Collingwood Season Preview 2007

Collingwood Season Preview

Finish in 2006: 7th

Players in: Paul Medhurst (Fremantle), Chris Bryan (Carlton).

Players out: Blake Caracella (retired), Chad Morrison (retired), Chris Tarrant (traded to Fremantle), Jason Cloke (delisted), Cameron Cloke (delisted), Julian Rowe (delisted), Tristan Walker (delisted), David Fanning (delisted), Adam Iacobucci (delisted), Brent Hall (delisted)

Draft: Ben Reid (Murray Bushrangers – pick 8), Nathan J Brown (North Ballarat Rebels – pick 10), Chris Dawes (Sandringham Dragons – pick 28), Brad Dick (East Perth – pick 44), Tyson Goldsack (Gippsland Power – 53).

The season ahead:

Poor draft results from 2001, 2002 and 2003 are beginning to sting Collingwood, as existing players from those crops are now becoming leading lights at their clubs. But the club still possesses an abundance of depth, most of the deadwood cleared last spring giving all players at the club realistic hope of a senior game. Responsibility will again fall on the shoulders of the faithful Buckley, Burns, Wakelin, James Clement, Simon Prestigiacomo, Ben Johnson and the swiftly improving Dane Swan and Heath Shaw to keep the team at the top of the pile. The void created by Alan Didak’s absence for much of the season will prove difficult to fill, as will that of Tarrant, forcing youth to step up a cog or three.

The Pies will be looking to Travis Cloke to take up the slack left by Tarrant in attack. Beginning the year with a full pre-season under his belt, Cloke looks well placed to explode in ’07 and become the star he has been touted to be since he was a 15-year-old. With brothers Jason and Cameron cut from the list, the time is now for David’s youngest son to stamp his authority on the competition.

Run from defence will be provided on mass once more by the revelations of last year, Heath Shaw and Swan, who took giant strides in departing the realm of rank-and-filer to vital cogs in a well oiled Collingwood machine. It is hoped that the pair form the core of the backline in the coming years, releasing the hard-running Johnson into the midfield.

Key man: Anthony Rocca

The hopes and dreams of the Magpie Army rest on the burly shoulders of the wholehearted Rocca, who will enter 2007 thinking he may have a point to prove. A sensational beginning was marred later in the year by a dramatic drop in form, although 57 goals after a season-ending achilles snap the previous year was considered an excellent comeback, and with the removal of Tarrant will have the forward fifty to himself.

One to watch: Chris Egan

Now a third year player, Chris Egan is the man to watch for the Magpies in ’07. The silky-skilled Aboriginal now has the benefit of three pre-seasons under his belt, and has added considerable bulk to his once slender frame, whilst losing none of his trademark speed. Egan settled at the halfway mark of 2006 and from then on was a fixture in the senior side. His flair, dare and ability to bring the unpredictable to the table have already found room in the hearts of supporters across the land, and 2007 gives the boy from Rumbalara the opportunity to mature into one of the most dangerous players the game has to offer.

Prediction:

It seems that the heavy loss inflicted by the Western Bulldogs in last year’s Elimination Final has undone the fine gains made by the club in the eyes of many scribes. And they may yet prove themselves correct, for there are no additions to last year’s crop who will make a substantial difference this year, and the loss of the perennial potential superstar, Tarrant, creates a hole to fill. However, the core of Buckley, Burns, Licuria, Clement, Prestigiacomo, Wakelin and Rocca, while aging, will still hold the fort with aplomb, helping their side at best fill the lower rungs of the ladder.