Round 22 – Collingwood v Geelong: Daicos Debuts, Dangerfield Dominates
GEELONG 2.2 6.5 8.6 10.10 (70)
COLLINGWOOD 6.1 7.2 9.4 9.5 (59)
GOALS
Collingwood: Cox 2, Hoskin-Elliott 2, Broomhead 2, Moore, Sidebottom, Blair
Geelong: Dangerfield 2, Murdoch 2, Menegola 2, Parsons, Buzza, Bews, Taylor
BEST
Collingwood: Adams, Howe, Sidebottom, Cox, Moore, Scharenberg, Hoskin-Elliott
Geelong: Dangerfield, Menegola, Duncan, Tuohy, Stewart, C.Guthrie
Umpires: Nicholls, Harris, Jeffery
Official crowd: 47,889 at the MCG
Our votes- 3. Dangerfield (Geel), 2. Adams (Coll) 1. Howe (Coll)
Josh Reynolds, 7, is the first one up in our house on Saturday morning. The debut of Josh Daicos later in the day has him beyond excited. As it does his Dad. Nothing could stop us being there, much like when fellow father-son recruit Callum Brown made his debut earlier in the season.
Josh and I are joined by BJ, an enthusiastic Cats fan who loves ringing me when the final siren sounds on every Pies loss, for the journey to the ‘G. He’s confident of a big Geelong win. I explain that if his team can’t smash the 13th place team missing Pendlebury, Grundy, Fasolo, Wells, Varcoe, Goldsack, De Goey and Greenwood then he shouldn’t get his September hopes up too high.
Another Colac mate and Cats fan, Jamie, has saved us seats behind the goals at the Punt Rd end. He’s there with his brother Steve, who offers a left handed handshake. Sadly, the Irrewarra-Beeac FC star is out for the season with a broken right hand. We’re seated far too close to the Geelong cheersquad…
As the Pies run out, Josh and I are on J.Daicos watch. “Where is he Dad?”, “I see him Dad!” It invokes memories of my first ever VFL/AFL game, coincidentally Geelong v Collingwood, at Kardinia Park in 1988. Standing in the outer, on my old man’s tin beer cans, so I could see. My hero, Peter Daicos, who I’d only ever seen on TV, lined up at the first bounce on a forward flank, right in front of us on the narrow Geelong ground. Can still vividly remember the buzz it gave me to see my idol so close. These days my kids know Peter Daicos as “the greatest man who has ever walked this Earth”. Stuff they don’t teach in schools in 2017. They should.
A snapped goal from our stand-in captain Steele Sidebottom is the first major of the game. The Pies are on fire early. Daicos has a handball. Moore, Cox and Hoskin-Elliott goal. Parsons goals for Geelong. I don’t know who he is. Wylie Buzza, is that a real name? There’s far more tatts, facial and long hair than I’m accustomed to with a Geelong Cats team. Josh Daicos marks on the Southern wing, his first kick in league football is a perfect pass to a leading Mason Cox. The applause and cheers from the black & white army for this moment are exactly why one attends games. His kicking style very much inherited.
Somehow we are 23 points up at quarter time. Playing glorious, attacking football. We return to our unglorious, kick it sideways/backwards/anywhere but forward style of play. By half time our lead is cut to 3 points. BJ regularly told me the Cats were “coming back”. Come back they did. Of course, led by P.Dangerfield. With no Scott Pendlebury in action, the reigning Brownlow Medalist was a class above the troops assembled. Unstoppable.
After half time, the game resembled the rolling mauls and scrums of a Rugby Union game. Admittedly done much better than the current Wallabies outfit. Four goals to Geelong, two to Collingwood in a dour second half. BJ, who had moved to the row behind us to escape his blocked view from the six foot four guy in front of him, let Josh and I know about every one of the Cat’s four second half majors.
Josh Daicos showed enough on debut. Sure hands, some good handballs in tight. 9 tackles.
He’s slight. Another pre-season or two and we’ll have ourselves a player. Callum Brown was good too. A tackling machine. Let’s hope he gets over his aversion to kicking soon.
So we lost. By 11 points. Another finals bound opponent we pushed. Another frustration in a season of frustrations. To state the obvious, Dangerfield is a magnificent footballer. Clearly best on ground, able to assert his influence whenever it was required. But he won’t be able to do it on his own in September.
BJ is chirpy on the trip home. His attempt to play the Geelong song in the car is quickly shut down.
Josh Daicos may play 250 games like his old man. He may only play 20. He’s played one, one more than most of us. That’s an achievement. Glad I was there. Go Pies.
I only caught a bit of this one Luke. I was hoping to hear Sandy Roberts refer to the opposing rucks as Dix and Wizzer.
Hope your Josh gets to wear that badge for many more years to come (or is it yours?)
I have to admit Luke the only incentive to be at the ‘G for me was to see a Daicos go round again. And it warmed the cockles his first kick led to a goal (Cox will probably get another contract based on Saturday). His kicking action is identical, though we’re yet to see the 70m bombs and needle threading goals.
Shame the game degenerated so badly after quarter time. Pies lacked firepower and size. Shamefully the club is more interested in Kayle Kirby winning the Frosty Miller Medal in the VFL than giving him a deserved run in the big time. It might have been the difference – playing little stick figured Brown & Dakes in the same side at this stage was folly.
Granted Cats had a few out too but it’s hard to see them going too far in September.
Swish- surely he did. Sandy’s always reliable for a good cock up.
Its Josh’s badge. May have to get one myself.
G’day Jeff, was wonderful to see a Daicos run around again. The non selection of Kirby is almost as staggering as the ridiculous continual selection of Jarryd Blair, who once again contributed very little and is clearly not up to AFL level anymore.
Wasn’t in Melbourne Luke so missed this one. Just watched the scores as I lazed by a pool drinking cold Asahis. . Apparently a bit of a snore-fest.
Form of the top sides at this time of year is hard to gauge. They seem to do enough to get through as none of the players wants to pick up an injury.
All i can say Luke is we got home now GO CATS
Dips- you were better off by the pool with your Asahis. Good point about players preserving themselves for finals.
Thanks Lizzie, knew you’d be happy!
The last time I saw a Daicos playing Geelong he was destroying my dreams in the 1980 and 1981 preliminary finals at Waverley!!! Pain and despair.
Thankfully the Cats got up in a scrappy game this time against our recent bogey side!
Good stuff Luke and good parenting by my book,Blair must have some incriminating photos
Marcus- I’ve only seen YouTube footage of those Preliminary Finals, what a player young P.Daicos was. We seem to match up well on your Cats in recent years.
Cheers Rulebook. Can be the only explanation for Blair’s continual selection.
Good one Luke. Even as a Swan I was a big Daicos fan. A sublime footballer. I hope Josh can show even a little of his Dad’s ability. If so, he will give your a Josh years of joy.
Luke, like you, I was looking forward to this match as soon as Josh was named, if only to reminisce about the past.
The 6am kick-off here in Stockholm is always challenging but I was determined to make it.
Unfortunately, I showed just a little bit more determination the previous evening to meet a fellow international haiku poet who was passing through Scandinavia. I took her to one of my favourite haunts. A whisky bar which happens to be the headquarters of the Stockholm Whisky Society.
It was a late night.
Nevertheless, and as usual, I set the alarm, and put the laptop on my bedside table. I managed to watch the first quarter through my bad eye. My good eye was sunken in my pillow. I saw Daics ‘pass’ it to Cox. Then I passed out. I dreamt Geelong won by 100 points and Daics kicked two.
That might as well be what happened.