Round 19 1995, Essendon vs. Collingwood
Game Statistics
ESSENDON.........4.5 7.9 12.13 16.14 (110)
COLLINGWOOD......3.5 5.7 10.11 15.12 (102)
Goals:
ESSENDON: Hird 5,Symons 3, Long 2,Wanganeen,Daniher,Cockatoo-Collins,O'Donnell,Hardwick,O'Connor 1.
COLLINGWOOD: Rocca 8, Williams 2, Brereton, Richardson, Burns, Brown, Wild 1.
Crowd:
77,448 at the MCG
Comment:
Yes indeed, that was definitely a Collingwood v. Essendon game.At 12:00pm you could already feel the tension. The reservesfinished very early (a game which Essendon won, and needed towin to have a chance for the final six), and the marching bandcame onto the field for a rememberance tribute. It felt like agrand final. And that roar, the roar that can only be heard atthe MCG. When the umpire raised the ball and blew his whistle,everyone at the ground knew this was going to be another amazingEssendon v. Collingwood clash.
And that's the way the game started, with the emotion and thefrenetic pace of a grand final. There were skirmishes all overthe ground; little scuffles, pushing, shoving, these playerswere out there to win. Collingwood fighting for the eight, theBombers fighting for second spot. In the first forty seconds,the Cockie grabbed the ball about thirty metres out, spun around and kicked the goal. And we roared, what a start. Then, almost just as fast, Collingwood rushed the ball down to their forward line and scored. Two goals in two minutes, and the game wasunder way.
The first quarter was probably the best of the game. Both sidesrunning freely, using their skills to advantage, the playersshowing the emotion befitting a final, and neither side givingthe other any latitude. It was after quarter time that the gamereally changed, it became a game of bursts by each side. And theskill level dropped quite markedly. Suddenly kicks were sprayingoff the side of the boot, passes were going straight toopposition players, and handballs completely missed their mark.It was Essendon that had the first burst of the game. We kickedaway to a 27 point lead, and it seemed that the game was almostover. Then it was Collingwood's turn, and boy did they give theDons a scare. Suddenly they were winning the ball out of themiddle each time, and an inspiring goal to Dermie, and goals toRocca brought the game to the closest of margins - one point infavour of the Dons.
It was at this point I entertained the idea of another draw. AllI kept thinking was no, no, no I could not handle that again -my heart couldn't handle it, my voice couldn't handle it! Butthank God for Michael Long in those last ten minutes. He found space where other players had searched hard for it, and he had a number of runs off the half-back line to force the ball into our attacking zone. Then came the controversy. Jimmy Hird flew for amark at the forty-five metre mark, and the umpire decided NedKelly was holding onto him. Soft - but definitely there. Jimmysubsequently converted the kick and we were clear again. Thenlater Michael Symons was going for the ball just outside the goal square, and the umpire saw fit to award him a free for holding on. He also kicked the goal. The final margin - eightpoints.
I guess the game will be remembered for those free kicks, but itshould be remembered for the intense effort both sides gave onthe day. The only was Collingwood was going to win was if theywere more hungry than us, afterall, they were playing for afinals berth, we had already secured that. The Essendon playersare more talented overall than the Pies, and on the day Essendondominated much more than Collingwood. But all that could havecounted for nothing due to their resurgance late in the game,mainly led by that big man Sav Rocca (why does he always play sowell against us?!?).
Anyway, to the better players for the game. Without doubt themost oustanding player in the first half was Gavin Wanganeen. Heonce again did what most footballers can only dream about. Heweaved in and out of numerous Collingwood players, and thendelivered the ball with accuracy (something a lot of playerscould not do during the game). His second half was not asinspiring, but he continued to wreak havoc on the Collingwoodforward line. Michael Long, whom I mentioned earlier as sparkingthe Essendon recovery late in the game, was a fine player allday. It was disgraceful to hear the Collingwood fans boo himwhen he touched the ball, but it was comforting to hear that booon regular occasions, for he really made his mark on the gamegathering heaps of possessions.
Our leading goal kicker, James Hird, began the game rather slowly, with Crosisca playing well, but he broke free after half time to end up with five goals for the game, clearly showing hisclass. The Somerville-Monkhorst battle was not as important as many people would have predicted. One could probably say that it was a drawn battle, with Somerville getting some advantage inthe ruck overall with more hitouts. Another player that put in agood game was Ben Doolan. He was really playing for his spot in the side, and when he started on Gavin Brown I was a bit skeptical about the move. I was gald when he kept Brown quite,and not only that but managed to get quite a few possessionshimself. Another good sign for the Dons was the good form ofMark Harvey. He really returned to the best players in thisgame, with his characteristic marshalling of troops off thebackline.
In all it was a terrific game of football. The first quarter forthe skills and emotion; the second and third for the ensuingbattle, and the last quarter for the tension involving two teamsfighting for their finals positions. In the end I believe thebetter team won, but Collingwood, as always, put up a very goodfight and pushed Essendon right to the line.
PS. I thought I should have my say about the AFL's treatment ofDarryl Harvey and his AFL home page. This decision is justanother example of the small-mindedness of the AFL officials.How is it that they cannot see the beneficial, and free, servicethat Darryl is providing for footy fans all over the world? Heis spreading the good word of our game, and doing more forfootball in many ways than the AFL itself. He isn't motivated bymoney, but for a love for the game. As a dedicated footy fanmyself, I find the decision disgraceful. And not to mentionhypocritical, for no more than a year or so ago the AFL voicedits support for those people who had created AFL sites on thenet. Now, with the impending AFL "information service", suddenlythe good work people like Darryl do is not wanted. I hope thededicated fan is not forgotten in this debate, and those peopleoverseas who only get their info from AFL sites on the net.Information wants to be free! (Note: this is only my opinion,and not that of the EFC)- Brad
Votes:
Today Gavin Wanganeen returned to his Brownlow winning best.
3 - Gavin Wanganeen
Gavin really put on a show in the first half of the game. He had the ball on a string the whole time, and no Collingwood players could get near him.
2 - Michael Long
It was terrific to see Longy put all those Collingwood supporters back in their place. He showed them the class that he's got, and was instrumental in the win today.
1 - James Hird
Not Jimmy's best game for the year, but he was an integral part of the win with his five goals and decisive play up on the forward line. If he can kick five on an average day, imagine what he can do on a good day!
Possessions Kicks Handballs MarksWANGANEEN 26 HARVEY 17 WANGANEEN 10 HIRD 8LONG 24 WANGANEEN 16 MERCURI 9 WANGANEEN 7MERCURI 21 LONG 16 O'DONNELL 9 DANIHER,C 7HARVEY 20 DOOLAN 12 LONG 8 COCKATOO-CO 7HARDWICK 18 MERCURI 12 FLETCHER 8 O'CONNOR 6DOOLAN 18 HIRD 12 DENHAM 7 LONG 6FLETCHER 18 MISITI 11 O'CONNOR 7 FLETCHER 6O'DONNELL 17 HARDWICK 11 HARDWICK 7 HARVEY 6MISITI 16 FLETCHER 10 SOMERVILLE 7 SOMERVILLE 5HIRD 16 CALTHORPE 10 DANIHER,C 6 DARCY 5
Standing after Round 19:
We are stuck in third position this week, only 0.7 percent behind Geelong. North beating Richmond was handy for us, but it woudl have been even better if Fremantle had have beaten Geelong. It looks as though we'll end up playing either North, West Coast or Footscray in the first week of the finals, and I've updated my predictions for this week.The ladder is as follows:
---------------P--W--L-D--For-Agst---%--PtsCarlton.......19 17 2 0 2022 1437 140.71 68Geelong.......19 14 5 0 2194 1647 133.21 56Essendon......19 13 4 2 2162 1632 132.48 56Richmond......19 13 5 1 1781 1642 108.47 54West Coast....19 12 7 0 1760 1454 121.05 48Nth Melb......19 12 7 0 1891 1722 109.81 48Footscray.....19 10 8 1 1591 1696 93.81 42Melbourne.....19 9 10 0 1659 1565 106.01 36Collingwood...19 7 10 2 1780 1774 100.34 32Adelaide......19 8 11 0 1424 1807 78.80 32Hawthorn......19 7 12 0 1586 1610 98.51 28Brisbane......19 7 12 0 1718 1951 88.06 28Sydney........19 6 13 0 1921 1958 98.11 24Fremantle.....19 6 13 0 1733 1886 91.89 24St. Kilda.....19 6 13 0 1490 1939 76.84 24Fitzroy.......19 2 17 0 1361 2353 57.84 8
Next Week:
We've got St Kilda next week out at Waverley. This is the first and only home and away game we play at AFL Park (luckily), and we really need to beat them by a considerable margin to incerase our percentage above Geelong's (who've got Fitzroy, and after Sydney's demolition job on them, who knows how much Geelong will beat them by). We'll have a nearly full list to choose from, so competition will be tight out on the training track this week for a spot in the side.
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