Grand Final #11A - 2011

[Harrysz]

2011 – Geelong 119 defeated Collingwood 81

If you win a Grand Final, then until the next Grand Final you are the reigning premiers. Collingwood won the Grand Final in 2010 and was reigning premiers throughout 2011.The 2011 season got off to a brilliant start. Collingwood won the first 7 games in a canter and was on top of the ladder by plenty. In round 8, they met Geelong. This is a match which they should have won. With two minutes remaining and Geelong a couple of points ahead, there was a stoppage in Collingwood’s forward line. The ball was thrown up and Scott Pendlebury emerged and kicked a goal, putting Collingwood in front. But unfortunately, the umpire called the ball back and gave it to ruckman Cameron Wood to whom he had awarded a free kick. Wood missed the goal and the siren went moments later, giving Geelong victory by 3 points.

Collingwood continued on its merry way and didn’t lose a match until it met Geelong again in round 24 which was the last round of the season. Collingwood was favourites. The first quarter was close and Collingwood was playing well but then the sky fell on them. Geelong waltzed away, and thrashed Collingwood by 96 points. That result gave people pause to think. Collingwood finished on top of the ladder with a huge percentage of 167%. In the qualifying final, they struggled to beat West Coast by 20 points. In the preliminary final, they played Hawthorn and that was a close match the whole night. In the last quarter with Collingwood leading by a few points, the crowd was dazzled by Lance Franklin outrunning Chris Tarrant and kicking a brilliant scrubbing goal along the ground that put Hawthorn in front. The siren was not far away and Hawthorn looked home for all money. The ball was bounced in the centre and Collingwood went into attack and from a stoppage Luke Ball got the ball and somehow manoeuvred it through the goals and Collingwood fell in by 3 points. Mick Malthouse sat in the coach’s box with tears in his eyes.

So Collingwood was drawn to play Geelong in the Grand Final for the first time since 1953. And, for the first time since 1936 Collingwood had the chance to defend its premiership. Unfortunately, Malthouse did not follow one of his steadfast rules which was to never play unfit players in any game and certainly not in a final. Darren Jolly and Ben Reid were clearly injured in the preliminary final against Hawthorn. Nevertheless, they were picked to play and they did not play well.

The match started and Geelong footballer Travis Varcoe scored a goal in the first 30 seconds of play. Seven years later in the 2018 Grand Final, and by then playing for Collingwood, Varcoe again scored the first goal. I wonder if any other player has ever kicked the first goal in two Grand Finals while playing for different clubs. But back to the match: Geelong was on top in the first quarter but Collingwood played very well in the second quarter, at least for most of it. Travis Cloke kicked two monster goals from a mile out and then Andrew Krakoer kicked a great goal and Collingwood led by 21 points. However, Geelong kicked the next 3 goals and they trailed by 3 points at halftime.

The third quarter was a very closely fought affair but Geelong outscored Collingwood and led by 7 points at three-quarter time. The teams went into their huddles. When the Collingwood huddle broke up, captain Nick Maxwell called them back for a final address. It didn’t help. As it happened 30 years earlier, Collingwood failed to score a goal in the last quarter and in a repeat of that outcome, Collingwood didn’t score a goal in the last quarter. Dane Swan who won the Brownlow Medal in 2011 only had one possession in the last quarter. Geelong raced away winning the game by 38 points. Although Collingwood had finished on top of the ladder, they had played Geelong three times during 2011 for a narrow loss and two thumpings. Clearly Geelong was the better side.

As a post-script to this game, Mick Malthouse announced that he would not stay as Director of Coaching for the next two years which had been the ‘succession plan’ crafted by President Eddie Maguire. Nathan Buckley took over as coach and the team gradually declined over the next few years.
2011 had got off to such a bright start. Collingwood won the NAB Cup Final. In round 3, they hoisted the 2010 premiership flag and Eddie Maguire announced at the beginning of the game ‘Welcome to Collingwood’. This was cheeky. But Collingwood supporters loved it. Towards the end of the season the wheels started to fall off. Dale Thomas who had had an outstanding season got suspended for three weeks. Including the bye he didn’t play for four weeks, was rusty and didn’t play well in the finals. Some injuries occurred and then Darren Jolly and Ben Reid, two key players, played hurt in the Grand Final. Seasons are long and the winner of the premiership is often the team that stands up the longest. Unfortunately in 2011, that wasn’t Collingwood.

[Presti35]

2011 was the best Collingwood team I have seen. We'd also added Krakouer and brought home Tarrant. Sadly, for me, Presti decided not to go around again.

Something happened late in the season. We were pumping sides. Then we struggled to get over the line, but still won late in the year. Then Geelong absolutely murdered us.

We had the chance to equal Essendon's season in 2000. An umpiring mistake cost us the first game against Geelong. Then they murdered us in the second game. Then in the GF... well we played injured players.

The PF had a classic finish though.

This was also the first GF i was able to attend.

[Jezza]

Collingwood's 2011 team could blow away most sides within the space of 30 minutes if it wanted to. Still the most talented Collingwood side I've ever seen, but certain forces went against it.

[*] Lost momentum at the wrong time of the year. We peaked too early, and it can sometimes be forgotten that we also won the NAB Cup so we were hitting our straps very early.

[*] The speculation of the coaching handover, and the questions around Malthouse's future (would he stay or leave) were very destabilising.

[*] Underdone players in the Grand Final. Jolly, Reid and Didak all come to mind.

[*] Geelong defeated us on multiple occasions. One by less than a kick due to a controversial disallowed goal against Pendles, and the other by 96 points in the final round which still remains bizarre after more than a decade.

[*] The top sides had ridiculously strong W-L H&A records. Collingwood was 20-2, Geelong 19-3, Hawthorn 18-4, West Coast 17-5. Nowadays, any team with that W-L record would usually be the minor premiers.

[*] Our finals campaign was poor. Struggled in the QF against West Coast and limped over the line against Hawthorn after a strong final quarter. Ironically, I think we played better finals football in the Grand Final for the first three quarters, but we ran out of steam against a Geelong side who peaked at the right time of the year.

[Jezza]

Before the final round match against Geelong, our H&A % was 181.7.

It went down to 167.7% after Geelong smashed us. Still a crazy high number after all those years.

For context, our % this year was 127.0%.

[Harrysz]

Jezza, you make some good points but I'm not sure about your argument that we "peaked too early" in 2011. This year when we lost to Carlton and then Hawthorn late in the year, some pundits said that we'd peaked too early, but we re-peaked (ok there's no such word but stay with me on this) during the finals.

In the piece that I wrote about the 2011 Grand Final I listed some things that went wrong towards the end of the season, which I believe derailed the year.

[piffdog]

Geelong was our kryptonite. We were very good and as some have said maybe in a generation.

I didnt think we could beat geelong going into that GF and always wondered what kind of psychological edge they had over us.

[Piethagoras' Theorem]

Same as Presti35, I thought 2011 was the greatest Collingwood team I'd ever seen (I was 40 odd at the time). Took me a while to get over it, I had a planned week off work and didn't leave the house or speak to anyone for that whole time. As good as Geelong were, I still thought we were better, last round notwithstanding.

I didn't think so at the time but upon reflection (soon after), it became apparent that teams had figured out Mick's 'press', and he didn't have much else up his sleeve. We were unimpressive in the 1st final against WCE and if not for some individual brilliance in the Prelim against Hawthorn, we were pretty much gone. That was a brutal affair and I have no doubt also had a major impact on our fitness levels for the GF.

I think too much is made of the noise surrounding the coaching handover. Sure, it would've been on their minds, some more so than others but the job of winning a Premiership, I believe, would've been 1st and foremost.

[Presti35]

And we still made the PF in 2012.

Can't help but wonder what could of been if the handover wasnt a thing.

[Jezza]

[warburton lad]

A few points to ponder:

* we picked two players who were clearly not fit (Reid and Jolley)
* Geelong got off to a flyer but we led by 21 points in the second quarter
* After Krakouer put us 21 points up, Podsiadly left the ground with a dislocated shoulder- this meant that our back half was top-heavy
* Steve Johnson made a remarkable recovery from a Prelim knee injury
* A bullshit free to Bartel against Reid (for a deliberate out of bounds) led to a late goal in the second which gave Geelong momentum.
* Ling played a brilliant tagging game on Swan and should have got the Norm Smith Medal
* the 'will-he, won't he' speculation around Malthouse staying on was a huge and unnecessary distraction.

I believe if Nathan Buckley had come out a few weeks before the finals and stated that the succession plan would be put back 12 months, it would have united the group who would have responded positively to a selfless act in the mode of Prestigiacomo 12 months earlier.

Just my two-bobs worth.

[RudeBoy]

Malthouse coached abysmally on the day too. Leaving the injured Reid on Hawkins, instead of moving Tarrant on to him was a match losing move imo.

[Cuthbert Collingwood]

The hubris of Eddie's succession plan, the stubbornness of Buckley, and the close-to-insane state of mind that Malthouse was in put paid to any faint chance of winning after limping to the line.

I mainly blame Eddie, it all started with his stupid plan

[Pies4shaw]

[Pies4shaw]

I guess that all begs the real question - two years in, what's the succession plan for Fly? It must be getting near time. These are the things you ask yourself straight after a Flag, aren't they?

[lazzadesilva]