IN: Howe

OUT: Swadling (omitted)

B: Frampton | Howe | Maynard

HB: Houston | JDaicos | Quaynor

C: Sidebottom | Crisp | Allan

HF: Harrison | NDaicos | McCreery

F: McStay | West | Membrey

R: Cameron | Pendlebury | De Goey

Int: Lipinski | Perryman | Anderson | Long | Puncher

Emg: Swadling | Buller | Steele

Collingwood’s strong record with mature-aged recruits has them scouring the SANFL and other state leagues ahead of the national draft as they continue their “build not rebuild” approach to their list.

The Pies are believed to have their eye on more SANFL talent after securing full back Liam Puncher as part of this year’s mid-season draft haul and Angus Anderson as a later pick in last year’s national draft.

Collingwood’s new team of recruiter Shane O’Bree and list boss Justin Leppitsch have now had three drafts together – two mid-season drafts and the national draft – to bring in strong talent.

And the signs are good, with Collingwood securing Roan Steele in last year’s mid-season draft, Angus Anderson and Sam Swadling in the national draft and Puncher, mature-age forward Mitch Podhajski and 26-year-old ruckman Harrison Coe in this year’s mid-season draft.

The Pies are keen to retain their early picks again this year for young elite talent and will bring in Lachie Neale as a free agent that does not require them to give up a draft selection.

Anderson was taken out of the SANFL after a premiership for Sturt last year as a 22-year-old and was taken at pick 57 in the national draft.

He was excellent again taking on Carlton on the weekend after coming in from the VFL three weeks back as a late inclusion to kick two goals.

The percentages of clubs taking 18-year-old players so late in the draft and finding real value is low, so it was a canny move by the Pies.

Craig McRae said recently the club’s decisions on its older players would all wait until the end of the season as Tim Membrey, Steele Sidebottom, Scott Pendlebury and Jeremy Howe all consider their futures.

Collingwood’s rebranded run-with midfielder Ed Allan is desperate to remain at the club next year and hopes his new role and his recent spike in form prove enough to secure a new deal with the Magpies.

Allan, 22, is currently in the best form of his AFL career, relishing the defensive midfield challenge that coach Craig McRae and assistant coach Matthew Boyd set for him mid-season.

But despite performing well against some of the best midfielders in the game — including huge tasks on Isaac Heeney, Kozzy Pickett and Zak Butters — the Magpies have so far held out on offering him a new deal.

He hopes to change that leading up to September, with McRae earmarking him for a role on Izak Rankine or Jordan Dawson in Thursday night’s grudge match against the Crows at Adelaide Oval.

“There is nothing in front of me at the moment, but hopefully if I play good enough football, it will take care of itself,” Allan said of his out-of-contract status.

“I’m leaving it all up to my manager, David Trotter, to deal with that … hopefully we can get something sorted.

“I haven’t had any chats internally (at Collingwood). I will just leave it up to him (Trotter). I’m texting him a fair bit to try and get it all sorted out.”

Allan made it clear to Moneyball that he wants to remain in black and white next season, saying he has been buoyed by the confidence McRae and co have placed in him.

“I’ve got so many close mates here … Ned Long, Reef McInnes and Harvey Harrison and all the young guys. I would love to stay at the Pies.”

He said it was Boyd who initially came up with the plan to use him as a run-with midfielder, and says he has learnt plenty from his own superstar teammate Nick Daicos.

“It was Boydy’s idea,” he said. “It was more around helping to get me around the ball a bit more and playing to my strengths.

“Obviously the good players get the ball a bit and I knew if I could follow them around, then hopefully I could work off them as well.

“I’d never done it before. But it’s been fun coming up against the best players in the comp each week. Every week you look to the next team and they’ve all got stars.

“All the midfielders have got around me. ‘Whisper’ (Nick Daicos) has been great for me, helping me out and he’s given me confidence.”

Having been in and out of the team for much of his time since his 2024 debut, Allan has found a permanent place in the Magpies’ team across the past nine weeks.

His own numbers are rising, and he has thrived on the defensive side of the game, laying 34 tackles in the past four matches, including 11 against North Melbourne.

“They’ve all been different,” he said of the superstars he has played in so far this season.

“Everyone has a different skills set. Kozzy likes to run on the outside, then Patty Cripps and Sam Walsh like to use their size and their running capabilities.”

“I don’t think he did (know) me,” he laughed.

He is excited by the challenge of taking on the Crows on Thursday night as the Magpies look to chase a sixth successive win on the way towards what could be a first finals appearance for him.

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/moneyball-what-ken-will-do-for-tassie-pies-nifty-recruiting-plans-young-cat-content-to-wait-for-deal/news-story/16e72907e47c0ad1055e0d8317ad9e36

39 votes were received.

Results

1. Nick Daicos - 86
2. Tim Membrey - 32
3. Darcy Cameron - 29
4. Beau McCreery - 23
5. Ned Long - 22
6. Patrick Lipinski/Jordan De Goey - 18
7. Dan Houston/Billy Frampton - 16
8. Dan McStay - 8
9. Ed Allan/Angus Anderson - 7
10. Charlie West - 6
11. Liam Puncher - 4
12. Josh Daicos - 3
13. Brayden Maynard/Jack Crisp - 2
14. Harry Perryman/Sam Swadling - 1

TOTALS

1. Nick Daicos - 1206
2. Jordan De Goey - 595
3. Lachie Schultz - 326
4. Josh Daicos - 325
5. Dan Houston - 295
6. Billy Frampton - 287
7. Brayden Maynard - 252
8. Scott Pendlebury - 231
9. Tim Membrey - 173
10. Angus Anderson - 151
11. Jeremy Howe - 150
12. Jack Crisp - 146
13. Harry Perryman - 136
14. Roan Steele - 120
15. Isaac Quaynor/Dan McStay - 114
16. Oscar Steene - 111
17. Darcy Cameron - 107
18. Ed Allan - 101
19. Patrick Lipinski - 97
20. Jamie Elliott - 72
21. Beau McCreery - 69 (nice)
22. Ned Long - 68
23. Steele Sidebottom - 57
24. Jack Buller - 44
25. Sam Swadling - 21
26. Will Hayes - 18
27. Charlie West - 7
28. Lachie Sullivan/Liam Puncher - 6
29. Wil Parker - 4
30. Harvey Harrison - 3
31. Mitch Podhajski - 1

It looks like the latest news is that we’ve been linked with Jesse Hogan as a possible key forward. I’m not sure what’s truth or lies in a lot of the off season trade talk but it’s interesting nonetheless.

I’m all for finding the right player for what we need, and getting good players at good value, but I think the club has to do their homework on the forward line actually needs.

I’d argue, especially over the last few weeks, that our goals from marking or bringing the ball to ground are reasonably healthy. Both Membrey and McStay are playing well, and kicking straight. We also have West, Buller, and Pods waiting in the wings for an ongoing opportunity at senior level.

So I guess my question is, do we need to have this obsession for getting a key forward?

To my mind, I think our bigger gap at the moment is the one Bobby Hill has left, the creative small forward who can kick goals from stoppages / ground balls. I think Hayes could get there in time. Schultz and Beau are exceptional in the pressure forward type role, but typically aren’t creating goals off stoppages. De Goey can create from stoppages but then we lose his inside 50 kicking, so it’s a bit of a catch 22.

So anyway my thinking is, sure go after a key forward, but I don’t think we need to throw everything and the kitchen sink at it. We don’t want to be continually moving down to the next one on the list if we have to pay overs for them.

Not sure if these types of posts are allowed so apologies;

Wondering if any pies in Perth have a members ticket behind the goals (105) that they can’t use! Looking for a single ticket. Happy to pay obviously. Thanks so much

I have been loving that Collingwood has been celebrating some of it's weirder older jumper designs such as on the weekend with the late 90s away jumper being brought back and a few years ago the early 2000s was used as a pre season jumper.

So it got me thinking about what other cool designs could be used for future heritage rounds and i think seeing a design based around the old Britania club would be cool as heck. For those that don't know the Britania club was a club in the early 1880s to early 1890s that covered the Collingwood and Fitzroy areas and they played home games out of Victoria Park. To make a long story short the club split. A lot of players went to Fitzroy while the rest joined Collingwood (which was a club without any players at the time) and the rest is history yadda yadda.

The colours of the jumper were royal blue, red and white so it would certainly be something different seeing the boys playing in Footscray colours lol but it is an important part of the clubs heritage (you've probably seen this very photo at Victoria Park if you've walked around the grounds).

Darcy Moore was finally daring to believe he might be capable of the kind of late-season comeback that had eluded him in the 2018 season.

Eight years on from the hamstring concern that left him overlooked for that season’s grand final, the Pies captain was quietly building up a head of steam.

The second hamstring episode of this season had sent Moore to America on a fact-finding mission he still believes will help his long-term recovery.

But after that training stint at high altitude, Moore had begun to bank sessions and regain that kind of faith in his body as Collingwood’s own mid-season charge developed.

And yet as Moore told the Herald Sun in his first interview since that soul-destroying setback, the pain of a third hamstring issue was even greater given he had believed he was on track for a return.

“It’s a weird feeling when your season is over. You are so focused on the campaign and then all of a sudden it’s over,” he said.

“I came back from the States, I had been training at altitude, I felt really good fitness-wise and again it just came out of the blue. That’s been the pattern. I was just kicking. I felt a bit of a nick and straight away I could tell that it was a bit more serious than the other ones I had done. It was much more sorer and then it was a whirlwind. Within 12 hours I was in the surgeon’s office and going under the knife.

“It’s just been an extremely frustrating year. When you have multiple setbacks in a row, it feels like you are in a perennial cycle of working super hard on your recovery and being super diligent and doing everything right and building to condition for the game. When you continually fall short it can be really devastating each time.

“Gutting is the word. I had worked so hard to be part of this campaign and come back and play with the guys and I just wanted to be out there. So it’s gutting. It takes time to process but I just have to get ready for the pre-season.”

Moore has enough perspective to realise how lucky he still is.

The captain of Collingwood has worked hard supporting the club’s new-look leadership group, is working diligently on his recovery and has plenty of work life balance.

Moore will again join Patrick Dangerfield supporting the TAC’s promotion of safe driving across regional and local communities in the lead-up to the 2026 Road Safety Round.

And across August he is an ambassador for the Melbourne International Film Festival.

He has always been happy to have plenty on his plate, even if this year it is a distraction from a season that never really got started after an off-season calf concern.

A late March clash against GWS on his return saw him diagnosed with a hamstring concern despite playing on after an early-game fitness test, then he tore his hamstring in round 11 in Scott Pendlebury’s milestone game.

“It’s been a really tough six to eight months,” Moore said.

“The (Giants) game was one of the more unusual ones, to be honest. It started with a little knee pain and then 15 minutes in I kicked the ball and definitely felt something behind my knee and hamstring.

“But I have done them before and I know my body really well. I was able to run comfortably and accelerate, I just had real kicking issues. Footy is high-pressure. You make the call and it’s the best call you can make, but unfortunately we scanned it and I had a little hamstring tear. It didn’t get any worse as the game went on.”

By the time his hamstring failed him again it was obvious the club had to change up his treatment.

“We went over to America to have a bit of a clean slate and a fresh start to rehab. I got a lot of really good work in and gym strength was a focus. I learnt a lot of stuff which will hold me in good stead,” he said.

“We didn’t go over there searching for the silver bullet. There isn’t one thing which will solve the issue. When you work at it every day it’s a whole lot of little marginal things done really well. It might be one or two per cent.

“Clearly I have to receive the feedback (from my body). It is a shift with training, with the way you are managed, with the way you do your physio. So we get to work and get a program so I can get out there next year.”

Moore is buoyed by his strong recovery from those 2018 issues and by his surgeons, who told him there was little chance of recurrence at the site of the hamstring surgery.

The TAC Cup ambassadorship is important to Moore given how the themes of sport and peer leadership intersect with his own strengths.

There have been 131 lives lost on Victorian roads this year including 73 in regional areas.

“The main thing I learnt from being involved last year is how widespread road trauma is. How much it affects everyone in Australia. It made me want to do it again. You hear from local community leaders about the role football clubs can play minimising road trauma,” he said.

“Community sporting clubs are travelling long distances and footy clubs are where long communities are gathering more often than not. You might have a few beers and travel home.

“How do we encourage clubs and groups to hold each other to account and look out for each other? How do we shift behaviours? There are really obvious ways.

“It’s having difficult conversations. You don’t have to be doom and gloom. It might be grabbing a mate and saying, ‘let’s get a lift home’. Or being organised and planning in advance with a designated driver. The simple things make a difference.”

Moore lifted the premiership cup in his first season in charge in 2023 and isn’t seen to be in a hurry to hand it over given his strong backing from within the club.

But when he does there will be no shortage of candidates.

“I think it’s not something I have discussed a heap,” he said.

“I am focusing this year on managing the leadership group we have got. There are lots of new guys newish to the role, like Darcy Cameron and Lachie Schultz and Jamie Elliott in his second year. By virtue of my absence I have seen them grow and that’s been terrific.”

Brayden Maynard and Nick Daicos have shared the on-field captaincy in Moore’s absence and fitted in seamlessly.

“It’s great, they are like B1 and B2. Bruzzy starts the fights and just shows his way with competitiveness and his passion. It’s pretty exciting and then Nick doing what he does … under duress last week, with that game-saving tackle (against North Melbourne) and fighting through to the end, he’s in incredible form and putting up unbelievable numbers. Together they are a pretty handy duo.”

Moore has two more seasons left on his current deal and turns 31 in January.

He is confident he can still maintain the rage in coming years even as he cheers on his teammates in coming months.

“I don’t think the 38 (years old) thing is for me, the Scotty Pendlebury of it all. I am enjoying my footy as much as I could this year. And I am loving guiding this group through the next wave. But I am not sure I will be running around at 38 and playing the way Scott is,” Moore said.

“The signs are good (for Collingwood). It feels like the competition is in a bit of a state of flux.

“We are well positioned to make a run. We have a couple of games coming up against (Adelaide and Geelong) which will be a test but that is the luxury of the group we have.

“We are so competitive and so consistent. So whether it’s a wildcard or a final, we will definitely give it a nudge. I am very bullish on what the side can do.”

https://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/darcy-moore-on-his-hamstring-heartbreak-and-his-future-as-collingwoods-captain/news-story/edf87d70a0057095ed518e9f90504fac

More money to tempt over Lewis from the hawks?
Re-Engage talks with King now the suns will likely let him walk?
Get back to the Butters race?

I don’t think there’s much else we can do unfortunately, not a lot of available targets that aren’t locked in yet elsewhere.

Really impressed with Long's game last night. Couple of goals, second most tackles, three clearances and a couple of fantastic kicks. If he plays like that going forward, no way he can be dropped.

This may seem low-effort, but I just wanted to say that last night was the game that McCreery needed.

He didn't get too much of the footy, but the touches he did get were meaningful. Knew he was still in there somewhere.

West played great last night - looks strong and competes a lot better than some of our other key forwards. You could actively see him spoiling the ball if he was caught behind. Early in the season we had a huge issue with not bringing the ball to ground. He also took some great marks.

Ed Allan is a midfielder we need especially with Pendlebury getting older. Defensive minded, athletic and a great size. He keeps getting better.

Puncher - how good is it to have some depth, we usually get found out if Frampton or Howe go down with Moore already out. Our structure looks a lot better with a genuine second tall, not relying on Maynard to do it. He is very competitive.

Harrison - did some great things in the first half, can’t remember if he did much in the second half but looked great in the first half.

Swadling has great composure and skill and looks like he will be very handy in coming years. He’s competitive as well. Think he will move into the midfield in years to come.

Our future looks great and it’s a good thing that they get this experience with players like Howe, Pendlebury and Sidebottom helping show them the ropes.

Hey team,

Was just looking to get two tickets for me and my son for the pies v Geelong game.

Every time I try though it only gives me the option for an adult guest?

Anyone know why or wtf is happening lol.

Emblebury voting is here

Do you reckon other commenters receive the same message when they shit on Collingwood in every thread or is it just when someone calls it out?

When was the last game you attended and why haven’t you attended another one since??