
Collingwood: Macrae (replaced Grundy)
Geelong: Clark (unused)