The Cats experienced their first loss of the season in round six, losing to Collingwood by a margin of 29 points at the MCG.
Cats Media identified five points of interest to follow through the game and, with the benefit of hindsight, here’s how the played out:
Under pressure
With torches and pitchforks at the ready, the footballing world was eyeballing Collingwood last Sunday – as it has been for some weeks now.
Credit where credit is due, the Magpies and Nathan Buckley absorbed the immense pressure facing them at 1-4 and played superior football to that of the previously undefeated Cats.
Their president Eddie McGuire had drawn a line in the sand, stating the game would show “the spirit of the Collingwood” and from that perspective, the 29-point win is even more impressive.
Collingwood president Eddie McGuire shakes the hand of senior coach Nathan Buckley following the Pie's win over the Cats. (AFL Photos)
Five days a week
Let’s not forget the Magpies pulled it off on the back of a five-day break. Defender Ben Reid was managed in what must have been an incredibly tough decision to make, but those in black and white jumpers showed no ill effects from their ANZAC Day slog against the Bombers.
Daniel Wells and the rest of the Collingwood side showed no signs of their five-day break. (AFL Photos)
Playing a Dan down
The Geelong forward line was nowhere near as dynamic or potent as it has been in previous weeks. From 49 inside 50’s (down Put it down to Collingwood’s defensive pressure if need be, but there’s no doubt the Cats had a different look in front of goal without Daniel Menzel.
Good for three goals per game, Menzel’s output was not matched by anyone in his absence, while spearhead Tom Hawkins had his worst return of the season, booting a single major.
Tom Hawkins was kept to just one goal by defender Lynden Dunn. (AFL Photos)
De-Pendlebury no more?
No one played a bigger part turning the Pies’ fortunes than the Collingwood skipper Scott Pendlebury.
His benching against St Kilda in round four raised questions, while a poor performance on ANZAC Day compounded issues further. But with his back against the wall, Pendlebury silenced the critics with 33 disposals of class against the Cats and lead his team to a memorable victory when they so desperately needed it.
Scott Pendlebury was superb for the Magpies. (AFL Photos)
Here’s looking at you, Levi
In 2016, Levi Greenwood held Joel Selwood to 18 disposals. The Pies won by 24 points.
In 2017, Levi Greenwood held Joel Selwood to 17 disposals. The Pies won by 29 points.
With the success of a season ago, Nathan Buckley opted to place the hard-tag of Greenwood on Geelong’s skipper once again and it worked. Selwood was unable to impact the game as he and the Cats would have liked, and when Nakia Cockatoo looked to rough up his captain’s tagger, a free kick was given away in retaliation.
As it now stands, Greenwood is two from two against Selwood – until their next bout in round 22.
Levi Greenwood wore Geelong skipper Joel Selwood like a glove all day (AFL Photos)
