CTV > The Weekend That Was with Alan Richardson PLUS MATCH HIGHLIGHTSDevelopment manager Alan Richardson was really pleased with how a young Collingwood team handled itself against the Eagles last Saturday, particularly in the first half.
With the Magpies’ having already travelled to South Africa and Dubai this pre-season, many big names were left behind to either rest or represent the club in a VFL practice match in Geelong, meaning an extremely inexperienced side travelled to Albany in Western Australia to take on a strong West Coast outfit in the first week of the AFL's regional challenge series.
Although the Eagles eventually triumphed by 33 points, Richardson told CTV it wasn’t a true reflection of how the Magpies fared, with the team having led at half time and with many young players having shown they are primed for a big season.
“We were really pleased with it”, Richardson said. “The scoreboard in the end really didn’t reflect our performance, but it was a game in which there were many, many positives given the age of our group.”
“There is no doubt we would’ve liked to have won the game, and our expectations of our group, irrespective of their age, are to win, that’s what we’re here for.
“But what’s more important than that, in many ways, at this stage of the season, is the way we play our footy, and at half time a really young group was a goal up on a far more experienced West Coast.”
Richardson, whose role as development manager sees him working mainly with first-to-third year players, singled out a number of emerging Magpies who were particularly impressive.
“Probably one player that typified the team performance was Chris Dawes, who ended up playing back but started forward in the first half, and took four or five really good marks as a lead up forward.
“Nathan Brown and John Anthony held down key defensive posts in the absence of Wakes and Presti, so those guys had pretty big roles and played really well.
“Ben Reid was our highest goal kicker on the day, he kicked three in a fairly low-scoring game, I think we only kicked nine, so he’s kicked a third of our score which is a fair effort for a young fella in only his second year.
It was also an opportunity for the club to showcase players on the rookie list, and Magpie fans will be happy to know all three who played were promising.
“Kevin Dyas played his first game for the club and did some really good work. Brent Macaffer and Sharrod Wellingham both acquitted themselves really well, played some pretty good footy and have shown that they’re really going to put some pressure on.
“Obviously there’s an opportunity now, after the disappointing injury to Brad Dick, so those boys now have the opportunity to be elevated, and they certainly didn’t do themselves any harm at all with their performances.”
While many youngsters did well, a veteran of the side and key figure in the club’s chances in 2008 showed he is fully recovered from off-season groin surgery.
“Anthony Rocca also led the way, he was terrific at centre half forward, the boys just wanted him to run around a bit, and Pebs would’ve been involved in the game no fewer than 20 times in the first half, if not getting the ball, certainly competing for it, and I think that really did set the scene, so there were some terrific performances.”
Although it’s been a big pre-season in the sense the club has had to do more in a shorter time frame given the late finish in September last year, and also with the South African training camp and Dubai trip squeezed in, Richardson emphasised the positives.
“There have been some challenges, but we’ve been really pleased that our young blokes have stood up to that.
“It was great to have a camp where our first year players could go away. The Arizona camp has been in October and the draft being after that date has meant we haven’t been able to take the first years away, so it’s great to have the group together, the young blokes with the senior players.
“So from a development perspective it’s been a terrific pre-season.”
