Collingwood: 2.8, 5.10, 11.12, 12.13 (85)
Richmond: 1.6, 2.10, 4.13, 8.16 (64)
It was a funny Saturday night game, but Collingwood came out with the four points with a 21-point victory over Richmond.
It only took one impressive quarter for them to do it – the third, in which they kicked six goals to nearly double their score. Dale Thomas kicked three, Alex Fasolo two and Travis Cloke one in a burst to start to second half, blowing out the margin to a game-high 48 points.
Richmond kicked back late through Brad Miller with three of his own as he finished with four, but it wasn’t ever going to be enough.
It all came after a sloppy first quarter filled with skill errors. The goalkicking, after it was so frequent last week for both these teams, slowed right down, with only seven goals up to half-time due to inaccuracy.
The contest was fairly even, with Richmond able to win the clearances and get it forward, but neither team was able to kick straight.
The frustration got to all of them, and an exchange of words led to a jumper grab which led to a full scuffle featuring most players, and although it wasn’t so serious, there’s no doubt there’ll be fines handed out.
For the Pies, Scott Pendlebury worked his way into the game after a slow start and finished with 29 disposals, while Dane Swan could have comfortably been best on ground had his goalkicking been on song, with 32 disposals and three behinds. Ben Reid was also particularly impressive.
Brett Deledio flickr.com/rachels_photo_world/
Brett Deledio was fantastic for Richmond, with 35 disposals and two goals as arguably the best man afield, while Shaun Grigg also had 30 disposals. Richmond all-up had 426 disposals, but Collingwood’s ball use was classier and more effective.
In particular, the Alex Rance and Travis Cloke match-up was a win for both players – Cloke kicked three goals amongst 18 disposals and eight marks in a performance he’ll be happy with, while Alex Rance bettered that with 34 disposals and 17 marks.
On the injury list was Chris Tarrant, who tweaked his left calf early in the game and was subsequently substituted out, as was Jake King with an injured knee in the third quarter. Both players, from early reports, may miss two to three weeks.
Nathan Foley also broke his nose but it seems he should be okay to play next week.
Votes: 3. Deledio, 2. Pendlebury, 1. Rance
Goals
Collingwood: Cloke, Thomas 3, Blair, Fasolo 2, Paine, Jolly
Richmond: Miller 4, Deledio 2, Edwards, Conca
Best
Collingwood: Pendlebury, Cloke, Swan, Thomas, Reid
Richmond: Deledio, Rance, Miller, Grigg, Tuck
Injuries
Collingwood: Tarrant (calf)
Richmond: Foley (broken nose), King (knee)
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Dalgleish, Stewart, Meredith
Official crowd: 57,268 at the MCG
