But are they really such great rivals? The Anzac Day games of the past 15 years have overstated the feeling between the Magpies and Bombers, who after all have played each other in only one Grand Final since World War 1, in 1990.
As a comparison, Collingwood played Richmond in three Grand Finals in a row (1927-29). Essendon played Hawthorn in three Grand Finals in a row (1983-85).
Collingwood and Essendon both have a history of playing in plenty of finals, but they’ve tended to miss each other in September because one has been on top when the other has been down and vice versa.
This NAB Cup Grand Final is enhanced by the novelty factor of having them both at the top at the business end of the competition, even if it is the night competition.
So how does it bode for their seasons in the day competition? It’s fashionable to say that the NAB Cup bears no relation to the real stuff, but it generally does offer some guide to what’s ahead.
The night competition became a pre-season competition in 1988 (when it was known as the Panasonic Cup). In the 23 completed seasons since then, one of the grand finalists of the night competition has gone on to make the Grand Final of the day competition on 12 occasions.
In the other 11 seasons, one of the night grand finalists has tended to make the top four of the day competition. The other Grand Finalists tend to be teams on the rise that are not quite ready to break into the top four.
The glaring exception regarding these observations is Carlton, which won the pre-season Grand Final in 2005 and then won the wooden spoon in the day competition. The club, however, that Carlton defeated in the night Grand Final in 2005 (it was then the Wizard Cup) was West Coast, which went on to make the day Grand Final.
Of this year’s combatants, it’s not hard to make the prediction that Collingwood will make the day Grand Final. History also suggests that Essendon will be a team on the rise.
Watch this space.
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ONE OF the exciting aspects of footy at this time of year is the breakthrough of a player who looks likely to make an impact during the season proper.
That player for the weekend just gone is boom Bulldogs recruit, Zephaniah Skinner.
The languid utility has come to AFL footy via the outposts of Noonkanbah, in the Kimberley region, and Darwin, but he’s looked at home since his impressive debut in the early rounds of the NAB Cup.
On Saturday he made all footy followers sit up by kicking four goals in the Bulldogs’ impressive win over Fremantle in their NAB Challenge match in Bunbury, WA.
Skinner is tall and fast, with a mighty leap. His footy nous enables him to pick out teammates with a precise kick from 50 metres. Liam Jurrah will not be the only Aboriginal from the dusty boondocks who has the capacity to set the competition alight this season.
North Melbourne’s Sam Wright is another young player who impressed by kicking four goals on Saturday, in his case against Greater Western Sydney in Albury.
Brisbane Lions young gun midfielder Daniel Rich deserves full credit for tipping out the perennial pair of Simon Black and Luke Power for best-on-ground honours in the Lions’ victory over Melbourne at Visy Park in Melbourne on Saturday.
These clubs will play their last round of NAB Challenge matches this weekend. Relatively small but enthusiastic crowds will cheer them on.
The crowd at the NAB Cup Grand Final is likely to nudge Etihad Stadium’s capacity of 52,000, mostly because both clubs have huge followings, because James Hird is coaching Essendon, and because Collingwood fans are high on life after last year’s premiership.
But the crowd will also be large because of the novelty of seeing the Pies and the Bombers clash in a match to decide a premiership.
Pre-season Grand Finals
1988 Hawthorn d Geelong
1989 Melbourne d Geelong
1990 Essendon d North Melbourne
1991 Hawthorn d North Melbourne
1992 Hawthorn d Fitzroy
1993 Essendon d Richmond
1994 Essendon d Adelaide
1995 North Melbourne d Adelaide
1996 St Kilda d Carlton
1997 Carlton d Geelong
1998 North Melbourne d St Kilda
1999 Hawthorn d Port Adelaide
2000 Essendon d North Melbourne
2001 Port Adelaide d Brisbane Lions
2002 Port Adelaide d Richmond
2003 Adelaide d Collingwood
2004 St Kilda d Geelong
2005 Carlton d West Coast
2006 Geelong d Adelaide
2007 Carlton d Brisbane Lions
2008 St Kilda d Adelaide
2009 Geelong d Collingwood
2010 Western Bulldogs d St Kilda
