What the papers say

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Goals rare but Pies make a point
By Len Johnson
March 29 2003
(Realfooty)

COLLINGWOOD 2.8 3.13 8.14 13.16 (94) RICHMOND 3.2 4. 6 5.12 8.18 (66)
Goals: Collingwood: L Davis 2 A Didak 2 J Molloy 2 S O'Bree 2 S Woewodin N Buckley R Betheras A Williams M McGough. Richmond: R Hall 2 R Hilton D Gaspar W Campbell M Richardson J Blumfield M Coughlan.
Best: Collingwood: N Buckley S Woewodin A Williams S McKee M Lokan B Johnson. Richmond: W Campbell K Johnson M Coughlan D Gaspar.
Injuries: Collingwood: Nil. Richmond: D Kellaway (hamstring) replaced in selected side by C Hyde.
Reports: Nil.
Umpires: B Allen, M Head, M Ellis.
Official crowd: 61,058 at MCG.

Collingwood, troubled more by its own inaccuracy than anything Richmond could throw at it, beat the Tigers by 28 points in the premiership season opener at the MCG last night.

With Nathan Buckley controlling the midfield, rather than going forward as foreshadowed by Mick Malthouse earlier in the week, Collingwood took over the game after leading by a point at half-time. The second half brought 10 Collingwood goals to Richmond's four.

If the Magpies' aim is to go one better than last year's grand final loss to Brisbane, last night's win might be an omen - in last year's opening round, the Tigers beat Collingwood by 37 points.

Richmond looked long on endeavour, but painfully short on class. With Matthew Richardson squandering opportunities, the Tigers had few routes to goal.

Collingwood led by a point at half-time, despite six more shots at goal. Whether it was the wind blowing through the Ponsford gap, or some other reason entirely, neither side could convert. After kicking 2.8 to the construction-zone end in the first term, Collingwood could only add 1.5 to the sheltered end in the second.

Richmond kicked a respectable 3.2 to the Punt Road end in the opening term while Collingwood struggled to convert at either end.

After posting a wasteful three goals from 16 scoring shots in the first half, Collingwood added five goals from six attempts in the third quarter to shoot to a 20-point lead.

Richmond, which had proved reasonably efficient with four goals from 10 scoring shots in the first half, went the other way.

Matthew Richardson was the chief offender, with one goal from seven scoring shots. Had Richardson been more accurate, he could have handed his opponent - first-gamer Tristen Walker - a horror debut.

Buckley caused some revision to the wind-tunnel theory at the open western end of the ground by banging a conventional shot straight through from just on the 50-metre line. Then again, maybe the wind howling through the gap did cost the Collingwood skipper 10 metres off his average kicking length.

In the third term, Richmond wasted its chances, adding 1.6 as the match started to slip away. They went forward often enough, but Rory Hilton, Mark Coughlan and Greg Stafford all missed from within 40 metres.

Neither team could be faulted for endeavour, with players full-tilt at the ball from the opening bounce. The game was scarcely 10 minutes old when Hilton upended Buckley with an old-fashioned hip-and-shoulder in front of the members' stand. But in a bad omen, as Hilton followed through, his foot accidentally kicked the ball out on the full.

Richmond was forced to make one change to its selected side. Duncan Kellaway, who had a limited pre-season with a succession of minor complaints, was replaced by Chris Hyde.

Whether Malthouse really intends to play Buckley forward remains to be seen, but one thing did not change. Wherever Buckley went, the ball followed. By half-time, he had amassed 19 possessions and was leading Joel Bowden a merry dance, while Woewodin and Williams were also finding plenty of the footy.

For Richmond, dual Adelaide premiership midfielder Kane Johnson was prominent early. Ex-Essendon man Justin Blumfield, however, had a quiet night.

 

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Frawley defends wayward Richardson
By Peter Ker, Emma Quayle
March 29 2003
(realfooty)

Richmond coach Danny Frawley last night defended Matthew Richardson, after the unpredictable forward kicked a wasteful 1.6 in the Tigers' 28-point loss to Collingwood.

Frawley said the wind factor created by the demolition of the Ponsford Stand will have an impact on football this year, and had made things difficult for Richardson last night.

"Look, the wind was pretty fluky out there," he said.

"Matty always looked dangerous when we went forward, but at times we probably went to Matty on a two-to-one situation and we need to rectify that during the week."

Despite poor delivery from the midfield, Richardson was lively early, and looked as though he could be set for a big night opposed to Magpies rookie Tristen Walker.


Richardson took nine marks, but let himself down with woeful kicking. At least three of Richard son's six points were from within 30 metres of goal, while his major came in the first quarter when he roved a pack in the goal square to score from two metres out.

Frawley said Richmond's constant aiming for Richardson was not intended and was the product of "a little bit of confusion going forward".

Frawley said he had intended to use David Rodan in a crumbing role around Richardson, but the late withdrawal of Duncan Kellaway before the game meant the pacy Fijian had to play a defensive role on Leon Davis.

"The game was in the bal ance right up until the 10-minute mark of the third quarter, and the side that got the break then was always going to win it, and to Collingwood's credit they got it," he said.

"It's a long journey, 22 weeks and this is round one, we'll have a look at it, we'll assess it and get on the front foot and come out against the Western Bulldogs," he said.

Collingwood will ask the AFL and Melbourne Cricket Club to consider devoting an MCG gate to club members, after a lock-out last night forced several hundred fans to be turned away.

While the club could not be sure how many members missed seeing the match, the first game at the reduced-capacity ground, chief executive Greg Swann said it was an issue worth exploring in the next week.

About 61,000 supporters were in the ground, while some who were sent home caught whatever action they could from the foot bridge to the tennis centre.

"We think there should be a members' gate or a special area for members to get in before they lock the gates," Swann said.

 

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New season, much the same story
By Emma Quayle
March 29 2003
(RealFooty)

The men in white wore orange socks. Shane Woewodin wore black and white, Kane Johnson back and yellow and, if the umpires didn't shake hands with the players before the first bounce, they were supposed to have. But was there anything really new about last night's season opener?

Not much. Within the opening minute, Collingwood forward Jarrod Molloy had his eyes firmly fixed on an approaching Rory Hilton, and a shoulder ready to test the returning Tiger's hunger should he dare wander into his path.

Nathan Buckley had not racked up nine goals by half-time: as the Channel Nine pedometer told us, it was more like nine kilometres. And Matthew Richardson was . . . well, Matthew Richardson. There were towering marks over first-gamer Tristen Walker (did someone say the Pies had no respect for Richmond?), and a sorry collection of shots on goal.

Richmond hung in there for a half and a bit; Collingwood remembered it was the grand finalist. It was scrappy, it was scrambly, it looked like an opening game. With 21 games left (at least), things were as they were supposed to be.

Unless you count the gaping hole where the Ponsford Stand stood, which failed to gobble up enough stray footballs for the "ball boys" behind the goals to threaten Buckley's kilometre count but did feel like someone had left a very large fridge door open. It certainly had an impact on the match.

Collingwood kicked that way first but it wasn't until halfway through the term that the wind whipped up to a noticeable level, when Chris Tarrant swung a long ball towards goal from outside 50 metres and it almost stopped in mid-air and dropped dead.

The ball drifted towards the right-hand pocket at every turn; that said, there were just as many miskicks at the other end. Precision was not this game's defining feature.

In his new jumper for the first "official" time, Johnson accumulated possessions without really standing out for the Tigers, the first a nicely weighted chip from the back pocket that found Ty Zantuck and got the Tigers out of trouble.

Justin Blumfield was even less visible, but has always had a habit of sending many of his possessions into the forward line, and found teammates on a couple of useful occasions.

And then there was Richo, who has a new enthusiasm for season 2003 and some half-serious designs on Wayne Campbell's captaincy, but will always wear his heart sewn firmly on to his sleeve. He took marks, he waved his arms in exasperation, he punched the turf.

He kicked goals (well, one), he missed more (six) and finished the night as living proof that the cliche rules: in football, all of the new stuff is old.

 

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Early blow to Tigers' hopes
29 March 2003 Herald Sun
By MARK STEVENS

IF YOU were spoiling for a fight last night, any pub in the back streets of Richmond would have done nicely.

Tigers fans headed for the exits early looking angry, disillusioned and gutted. So much for the hype of a new season and a wave of new hope.

As 28-point losses go, this was as bad as it gets. There were so many reasons for the yellow and black army to drown their sorrows.

Collingwood, with five regulars out, were supposed to be ripe for the picking. But the Pies looked so much cleaner, so much quicker, so much more organised.

After a scrappy first half that amounted to a nil-all draw, the undermanned Magpies kicked 10 goals to four. It was never in doubt after Leon Davis set his team alight with a running goal four minutes into the third term.

The Tigers, who so rarely kicked more than 100 points last season, managed just eight goals. In such a low-scoring game, a loss of almost five goals is worth a lot more.

Collingwood will take a lot out of this one. How much better will they be when Jason Cloke, Paul Licuria, Scott Burns, Josh Fraser and Simon Prestigiacomo come back?

Brad Ottens will be back at some stage in the middle of the year, but that's about the only good news at Tigerland.

Just about everything that could go wrong did for Frawley, under pressure even before the national anthem ushered in another season.

Let's start with Matthew Richardson. He kicked 1.6 and sprayed another out of bounds.

During the last quarter, his confidence was so shot he played on after marking 25m out, got caught in heavy traffic and missed with a desperate snap.

Matched up by first-gamer Tristen Walker, Richardson worked as hard as ever and took four contested marks. But by the finish, his goalkicking attempts were laughable.

Tiger fans just closed their eyes. Collingwood supporters roared in expectation of another blunder every time he won the footy.

Richardson should've finished with at least five. He could've been the hero. Instead, he was taken from the field with less than two minutes to go, feeling more the villain. Yes, footy's a cruel game.

As for the rest of the Tigers, so many old problems were still there. For the most part, they looked sloppy and lacked fluency.

Collingwood's pressure was as relentless as ever and the mistakes just kept coming. The Tigers made 12 kicking clangers to the Magpies' four.

Once again, much was left to Wayne Campbell. He had 30 touches, but after an interrupted pre-season, he looked spent before three-quarter-time.

Collingwood responded every bit like a top-four certainty. The Tigers looked likely to get a break at times in the first half, but Mick Malthouse's outfit is now as hard-nosed and professional as they come.

Anthony Rocca and Chris Tarrant both had games they would prefer to forget, but the Pies still found a way to win.

They were devastating when it came to moving the ball from a kick-in and surging forward. Time and time again, Richmond had no answer.

Nathan Buckley had 31 touches, slotting a goal from outside 50m in the third quarter that was a huge psychological blow for the Tigers.

And two additions to the midfield were not far behind. Shane Woewodin had 24 touches and Andrew Williams 23.

The Pies will have a mighty midfield rotation when everyone returns.

The often maligned Steve McKee also stepped up to the plate in the ruck. Walker showed enough to suggest he'll be a long-term prospect. Alan Didak looked explosive and could've kicked five.

But despite some memorable second-half moments, this game will certainly not go into the archives as a classic.

Frawley had warned everyone to get used to "scrimmage" footy at the MCG. Now we know what he meant.

It didn't take long for everyone to realise the hole in the stand at the city end would have a huge impact on the season.

The flag on nearby Government House was barely flapping, but both sides struggled to adapt to the new conditions. It was obvious the ball was sailing further at the Punt Rd end.

The ugly total of 3.12 was kicked to the city end in the first half - one just a lucky snap on the left by Mark McGough that somehow spun through.

When the western whirler rips by - maybe as early as today - it could get really ugly.

About as messy as it surely was when those disgruntled Tigers fans gathered at the bar late last night for a liquid post-mortem.

 

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Hardly way to earn any respect
29 March 2003 Herald Sun
By MARK ROBINSON

NO respect, hey Tigers? Well why should they? Why should anyone? This was embarrassing.

For Richmond fans, the wonder and expectation of a new season was choked out of them by halfway through the third quarter. The Tigers were the Tigers we have come to know in the past 12 months; frustrating, selfish, laughable.

That may sound harsh, but even the most diehard of Richmond supporters must have left the MCG last night wondering what the hell is going on at their football club.

New midfield, new administration, new hopes. But same issues. At least the fans don't have to wait until Round 5 to know that this is shaping to be a very long season.

Sadly, the player that sums up the Tigers - Matty Richardson - had a shocker in front of the sticks.

On the day it was revealed he wanted to be the next skipper at Richmond, Richardson put in a performance that, put as nicely as possible, was pitiful.

He kicked 1.6 and one out of bounds and by the end was so scared to line up for goal that he played on from 25m - and still missed.

One can only feel sorry for the big bloke. He started the game with bounding energy, but by the end was a gutted mess. And he wasn't alone.

Indeed, he did his best to keep his much-maligned frustrations in relative check. He led and presented as he always does, but was let down by constant disposal that was too wide, too high, or too short.

In the end the Magpies won by 28 points in their customary and ruthless way. It wasn't brilliant on their part, mind you, but they had Richmond crushed by three-quarter time.

Nathan Buckley, Shane Woewodin, recruit Andy Williams and ruckman Steve McKee were sensational through the midfield, their only opposition coming from Tigers skipper Wayne Campbell.

Joel Bowden had 24 touches, but too many of his 16 kicks were panicky; quick to boot, long and high. Then again, at least he got it.

David Rodan was lost as a back pocket, Justin Blumfield was a non-entity, Greg Tivendale and Rory Hilton still make unimaginable mistakes and Leon Cameron is a worry, forward or back.

That leaves us the coach. Danny Frawley starts the season with many people believing he won't survive it. His plan last night to go short and keep possession was shot as soon as his players couldn't hit targets.

And he has to do something about the ease with which Collingwood was able to take the ball away from kick-outs. Too often the Pies went bang, bang, bang and the ball was at their half-forward. In a tight contest, that is soul destroying.

It began to unwind for Frawley early in the third quarter. The Pies had more run and the Tigers wouldn't run with their opponents. They weren't strong enough in the legs, nor the mind and that basically was the game.

The Pies, however, have heaps to smile about.

They kicked 13.16 without a yelp from Chris Tarrant and Anthony Rocca and seemed to have improved their goalkicking from the midfield. Buckley, Woewodin, Williams, McGough, O'Bree and Betheras all kicked goals which is a sign of a pretty damned good team.