Nick Daicos, Scott Pendlebury and Jordan De Goey amassed 100 possessions between them. All three were among the best players on the ground at Marvel Stadium on Saturday night, and it still was not enough for Collingwood to beat the Western Bulldogs, another team in wildcard territory.
Coach Craig McRae conceded the Magpies had become a “middle of the road” team. He also repeatedly described his side as a “work in progress”.
Such assessments are befitting of teams on the rise, but not for a side that made last year’s preliminary final and who are regularly fielding the league’s oldest and most experienced 23s.
The Pies’ four point loss – 14.13 (97) to 13.15 (93) – leaves them clinging to a spot in the 10 and below parity with five wins and a draw from 12 games. Of their past 21 games, they have won just eight.
Bit by bit, the aura of McRae’s men is fading. They were once the kings of the close finish. Dogs coach Luke Beveridge remarked, “It was almost like they were toying with the competition”. Not any more.
The Pies have now failed to win four of their past five games decided by a goal or less; their only victory coming against Carlton after youngster Talor Byrne could not convert after the siren to draw the game.
As close as they were to knocking off Sydney, Fremantle and Hawthorn, the reality is the highest-ranked side the Pies have beaten so far this year is St Kilda in 11th.
The contrast with the Bulldogs could not have been more striking during a frantic finish that had the crowd of 43,430 on the edge of their seats until the final siren.
Beveridge is not afraid of picking inexperience. His premiership team in 2016 is among the youngest in the 18-team era.
When the game was on the line, the Dogs had Will Lewis, the final player drafted onto their list and who was playing top-level VAFA football last year, and Michael Sellwood, a mid-season pick from last season, stepping up.
“I’ve always had the attitude that you explore the promise,” Beveridge said. “You don’t see what it’s like if you don’t play them. When the kids show good signs, it’s so important, you got pressure for spots.”
One of the knocks on McRae at selection is his reliance on experience over youth. Their kids tend to need injuries to senior players before they get a chance.
It’s staggering that of their draft picks since 2019, only Daicos and Beau McCreery are regular first-team players. This is the generation that should be supporting Daicos in his prime years.
Against the Dogs, their five least experienced players – Wil Parker, Roan Steele, Harvey Harrison, Angus Anderson and Ed Allan – were their five with the fewest minutes on the field.
There may be good reason for McRae’s reluctance to play the fledglings, even if he is aware of the unhealthy reliance on Daicos. The Magpies do not have pressure from below. Their VFL team is 20th of 22 with two wins from nine games.
There are glimpses of progress. In his fourth season, Allan, a No.19 pick in 2022, kept Marcus Bontempelli to just two disposals in the final term. Anderson, a mature-age pick from last year, booted two goals. Steele is a running machine who looks at home on the wing.
“Role players are starting to maybe do a little bit more than just their role because you know there’s a heavy reliance on some at times,” McRae said.
“Nick’s – his highs and lows aren’t too high and low, are they? They’re always high, and Jordy’s in that space too. So we’re working towards that.”
The leaning towards senior players delivered the club a flag in 2023 and kept them in contention last year, but the end of the road is fast approaching for some. Aged 35, Steele Sidebottom’s rate of decline is accelerating. He had little impact against the Dogs.
After a distressing six-week block in April and May, the Dogs head into the winter months revitalised after holding on. For that, they can thank Lewis and Sellwood.
Ed Richards was their most influential player, and Bontempelli was excellent until three-quarter-time in a game where the Dogs dominated clearance, but the heroics of Lewis and Sellwood sealed victory just as it appeared Beveridge’s men were grinding to a halt.
Lewis was in the right place at the right time, and somehow alone, to crumb and snap the goal that put the margin above a straight kick. He has come a long way in a short time from Old Brighton.
“If you don’t believe you can have an impact, I guess you’re not going to stay at the level for very long,” Lewis told this masthead in the rooms.
“If I was to come in here and just think they’re all better than me, or I’m not at the level, then I wouldn’t get very far.
“Being a bit older, it also helps. It’s just knowing and having a feeling that you are better in some aspects, [and] then just using that to the best of your ability.”
Sellwood’s mark, with 50 seconds left on the clock and a four-point margin to protect, was Leo Barry-esque. From the moment Darcy Cameron’s quick kick left the boot just inside the square, Sellwood had his eyes locked on the Sherrin.
“I just saw the ball and realised that I had to go here, and if I went, I had to mark it as [Patrick] Lipinski was probably at the drop of the ball,” Sellwood told Kayo Sports.
“[I’m] glad it stuck. The rest is history.”
Beveridge’s initial hope was for Sellwood to spoil and clear the ball out of the danger area “but you’re pretty happy and content with him coming down with the ball in his hands”.
“It’s pretty, pretty pivotal in the end, isn’t it?”
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