Collingwood fans walked out of Adelaide Oval to a host of emotions following a narrow six-point loss.
For the bulk of the night, the Pies sat in front on what was a cold, wet and windy Friday night encounter against Fremantle.
Watch every match of every round of the AFL Premiership Season LIVE and ad-break free during play on FOX FOOTY, available on Kayo Sports | New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1.
But in the final quarter and with a slender four-point lead, the Pies couldn’t cash in and put their opponents to bed.
First it was Daniel McStay who missed, then it was Lachie Schultz from directly in front before superstar Nick Daicos squandered his attempt on goal.
Fremantle made no mistake at the other end with Jye Amiss and Matthew Johnson kicking the only two goals of the quarter to steal victory from the jaws of defeat.
Collingwood’s horror display in front of the big sticks ultimately cost them with the Dockers securing the 7.3 (45) to 5.9 (39) win.
Outside of Adelaide Oval, the anger emanating from the Collingwood faithful bounced from the umpires to their own playing group.
“We f***ed ourselves,” one said while a nearby fan chimed in with “that was f***ing dreadful.”
A third added: “The umpiring was sh*t.”
A fourth more calmly stated: “We didn’t deserve to win. They lifted when it mattered.”
His voice was however quickly drowned out by an emerging crowd of Fremantle fans belting out the team song.
Speaking after the loss Nick Daicos cut a dejected figure and said when the game was on the line, Fremantle handled it better.
“Tough game, cleary Freo just handled the late-game moments better than us,” he said on Seven’s coverage.
“They executed so well late in front of goal and we probably blew our chances.”
The victory for Fremantle makes it three in a row and came after Johnson pounced with less than five minutes to play.
An ill-advised kick from Billy Frampton into the middle missed Jamie Elliott who fumbled and turned it over thanks to Isaiah Dudley’s pressure.
Johnson swooped and collected the loose ball before running inside 50 and kicking what would be the sealer.
Justin Longmuir’s men then withstood the Pies’ frantic efforts to salvage a draw with several stoppages inside their attacking 50 in the last minute of the game before Freo cleared the danger and the final siren sounded.
“I don’t think Fremantle, 12 or 24 months ago would’ve won that game,” former Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley said on Fox Footy post-match.
The loss sinks Collingwood to 2-3 on the season which has them currently sitting in 11th spot on the ladder.
They’ll be hoping to bounce back next Thursday night when they lock horns with longtime rival Carlton at the MCG.
