The 2010 Collingwood season

[GVGjr]

On paper I don't really rate this side and yet somehow they seem to be more than competitive with other sides. I expect them to be a real force again this year.

How do you see the Pies shaping this season?
What difference will the Likes of Jolly and Ball will make for them?

[chef]

On paper I don't really rate this side and yet somehow they seem to be more than competitive with other sides. I expect them to be a real force again this year.

How do you see the Pies shaping this season?
What difference will the Likes of Jolly and Ball will make for them?

I can see the Malthouse/Buckley thing being a distraction and hopefully derailing their season.

[The Coon Dog]

I can very well see them playing ourselves in the Grand Final. I honestly can't see them sliding, whereas I think Geelong may just & so could St. Kilda.

Jolly is an enormous boost to them & will provide their midfielders with plenty of drive. It will free up Fraser to go forward where he can be quite dangerous. Ball to me is another Shane O'Bree type & the longer he's on the ground, the more he'll be worked over.

Cloke is important & whilst he didn't have a good year last year, Collingwood still did. If he improves it'll be a real bonus for them.

Teams will have to consider whether its worth negating Dane Swan's drive. He was either too good last year for those who sought to tag him or wasn't paid enough attention.

As you say GVGjr, they are not a spectacular unit, but a solid one that gets the job done.

[Swoop]

They continue to perform on a consistent basis as most Malthouse teams have in the past. They are quietly building a decent list of players who can rotate through the midfield - Swan, Pendlebury, O'Bree, Ball, Didak, Davis, Lockyer and two up & coming stars in Beams & Sidebottom are all quality. Jolly will help them a lot in terms of winning the clearances and Ball will enable less pressure on Swan & Pendlebury especially on the inside. It appears they targeted Simon Buckley so they could also add Heath Shaw to the midfield mix but we'll have to wait and see whether that move turns out to be a success.

Despite his poor finish to the season Davis performed quite strongly throughout the middle of last season and took his game to a new level while I believe Didak has finally become a consistent damaging midfielder that he has teased everybody with in years gone by.

Defensively they are strong but they do rely heavily on Prestigiacomo being able to shut down his big opponents. Riewoldt was too good for him in their final and they didn't have many taller alternatives once he was being beaten. The fact that Presti is again one year older would worry them because if injuries hit there are still question marks on whether Brown has the ability to shut down the genuine stars of the competition like Presti has in the past.

Their biggest downfall appears to be their forward line with Cloke & Anthony very good solid players but under genuine pressure with quality opposition I don't feel they have the ability to win a match off their boot or even turn a match like some of the other quality sides have. Medhurst is a shadow of his former self due to injuries and he would be hoping to re-capture his 2008 form. I must admit Fraser is a wildcard now with Jolly at the club, I'm not sure if he can play as a forward but they certainly have that as an option now. I would be hoping this is where we could expose them when we come up against them in 2010.

They are well drilled and have a mature enough team to make the top 8 and do have the quality to trouble any side on their day, the draw isn't ideal in that they play most of the best sides twice throughout the year. I can't see them moving too far from where they've finished last year and they are one of 5 teams that could either go to another level or drop.

[lemmon]

I'm not prepared to write off Ball to the same extent others are. Injuries have taken a toll but a player with something to prove and not forgetting his obvious talent is always a dangerous proposition.

[bornadog]

With the addition of Jolly, this frees up the other rucks, who are just not up to scratch. Allows Fraser to play more up forward where I think he has always been more dangerous.

Malthouse has the knack of getting his players to play as a team and I can't see them slipping down the ladder too much

[The Bulldogs Bite]

Jolly's obviously a big inclusion for a side that got belted around in the ruck last year. He's a premier ruckman and can rest forward too. No doubt makes their list much stronger and probably frees Fraser up too. Not sure if Josh copes overly well with the number one mantle and the pressure. However, he's a good second string ruck and can push forward more often.

They've got some talented youngsters coming through the ranks and they aren't miles off a Premiership. However, I still think they're a couple players short on the top three sides. Brown and Reid will be crucial to them - if they can hold a key position (back or forward) then it makes them a difficult proposition. I rate Brown as a defender even if he's a little slow off the mark. I'd expect him to play on the 'stay at home' forwards and do OK.

Reid is still developing but they need him to play a few games and show something. They've groomed him to play CHB but they might still be tempted to swing him forward. A lot rests on Clokes shoulders, if he can become a 50 goal forward that's always moving around and taking marks then they'll be hard to stop.

David, Didak and Medhurst are real keys come September. All need to be firing if they're going to go deep into September. They all faded badly and unless they can adapt to the intensity of finals it's hard to see Collingwood challenging. They've got a lot of good, solid players but the three I mentioned are match winners. They just don't do it when it really counts.

As TCD said, they could make the GF ... but if they get similar outputs from key players as they have the last couple of years is finals, they won't be a threat.

[boydogs]

Jolly for them is like Hall for us - top line recruit in an area of weakness. Just don't think there is enough quality across the side for them to get close to the flag. 5th or 6th for mine

[Nuggety Back Pocket]

Jolly is a huge inclusion for the Magpies. Hard to justify the asking price of Luke Ball, whose injuries and lack of pace have seen him struggle in recent years. The keys to Collingwood are Swan, Didak and Pendlebury. We should have them covered with the Bulldogs superior mid field division, providing we man up on the likes of Swan and Didak.
Collingwood are well coached and will be thereabouts. Whether they have enough class and pace is debateable.

[LostDoggy]

Are the pies a bit on the slow side? I'm hoping anyway.

[GVGjr]

Are the pies a bit on the slow side? I'm hoping anyway.

Not a lot of place in the midfield but good skills can sometime cover the slower guys.

[LostDoggy]

Not a lot of pace in the midfield but good skills can sometime cover the slower guys.

Well I'm hoping cos I can't really stand them. No matter what people think of Jolly, he has strengthened what was a pretty weak ruck division.
Ball, O'Bree and Sidebottom aren't the paciest blokes around.

[Swoop]

There are also some lingering question marks on their bigger name players in tight big games, only performance can change that perception but certainly Leon Davis would want to stand up in September and to a lesser extent so would Swan and even Cloke.

[Go_Dogs]

I think they'll certainly improve again.

They have a good mix of older and younger players, and have improved (via trades and the draft) the major weaknesses they had last year.

They have a lot of match winners who can turn a game.

[ledge]

I tend to think they will struggle, the good players who got loose last year will be paid more attention and blokes like Obree are getting older and slower.

Malthouse is great at taking an average side and making them play well but in the end overachieving means you dont get the really good young kids in the draft and it takes its toll after a few years.