COLLINGWOOD has ended the2007 finals campaign of the Sydney Swans, defeating the Swans by 38 points intheir second elimination final at the MCG.
The Magpies will travel to Perthto take on reigning premier West Coast after the 18.17 (125) to 13.9 (87) winover the team the Eagles beat by a point in last year’s Grand Final.
Collingwood set up the winwith a six goal to one first term to lead by 31 points at quarter-time. TheSwans kicked the last four goals of the first half to narrow the gap to 10points at the major break, and when Michael O’Loughlin kicked a goal within aminute of the restart, the Swans were within four points.
Collingwood thenkicked five goals without reply to take a 28-point lead into the last change,and kicked five goals to four in the final term to run out comfortable winners.
For the Magpies, AnthonyRocca starred with six goals after his night appeared to be over just beforehalf time, when he hyper-extended his left knee in a marking contest and had tobe carried from the field.
A booming goal from 50m three minutes into thesecond half showed that he wouldn’t be restricted for the rest of the game, andhe ended up with 6.0 from 16 kicks and nine marks. Fellow power forward SeanRusling kicked 3.2 from 13 kicks and eight marks, while Travis Cloke alsokicked three goals. The three forwards took 26 marks between them in acommanding display.
Sean Pendlebury led theMagpies with 24 possessions, while Heath Shaw had 23 touches off half-back.
For the Swans, Adam Goodeswas the outstanding player on the ground in the first half and finished with 29touches and 11 marks, while Brett Kirk was tireless with 23 possessions. NickMalceski had 23 touches, and Michael O’Loughlin was Sydney’s one shining light up forward,booting 4.1.
The Magpies led 13.12 (90)to 8.8 (62) at three-quarter time.
O’Loughlin kicked the firstgoal of the second half after just one minute to reduce Collingwood’s half timelead of 10 points even further before Collingwood steadied with three quickgoals.
Rocca kicked a long goal from the boundary after three minutes, and whenDane Swan capitalised on a Sydneyturnover with a goal of his own, Collingwood led by 16 points.
Rocca then took a mark onthe goal line and unselfishly handballed to Rusling, with Rusling’s third goalof the night the third for the Magpies in less than four minutes.
Cloke made it four Piesgoals in a row with a mark and booming kick from 50m after 13 minutes,restoring Collingwood’s lead to 28 points.
Neither team could manageanother goal until the 24-minute mark, when Rocca bagged his fourth after amark to extend the lead to 33 points. O’Loughlin then pegged one back for theSwans with 40 seconds remaining in the term.
The Magpies led by 10points, 8.9 (57) to 7.5 (47), at half time.
Sydney kicked the final four goals of the second term, thelast of them after the siren by Jude Bolton, to narrow a margin that looked setto spiral out of control midway through the quarter.
Sydney kicked the first two goals of the second term in theopening six minutes after successful snaps from Kirk and Nick Davis, with Davis’ goal coming withhis first touch of the game after being held without a possession in the firstterm by James Clement. Collingwood responded with the next two goals, the firstby Leon Davis after a mark inside 50, and the second from another mark close togoal by Rusling. Rusling’s second for the half saw Collingwood skip to a33-point lead after 14 minutes in the term.
Nic Fosdike snuck inside 50for Sydney and took an uncontested mark and goalled, bringing the Swans back towithin 28 points at the 21-minute mark, and when Adam Schneider kicked a greatgoal on the run from just inside 50, Sydney had back-to-back majors and werewithin 22 points. Davismade it three in a row for the Swans when he converted a set shot from 45m, andsuddenly the Magpies were only 15 points up. Fosdike’s goal after a mark just beforethe siren saw the Swans go to the rooms with all of the momentum despite beingon the wrong side of a 10-point margin.
The Magpies led by 31points, 6.5 (41) to 1.4 (10), at quarter-time. Collingwood had the last sixscores of the term, with the Swans not scoring at all after the 20-minutemark.
COLLINGWOOD: 6.5 8.913.12 18.17 (125)
SYDNEY SWANS: 1.4 7.5 9.8 13.9 (87)
GOALS - Collingwood: A Rocca6, S Rusling 3, T Cloke 3, A Didak, S Pendlebury, L Davis, D Swan, N Buckley, P Medhurst
Sydney Swans: M O'Loughlin 4, N Davis 2, N Malceski 2, B Kirk,N Fosdike, A Schneider, J. Bolton, B Hall.
BEST - Collingwood: A Rocca,N Buckley, S Rusling, T Cloke, D Swan, S Pendlebury, L Davis, A Didak, H Shaw.
Sydney Swans: A Goodes, M O'Loughlin, B Kirk, J Bolton,N Malceski.
Injuries: Nil
Reports: Nil
Umpires: McBurney,Stevic, McInerney.
