Round 18 – Gold Coast v Collingwood: Floreat Pica Society

 

 

Preamble

There was, as always, lots of chatter leading into the game this week. The battle of the young stars in Anderson vs N Daicos. Gold Coast’s first Friday night game. The illness running through our club earlier in the week and whether that would impact our ability to compete. I’m definitely not feeling confident and am a bit glad my thought to fly up for the game came too late in the piece and the game was already sold out. Instead, I’m watching at home alone (foster kitties adopted out!), rugged up in my Pies gear.

I’ve really been enjoying our away banners this year, playing off the songs of the club we’re playing. Tonight’s no different: “We are the pies of the Gold Coast sky.”

1st Quarter

Gold Coast get the first goal from a free to Rowell. It’s followed closely by a behind from Perryman.

Moore takes a great contested intercept mark over a pack– there’s been a lot of noise in the press this week, and before the game, about how he’s “back” – whether that’s true or fair, it’s been great to see him at his best and looking comfortable.

Crunching tackle from Long luckily not called high, and it leads directly to a questionable holding the ball call against Gold Coast. We don’t benefit from it – maybe some football karma. Down the other end, Perryman gets called for holding King, who kicks truly.

An excellent chain of play follows – Cox takes an intercept mark, to N Daicos, to McStay, back to N Daicos, to Elliot. Please score, please score …and it hits the post. This is not looking great.

A failed entry for us has Gold Coast rebounding back the other way, with Read marking very close to goals and off to the side. Thankfully, he misses badly.

The game so far is fast paced, and high intensity. Another behind for GC, this time from Rowell.

Yes! A smother from Schultz in the forward half leads to an Elliot goal. We love to see it! …and then we come back from the ad break and the bloody score review takes it away from us. Touched off the boot.

Schultz with a great tackle inside 50 for a ball up. I think I said this last report but I really rate Schultz and it’s great to have his inside 50 pressure back.

What looks to be a sure goal to Gold Coast is saved by Perryman, who slides onto it in the goal square and through for a behind.

A hyphen kick up the line just goes out of bounds and is called deliberate, but before anything much can come of it the siren goes. With both Gold Coast’s goals from frees, and Collingwood with a poster and another touched, the score could be much closer than it is.

Collingwood 0.4.4

Gold Coast 2.5.17

 

Quarter 2

Straight from the opening bounce, Walter takes a mark inside 50, but is inaccurate.

Howe saves a sure goal on the line following a good chain of play from Gold Coast. The resulting kick out leads to a turnover, then a Bruzzy smother and some dash, and a stoppage inside our forward 50. It amounts to nothing again, and Gold Coast move it quickly and get a goal from Humphrey. There is some kind of mele inside Gold Coast’s forward 50, and we get possession but immediately turn it over and King somehow kicks another goal through a crowd of players.

This is not good.

And as Gold Coast mark again inside 50, we hear that Nick has gone down the race. Thankfully the bad news doesn’t compound right away and Gold Coast don’t score.

The Suns are destroying us in clearances and they seem to have pace and space over us everywhere. They just keep coming. Their pressure is intense and it doesn’t feel like we can get it out of their forward 50.

Nick is back and some brilliance from him gets Schultz marking inside 50, but he misses. The ensuing kick out is read well by DC, over to Bruz who launches from outside 50, but it’s touched for a ball in next to goal. It’s nice to see the ball in our forward 50 for a change, but so far it isn’t translating to much. After a few minutes, we’ve got a few extra points and then the ball is back in their forward 50. We hold on and bring it back our end and Leggy gets a pretty light free. Seems like that karma is back, because his kick also misses. Are we going to end the half goalless? The camera switches to Howe walking down to the rooms with the doctors – not great! Hoskin-Elliot marks inside 50 with 30 seconds left. A must get. And he misses.

The last 4 scores were ours, just through the wrong posts. Hopefully we can turn it around and get some straight kicking in the 2nd half.

Collingwood 0.8.8

Gold Coast 6.7.43

 

Quarter 3

Howe starts the 2nd half on the bench with a reported groin injury, with Pendles activated and on the ground. We get the first score of the half but it’s a behind. Of course. Bruzz seems a bit fired up – he goes to ground after a push in the back, gets up and hip and shoulders someone, then a minute later has some good pressure in the middle of the ground and wins a free. Pendles looks like he’ll have a sure goal, but he miskicks and Gold Coast take the easy mark. They turn it over and Crisp has a shot inside 50, and he misses too. Another behind. And then Gold Coast get another goal from a free. That’s 3 of their 7 goals from free kicks. Could we get one of those please? Of course we can’t. But, we can get more behinds, the latest from Nick after taking advantage on a Cox free kick inside 50.

FINALLY. Membrey!

We’re starting to get some more possession, but it’s still not translating into goals. Another behind sees the margin to 32. Our pressure results in a turnover, Nick, to Josh, to Nick, to Leggy, to Elliot, GOAL. My phone lights up with hopeful Collingwood supporters.

Gold Coast try to get momentum back, but they don’t capitalise with a major. We get it back our way quickly for another Membrey mark and goal. Margin to 21. Could we? Maybe not; they get one back in short order to Clohesy. The siren goes for quarter 3.

Collingwood 3.11.29

Gold Coast 8.9.57

 

4th Quarter

Some savvy moves from Pendles sees a lovely kick to Josh about 40 out almost directly in front and he kicks true. We win the next centre clearance and the ball is back inside our forward 50 for a throw in. We’re pressing, it feels like something might happen, but Crisp gets mowed down, holding the ball. But! We get the ball back quickly and Elliot scores! Leggy is stepping in for Lippa’s inside 50 kicks.

 

The move of Josh into the midfield is paying off; he runs through the stoppage, gets held and pulled down, and gets the free on a slight angle not far outside the goal square. It’s through! Margin is down to 10.

 

Channel 7 kindly lets us know that 92% of the quarter has been in our forward half, as Schultz gets a turnover and kicks in to McStay, who sprays wide in what should have been a sure goal. Witts gives away a free kick to Cameron, who gets it into Schultz inside 50. Can he do it? He does! Great reward for Schultz. Margin is 3! How much do I love when the magpie army is louder than the home crowd.

 

Gold Coast get an entry inside 50 but our defence holds up and we rebound the ball back the other way. Elliot marks and scores and we’re in front, baby! The roar of the crowd is intense and I join in from West Footscray.

 

The lead doesn’t last long though, with Gold Coast getting one back quickly through Ben Long, who is pretty fired up about it. They win the centre clearance and Anderson kicks another.

 

Elliot gives away a free kick inside our 50 off the next centre bounce for an unrealistic attempt even though he got a hand to it. The next few minutes are a wrestle, with neither team getting much clean possession. Nick gets a free for high contact jussssst inside 50, hands it off to Josh, who misses left. 8 points the margin. Josh is everywhere, and gets another behind almost immediately, 7 points.

 

Through the middle of the ground Pendles gets possession, handballs to Houston who kicks to Long inside 50. He misses and it’s back to a straight kick. The pressure is high. Gold Coast are unable to mark inside 50 and we get it back to McStay in the middle, to Sidey on the wing, to Pendles in the centre, back to Sidey on the wing. The kick inside isn’t taken, but we keep pressure high and the ball gets back inside our 50 and is spoiled by Mac Andrew out of bounds.

 

Sull gets done for holding the ball on the ensuing throw in and Gold Coast gain some territory. There are 90 seconds left, and Gold Coast are done for deliberate. Membrey marks just outside 50 and kicks to Sidey who drops the mark. 49 seconds. Gold Coast win the clearance and get done deliberate again and Bruz boots it and it gets knocked out of bounds. Pendles loses possession and Gold Coast kick it forward, and that’ll be it. Q fights hard to keep the ball away from Gold Coast and prevent a final goal but the clock runs out, and that’s the game.

 

Final Score:

Collingwood 8.15.63

Gold Coast 10.9.69

 

We definitely didn’t deserve to win that game, and it doesn’t feel too terrible. We had quite a few of our best out, players sick earlier in the week, and the Suns aren’t a terrible team (better than losing to the bottom 9). We had to lose a game and this doesn’t feel like a bad one to have lost.

 

Horsbrough Medal Votes

These were tricky, we didn’t have a great game across the board.

3: Josh Daicos – for that last quarter alone

2: Pendlebury – timeless

1: N Daicos

Floreat Pica

 

 

 

 

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