SUMMARY
If West Coast is to be taken seriously as a finals threat, winning games like these against a battling Collingwood at Etihad Stadium is simply non-negotiable. The Eagles – who will celebrate spearhead Josh Kennedy's 200th game and midfielder Luke Shuey's 150th game – are clinging to eighth spot and have a reasonably good run home. They are fresh from a 30-point win over arch enemy Fremantle in the Derby but haven't won successive games since round eight. In fact, since then the Eagles have won just three of eight games. Their task will be made a little easier by the 14th-placed Pies being without injured skipper Scott Pendlebury, which could well hand the visitors the ascendancy in the crucial midfield battle. An Eagles defeat would hardly boost confidence levels ahead of their return to Docklands in a fortnight to take on fellow finals aspirant St Kilda.
WHERE AND WHEN: Etihad Stadium, Sunday, July 23, 3.20pm AEST
TV AND RADIO: Click here for broadcast guide
LAST FIVE TIMES
R19, 2016, Collingwood 13.13 (91) d West Coast 11.6 (72) at the MCG
R6, 2016, West Coast 18.16 (124) d Collingwood 9.8 (62) at Domain Stadium
R16, 2015, West Coast 11.21 (87) d Collingwood 7.14 (56) at Etihad Stadium
R20, 2014, West Coast 19.12 (126) d Collingwood 10.6 (66) at Domain Stadium
R10, 2014, Collingwood 17.7 (109) d West Coast 15.11 (101) at the MCG
THE SIX POINTS
1. Collingwood has struggled at Etihad Stadium recently, losing six of their past seven games there, while West Coast has four wins from its past six games at the venue over the past two years.
2. The Magpies have this season won the inside 50 count in 11 games – the equal-most of any side. They are also fifth for marks inside 50. However, conversion has been an ongoing issue.
3. The Eagles' scoring has dropped away dramatically. They haven't cracked the ton in any of their past 10 games.
4. The Magpies have won consecutive games only once this season, while the Eagles have done it twice.
5. Collingwood could have won by a lot more than 19 points when the teams last met in round 19 last year. The Pies dominated the disposals (412-322) and the clearances (47-28). Taylor Adams picked up three Brownlow votes after gathering 36 possessions.
6. Jordan De Goey has broken into the top 200 in the Schick AFL Player Ratings for the first time. The 21-year-old midfielder/forward has moved to No. 198 – ninth at Collingwood.
IT'S A BIG WEEK FOR …
Steele Sidebottom, Taylor Adams and Jeremy Howe. With skipper Scott Pendlebury sidelined with a finger injury, the Pies' joint vice-captains will need to step up and show the way, much as they did during last week's win over Gold Coast. It's perhaps a blessing for the trio to share the responsibility of leading a young side, and it'll be particularly interesting to see how the Pies set up around the ball without the instructive Pendlebury.
PREDICTION: West Coast by 15 points
