Collingwood Football Club

Collingwood Football Club
Collingwood Football Club logo
Names
Full name	Collingwood Football Club
Nickname(s)	The Magpies, Pies, Maggies, The Woods
Leading goalkicker	Anthony Rocca
Best and fairest	Travis Cloke
Club details
Founded	1892
Competition	Australian Football League
Chairman	Eddie McGuire
Coach	Michael Malthouse
Captain(s)	Undecided
Ground(s)	Melbourne Cricket Ground (capacity: 100,000)
Other information
Official website	www.collingwoodfc.com.au

Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club involved, and playing in the Australian Football League.

The players wear black and white striped guernseys, similar to the colours of a magpie; thus their emblem, the magpie, and their motto "Floreat pica" ("Flourish Magpies!", or "May the Magpies Prosper!").

Collingwood has won 14 VFL/AFL premierships, second to Essendon and Carlton who are on 16. The club traditionally represented the working class inner Melbourne suburb of Collingwood, Victoria, however it has since moved its base to the Lexus Centre in Melbourne and its traditional suburban home ground, formerly Victoria Park, to the much larger Melbourne Cricket Ground.

The Magpies are known for their passionate supporter base, particularly known as "The Magpie Army". Traditional Melbourne suburban rivalries Essendon and Richmond remain fierce, although the national league may have diluted this feeling somewhat. The long held rivalry with Carlton, for example, has waned in recent years. Collingwood has gained interstate rivals however and has retained the reputation in the national competition as the "team everybody loves to hate" (except, that is, for the massive number of Collingwood supporters)

Historically Collingwood games attracted large attendances, which in recent times has become a source of pride for supporters. In 1970, 121,696 spectators watched Carlton defeat Collingwood in the grand final, the record attendance for a football game of any code in Australia. Collingwood has the largest membership of the ten Victorian clubs. The average crowd at Collingwood home games in 2006 was 52,883.

The formation

The Collingwood Football Club was born on the cusp of one of the world's worst depressions in early 1892 and played in the Victorian Football Association, the premier football competition at the time.

The team improved quickly and Collingwood won its first and only VFA premiership in 1896, defeating South Melbourne. At the end of the 1896 season Collingwood and South Melbourne finished exactly equal at the top of the ladder and it was decided that a Grand Final was required to decide the premiership. Collingwood won the first ever VFA Grand Final on October 3 at the East Melbourne Cricket Ground, beating South by six goals to five.

VFL calling, Pies answering

In 1897, Collingwood, along with fellow VFA clubs Fitzroy, Melbourne, St Kilda, Carlton, Essendon, South Melbourne and Geelong split from the VFA and formed the VFL (Victorian Football League). Despite being the youngest club, it did not take long for the Magpies to establish themselves on the new footballing landscape.

The decade of 1900-1909, was the decade where the foundations were laid, for a long and successful future. In the first decade of the 20th century, Collingwood racked up 119 wins from 172 games, and two Grand Final victories from four attempts. The Pies built a huge reputation for being a fearsome side, despite playing in a depression stricken town. During this period of time, the club had eight skippers, with Lardie Tulloch the longest standing captain of the decade, spending three years at the helm. Collingwood also employed their first ever coach in 1904, in club legend Bill Strickland. In 1906, Collingwood’s first true icon emerged, Dick Lee. In career at the club, he played 230 games, and after his retirement in 1922, had totaled with 707 goals. The Magpies played off in the Grand Finals of 1901, 1902, 1903 and 1905 – coming out on top in ’02 and ’03. In 1902, Collingwood defeated Essendon by 33 points in front of a crowd of 35,202 at the MCG. The following year saw Collingwood win complete the set of back-to-back flags, against rivals Fitzroy by only two points. For the rest of the decade, Collingwood could only manage one more Grand Final, against Fitzroy again, at the MCG. This time however, the Roys atoned for their loss two years prior with a 13 point victory.

Collingwood only played in four finals in the next four seasons, without winning any of them. They ended the decade with seven finals losses on the trot, with perhaps Dick Condon the player of the decade. Condon, the man accredited with the invention of the stab kick, was one of the most talented players of the early years. Club legend Jock McHale labelled Condon the greatest footballer he had seen.

The McHale Era: Years of Glory

Collingwood became a powerhouse club during the 1920s & 30s, an era that included the greatest run of successive premierships - four in a row from 1927–1930 as well as having the longest serving coach in the history of the VFL/AFL, Jock McHale who coached Collingwood from 1912 until 1949 after playing for the Magpies from 1902 to 1921. The record of four flags in succession has never once been matched nor topped, with the Melbourne of 1955-1957 and the Brisbane Lions of 2001-2003 both reaching the following season's Grand Final, only to be thwarted by Collingwood and Port Adelaide respectively. This period produced a total of six premierships, and some of the club's greatest ever servants. Names such as Syd Coventry, brother Gordon Coventry, Harry Collier and Albert Collier were among the preeminent players of their time, helping establish the Magpies as a club based upon a strong family history. Gordon Coventry led the goal kicking in every season between 1922-37, whilst brother Syd captained the club for eight seasons, his record of 153 matches as skipper was overtaken by Nathan Buckley in late 2006. Albert Collier won the Brownlow Medal in 1929, paving the way for brother Harry to win it in the following year.

1950 - 1990

File:Rose1970.jpg

Heartbreak: Bob Rose looks on during the dying moments of the 1970 Grand Final.

After 17 years of frustration and four Grand Finals Collingwood finally tasted premiership success in 1953 with a two goal victory over reigning premier Geelong, lead by Lou Richards. This premiership team was a unique one as it consisted of three sets of brothers - Ron & Lou Richards, Bob & William Rose and Bill, Pat & Mick Twomey. Coincidentally it was the first and last time Collingwood legend Bob Rose was to taste premiership success as a player or coach. Their 1958 premiership was to be their last for 32 years. The victory in 1958 was an underdog victory, with Collingwood motivated to prevent their opponent Melbourne winning its fourth successive Grand Final. In 1959 and 1960 Melbourne won again, so Collingwood's 1958 victory was essential to protect the club's greatest on field achievement. The 1976 season saw the club win it's first ever wooden spoon, which subsequently lead to the dismissal of senior coach Murray Weideman. The following year saw the arrival of high profiled former Richmond Premiership coach Tom Hafey who lifted the Magpies from last position the previous year to the Grand Final. Hafey was sensationally sacked during the 1982 season after guiding the club to 5 Grand Finals. He was eventually replaced by Leigh Matthews after brief stints from John Cahill, Mick Erwin & Bob Rose between 1982 & 1986. Matthews would develop a team that would lead to the drought breaking premiership of 1990, ironically he would later coach against the Magpies in two more Grand Finals. The 60's and 70's produced some of Collingwood's greatest ever players, the likes of Len Thompson, Des Tuddenham, Peter McKenna, Wayne Richardson, Ross Dunne, Phil Carman, Bill Picken, Ron Wearmouth, Peter Moore and Max Richardson yet each of them failed to achieve the ultimate goal of a Premiership. Many have speculated as to why Collingwood came so close on so many occasions, some have even said that the Collingwood teams of the 60's and 70's were so packed with precision that they lacked power to win a flag. During this drought, fans remarkably had to endure no less than nine fruitless grand finals (1960, 1964, 1966, 1970, 1977 (drawn, then lost in a replay the following week to North Melbourne), 1979, 1980, 1981), inspiring the term "Colliwobbles" to signify a choking phenomenon. Regardless of the seldom Premiership success in recent years the Magpie supporter base continues to be one of the strongest in the country.

The 1990s

The 1990 Premiership, coached by Leigh Matthews and skippered by Tony Shaw provided relief via a one-sided affair against Essendon, the Magpies going on to record a 48 point victory. Ending a 32 year premiership drought which included eight Grand Final losses and one draw.

Main article: 1990 AFL Grand Final

Unfortunately, however, the club lapsed into a state of decline, their status as a potential powerhouse at the beginning of the decade was reduced with each passing season, the club contesting the finals only twice after 1990 (in 1992 and 1994, losses to St Kilda and West Coast respectively).

With an air of stagnation and staleness sweeping the stands at Victoria Park, the club opted to call time on Matthews’ ten year stay, opting to find a replacement from inside the club, selecting Shaw as the new coach. In hindsight, although he tried his best, Shaw was probably the wrong choice for the club at the time, new blood from another culture at another club the order of the day.

Under Shaw the team developed the habit of beginning their seasons like a house on fire, before tapering off as the year wore on. To make matters worse, the state of the list was in disrepair due to poor blend of veterans past their use by date, poor drafting and bungled trades.

In Shaw's first year as coach, 1996, the team was more attacking than it had been under Matthews, but injuries to skipper Gavin Brown and key players in Graham Wright and Damian Monkhorst derailed the year. The team crept very close to the edge midway through the year, very nearly becoming the first Collingwood team to lose eight games on the trot; a rousing ten goal victory over North Melbourne in round 15, propelled by stunning performances from Nathan Buckley and Saverio Rocca proving the tonic to hold the record at bay. For the time being.

With the recruitment of Anthony Rocca, Saverio Rocca's younger brother, 1997 took on a sense of optimism, and the team appeared a chance of living up to the hype when they reached the top of the league ladder after only eight rounds, losing only two matches to that point in time.

But after leading by 37 points at quarter time on a boggy MCG over the previous years runners up, Sydney, the rot set in for good, the team capitulating to go down in demoralising fashion, only Jason Wild and Richard Osborne looking handy in attack with the Rocca brothers failing to fire a shot.

The loss has been relegated to the history books as just another match, however, when you delve deeper into the annals of Collingwood’s history, it proved much more than just a game.

The Magpies lost to Hawthorn at Waverley Park the following week on a typically wet and miserable day, failing to score a goal in the opening term as the Hawks blitzed all comers. The wheels were again set in motion for another winless June, the team finally snapping out of its slump at the ground it knew like no other, Victoria Park in round 15 against Fremantle. The match took on much relevance, a 100 point victory celebrated in Buckley’s 100th outing, Saverio Rocca scoring nine goals.

The season petered out, the team lacking the polish to crack it for September action, the Jekyll and Hyde nature of the side on show in the final two weeks, with a narrow defeat at the hands of Adelaide snuffing out any finals hopes before ending the year on a high note, a strong win over perennial powerhouse North Melbourne. At least the club had something to work with in the future.

Sadly, 1998 proved much of the same for Shaw, but without the rousing finish. Instead, another bright start paved the way for some heavy losses midseason, successive victories in rounds 15 and 16 over Geelong and Hawthorn in the wet the club’s final opportunity to belt out its favourite tune until round eight of 1999.

One loss followed another, as the team plummeted to an all new low, losing the final six matches of the year.

Victoria Park, Collingwood's home ground up until 1999

The true bottoming out of the football club occurred after what was dubbed an insipid performance against oldest and most hated rival Carlton in round 21 at the MCG. Scoring a dismal 8.15 for the match, it is remembered by many as the very day the Collingwood Football Club’s nose dive from premiers in 1990 to easybeats was completed. Players struggled for direction as their opponents blew them out of the water.

But as they say, the darkest hour is before dawn, and so it proved for Collingwood. The match paved the way for Eddie McGuire, then a media mogul with Channel 9 and Triple M, to open his doors to the idea of presidency, a position he was elected to after the season concluded, and one in which he remains in today, presiding over the reformation of the Collingwood Football Club.

In one of the only bright moments of the year, Buckley finished second in the Brownlow Medal to Saint Robert Harvey on 24 votes, winning his third Copeland Trophy and relieving Brown of the captaincy.

Although the side may have finished 16th and collected only its second wooden spoon in season 1999, things were changing around Victoria Park, including the ground itself. It now hosted its final two home and away matches (losses to West Coast in round three and Brisbane in round 22), whilst seeing the end of Shaw as coach, Brown as captain and the introduction at season's end of some likely lads in Josh Fraser, Rhyce Shaw and Ben Johnson, as well as current coach Mick Malthouse.

First, the club’s 13-match losing streak (rounds 17, 1998 to 7, 1999) came to an end, Buckley returning from a broken jaw suffered in round two on Easter Monday’s loss to Carlton to pilot the side to a well celebrated win in the mud and slush of the MCG. Buckley’s return to action was heralded with four goals of his own and three Brownlow Votes, and the team overcame fellow cellar dweller Fremantle.

If it wasn’t for his untimely jaw injury, suffered when his head collided with Blue wingman Justin Murphy’s knee, Buckley may well have won his first Brownlow Medal, finishing equal third with Blues ruckman Matthew Allan on 20 votes, eight behind overall winner Shane Crawford.

The team, under the guidance of Shaw for the final time, produced some bright sparks in amongst the smouldering ashes of the 1990s, sparks which morphed over time into phoenixes providing hope of a bright future, in Chris Tarrant, Paul Licuria, Tarkyn Lockyer, Anthony Rocca, Nick Davis, Heath Scotland, Damien Adkins and Rupert Betheras. The eight formed the nucleus along with incoming draftees who joined the club over the next three years as part of the 2001-2003 surge back up the ladder.

As the game farewelled Victoria Park as a league ground in the final match of the year, a damp squib of a match despite the off field staff's best efforts, the day tarred by poor weather and a Brisbane side destined for greater things.

It also signified the end of Shaw after four years and little success, and experienced stalwarts of the decade, Monkhorst, Alex McDonald and Scott Crow, also waved into the sunset (or, in Monkhorst’s case, Moorabbin at St Kilda).

The summer of 1999 also signified a new beginning at Victoria Park, the dawn of a bold, bright and hopefully new era for Collingwood. Mick Malthouse, master coach in the West and successful footballer in his heyday, was lured to the club by McGuire, Buckley re-signed to the tune of five years, and the club finally made good use of its good draft picks after years of frittering away opportunities, snaring ruck protégé Josh Fraser with the first selection in the 1999 National Draft, lightning fast wingman Rhyce Shaw, the son of former club captain Ray and nephew of Tony, his mate from the northern suburbs, the gritty, pacy and daring Ben Johnson and Perth’s indigenous livewire Leon Davis. Interestingly, three of the trio formed part of the club’s leadership group in 2007, with Davis also noted for his growing confidence in a leadership capacity.

With Malthouse unveiled in a bentley with 24" chromes alongside Buckley with 3 shot guns and a semi automatic going off, things were looking up. But he soon realised that there was work to be done, and plenty of it.

The club agreed to play old foe Carlton, rebounding from a Grand Final loss to the Kangaroos only months earlier, on the final night of the millennium on an MCG recovering from the Test cricket played only days earlier.

In hindsight, it may have been dubbed the ‘match of the century’, but it could easily have been known as the ‘mismatch of the century, such was the difference between the two sides. Hardly anything at all could have been read from the night, except that Blues youngster Brendan Fevola (12 goals) had a future, and that there was a long, hard, stiff road ahead for the Collingwood Football Club before it reached its morning glory days of yore once again.

2000s

Under Malthouse, the club displayed glimpses of what was on offer in the coming years with the young brigade leading the way to a 5-0 start to season 2000, a turnaround previously unheard of from such no names. Buckley was everywhere in the opening half of the year, the Rocca brothers returned to their best form, and the kids, Adkins, Fraser, Johnson and Davis, enjoyed debuts to remember in the round one drubbing of Hawthorn on a sweltering MCG under hot Melbourne skies.

It all came to a grinding halt in round six when reigning premiers brought the kids back to earth with a shudder, giving them an old fashioned football lesson. The rot set in again, albeit somewhat more accepted by the Collingwood faithful than it would previously have been, for they knew Malthouse’s plan, and how pain would be endured before they were rewarded with the promised pleasure.

Minus a breezy win over eventual spooners St Kilda, there was not much to like about the Magpies until the closing stages of the season, when Nick Davis led the side to a rousing victory over the Kangaroos at Colonial Stadium. In the final round of the season, the club bid adieu to two of its finest products in Gavin Brown and Gavin Crosisca against a premiership bound Essendon at the MCG in round 22.

Brown and Crosisca were at the forefront of the club’s quasi-glory days of the late 80s and early, early 90s and were bastions of hope in the dark days of the later decade. They received a stunning goodbye from the crowd and a sentimental and terrifically sporting gesture from Essendon and their coach Kevin Sheedy, who stood nearby and clapped the two Gavins from the ground for one last time on the shoulders of their teammates. Brown would remain to this very day at the club in the capacity of an assistant coach, while Crosisca traveled the state in the same guise, albeit with stints at Hawthorn, North Ballarat, the Kangaroos and now Carlton.

With the final line of Brown and Crosisca’s songs sung, not a player remained on the list from the 1990 premiership side. The era of days gone by had gone, but it wouldn’t be forgotten, however the new blood was coming through, thick and fast. September action was just around the corner.

The season of 2001 marked a whole new beginning for the Collingwood Football Club. Whilst, yes, it had new personal in 2000, the club used much of the year to clean out deadwood which was stagnating at the club. As Brown and Crosisca departed, so to did Brad Smith, Ricky Olarenshaw, Shane Watson and a number of others. But the biggest shocks came in the form of the trading of Paul Williams and the delisting of Saverio Rocca. Although the pair had not seen their best form for a year or two, it still came as a surprise to many at the speed the Magpies gave them away. The club, though, received nothing for Rocca’s services, which was quite absurd, considering the fact that the Kangaroos were able to draft him with the 34th selection in the 2000 National Draft.

To add to the new fresh air passing through the club, the team now donned a newlook jumper. For over 100 years, the Magpies had worn a jumper with black stripes on a white background. Now, it was reversed, the players wearing a black back on their jumper with a white number, and the colours of each stripe were reversed.

The year began brightly, with some promising showings in the Ansett Cup morphing into some heartening displays in the real season, with the youth, in the form of Shane O’Bree, Paul Licuria and Tarkyn Lockyer picking up much of the slack from Buckley in the midfield.

The club’s busy trading in the off season of 2000/2001 also paid dividends, with James Clement, Jarrod Molloy, Shane Wakelin Brodie Holland, Carl Steinfort and Chad Rintoul all having the desired impact, using their matured bodies and desire to make the best of a second chance (or in the cases of Molloy and Rintoul, their third) at league level. Molloy’s bullocking work, in particular, won him accolades from all comers, going on to finish runner up to Licuria in the Copeland Trophy.

Even more important to the club’s future was the youth drafted over the course of the past two seasons, with Alan Didak and Ryan Lonie immediately adding spark to the team, while Jason Cloke and Guy Richards were cultivated with Williamstown in the VFL. Lonie’s meteoric rise, in particular, stole hearts of Collingwood fans around the nation with his daring runs, flashy bouncing and long range bombs from outside the fifty winning plaudits from many up the pecking order in the AFL, nominated for the Ansett Rising Star for his troubles following another night out at the MCG against Richmond in round four.

That match also marked the one, and only, match for highly rated recruit Danny Roach. Selected with the seventh choice in the 1999 National Draft, Roach’s career was curtailed by nagging hip injuries which forced him to retire after only two years in the system.

Under Malthouse, the players began showing greater awareness and maturing, and were now standing their own when the temperature rose in the kitchen. After a narrow loss to Hawthorn due to inaccurate kicking, the Pies went on to win their next two matches against Fremantle and the Western Bulldogs, with Buckley leading the way, winning a remarkable, career high 46 disposals against the Dockers, piloting the way to victory, before playing a large role in the side’s huge victory over the Bulldogs on a sandy Colonial Stadium.

Some more close losses ensued against Richmond and Essendon on Anzac Day; the latter a match which could easily have been won had the Magpies made the most of their opportunities. A strong, nail biting triumph over Carlton the following week on Federation Weekend gave the squad the impetus to mount a finals challenge.

The team stumbled badly in round seven against their favourite bullies from the previous decade, the Kangaroos. With the match there for the taking late in the day, Mrs.Rocca simply did not know which way to look. At one end, eldest son Sav put his side in front with minutes remaining, while in the dying seconds, Anthony had the chance to win it for the Pies. He was unable to convert, the side to rue the missed opportunity much later in the season. The irony that Sav, the man cut loose free of charge by the club only months prior, was the man to win the match was too much to bear for many diehards. The match also marked the debut of 2006 Copeland Trophy winner Alan Didak.

Fortunately, the group was able to turn around their misfortune with a victory over Port Adelaide one for the highlight reels. Despite playing in foreign territory in front of a hostile crowd, the Magpies bit hard all night, with Josh Fraser’s intercept of Brett Montgomery’s handball late in the piece and ensuing goal wrapping up a morale boosting nine point triumph.

The club defeated St Kilda in unconvincing fashion on an overcast day a week later before succumbing to the flooding, negative ways of Rodney Eade and his Sydney Swans. The Swans were ultra defensive all day, flooding so much so to the extent that it was thought that Colonial Stadium would be eroded away into the docklands and beyond!

Swamped by such negative tactics, the Magpies were never able to drag themselves out of the mire, the match memorable only for Paul Williams’ return to face his old side, Buckley’s hamstring injury and Molloy’s spectacular launch over Swan fullback Andrew Dunkley. Sadly, for Molloy, the mark was not paid due to an indiscretion by Rocca, robbing Molloy of one of the marks of 2001.

Two thumping victories over Melbourne and the lowly West Coast followed, with the club now well placed for bigger and better things, only to be struck down by their famed slump not long after. With Buckley back in toe, he led the side to a gritty two point triumph over Adelaide at Football Park, winning 38 possessions in a virtuoso performance.

Times quickly changed, with Geelong, Brisbane and then Hawthorn all steamrolling the young, tiring Magpies, dragging them back into the pack. With September not far away, there was little room for error.

The team suffered a fright in their encounter with the winless Dockers in round 17 at Subiaco Oval, before a loss to the Tigers under lights, a night which saw the side score only six goals (three to Nick Davis), all but put the kibosh on the team’s finals aspirations.

A thrashing of the Western Bulldogs, led by Buckley, Fraser and four Leon Davis goals kept their heads above water for the time being, before they were shoved under by Essendon under lights. Despite the loss, the team gave a proper account of themselves, Rocca leading the way with six goals, before the Bombers crept away late. The Pies victory push was stalled when Molloy looked to clean up Bomber wingman Mark Mercuri, but instead decapitated teammate Tarkyn Lockyer, concussion sidelining the likeable West Australian for the remaining two matches.

Carlton decided the hand the club a walloping in round 21, before the team, minus Lonie for the first time that season, a remarkable effort for a debutant, cruised to victory over the Kangaroos at Manuka Oval, Canberra, a win trumpeted as the changing of the guard by many, with the Roos on the slide, and the Magpies on the rise. It proved the final match for Brent Tuckey and Andrew Ukovic, while Heath Scotland saved his career with a 21 possession afternoon.

And so the season was done with, Collingwood finishing 9th and narrowly missing out on finals action for the first time since 1994. It was their highest finish since their most recent September showing. Thankfully, it wouldn’t be long before they again featured in the game’s showpiece.

In 2002, Collingwood rose from it's seven year hiatus from September action, reaching the finals for the first time since it bowed out by two points at the hands of West Coast in 1994, and the Grand Final for the first time since 1990. The club won 13 matches in the home and away rounds, although its late-season trough, which saw it win only one of its last four matches saw most pundits write off the team's prospects in the month that matters. Despite this, the fourth placed Magpies shook the competition to its foundations with a boilover victory against the top of the table Port Adelaide at AAMI Stadium in the Qualifying Final. Victory here bought the team a weeks rest, and booked a ticket with Adelaide in the Preliminary Final at the MCG. They won in emphatic fashion highlighted by a six goal third term, Anthony Rocca's 75m pearler the stand out, while Betheras and Freeborn's majors were rewarded with roars louder than any other witnessed by the famous stadium. The win took them to the Grand Final, where the young Magpies acquitted themselves brilliantly, only to lose by nine points to the powerful Brisbane.

The following season was seen as a form of redemption, and began well, with three wins from the first three encounters, as well as an appearance in the Wizard Cup Grand Final, only to lose to Adelaide. With the club the talk of the town, the Pies bubble burst, and reached the halfway mark of the season with six wins and six losses. A playing list that resilient rarely stays down for too long, and so it proved, with Nathan Buckley playing some career best football, igniting the side en route to finishing second on the ladder, winning 10 of its last 11 matches. A gritty win over bogy side Brisbane in the Qualifying Final was followed a fortnight later by a breezy 44 point triumph over Port Adelaide, securing the club's second appearance on the last Saturday of September for the second year running - again to be played against Brisbane. Here, however, is where things started to change, the club first relishing in it's VFL affiliate Williamstown's Grand Final victory on the Sunday, in a fitting send off to retiring warriors Mark Richardson, Jarrod Molloy and Glenn Freeborn. On the Monday night, Buckley was crowned the Brownlow Medallist, in a three-way tie with Mark Ricciuto and Adam Goodes after years of near misses. The rot set in when key forward, and the club's most important player, Anthony Rocca was suspended for two weeks for striking Port Adelaide's Brendan Lade in the Preliminary Final. For the second year in succession, the Pies were to be robbed of a vital cog in its well oiled engine. Although going in to the Grand Final as favourites, Collingwood was wiped off the park by a Brisbane side written off by many as too old and too slow. The Lions peppered the goals in the opening term, before taking advantage of the shellshocked Magpies with a six goal to one second term. Only late plastic surgery to the scoreboard was able to save Collingwood any face, the Lions victorious for the third year on the trot by a whopping 50 points. The club was subjected to a summer-long period of ridicule, the ramifications of the loss stirring the mindset of the team for the next two years.

In 2004 and 2005, Collingwood finished 13th and 15th respectively, and by the end of the latter season, it appeared the team moulded since 2000 was broken. In spite of the predictions of the game's experts, Malthouse regenerated the side through the recruitment of a number of likely young products including Dale Thomas and Scott Pendlebury, while Travis Cloke had arrived a year earlier.

Collingwood made a blistering start to it's 2006 campaign before a sudden loss of form following a torrid evening against Brisbane in round 10 derailed the season. Despite this, three late season victories took the side to fifth rung on the ladder, only to be uncerominiously swiped from the finals series by a Western Bulldogs outfit obsessed with outrunning their opposition.

The loss left many questioning whether the era was over, although 12 months on, the experts were forced to change their soon. Malthouse coached brilliantly throughout 2007, blooding 10 debutants while champions Buckley, James Clement and Paul Licuria were sidelined through injury. Such was the side's ability to tough out any onfield situation it faced, they achieved the rare success of never losing more than one match at a time. Despite finishing outside of the top four, the Magpies made it through to the Grand Final qualifier following stirring victories over the past two champions in Sydney and West Coast, but went down to Geelong by five points before a crowd of 98,002 in typically courageous fashion.

Skipper Buckley retired in the ensuing weeks, as did Clement and Licuria, a changing of the guard apparant, as the young Magpies, such as Dale Thomas, Scott Pendlebury, Martin Clarke and Nick Maxwell proved themselves capable of not only keeping the club near the top end of the ladder, but within reach of premiership success in the years to come.

Off field

Collingwood was one of the last clubs to abandon its traditional stadium, the famous inner-city Victoria Park. Collingwood now plays home games at the MCG. It now also has its headquarters situated in the former Glasshouse Entertainment Centre which is now called "The Lexus Centre". This building is also shared with the Victorian Institute of Sport (VIS).

Collingwood continues to be financially viable through the loyal support of its huge following and numerous sponsors. After finishing 2nd in 2002 and 2003 the team fell to 13th and 15th (out of 16) in 2004 and 2005 respectively. This trend has plagued the club since the glory days of pre-World War II VFL football. Since 1958, the club has won only a single VFL/AFL Premiership (the inaugural AFL Premiership in 1990) making them one of the least successful clubs in the modern era. Despite this, the club still has won more individual games, more finals and made more grand-final appearances than any other Victorian club prior to the AFL.

File:Magpiecaptains.jpg

Collingwood captains: (l to r) S. Coventry, C. Tyson, A. Kyne and M. Weidemann.

On 9 March 2007, former Collingwood and Fitzroy defender Gary Pert was appointed the Magpies' CEO, seven weeks after Greg Swann departed for Carlton. In accepting the key Magpie post, Pert quit as a club director and as managing director of Channel 9 in Melbourne. In a press conference, it was stated that Collingwood has budgeted to turnover about $50 million this year. McGuire hopes the new administration will soon double that figure. "A finance administration review has come up with how we are going to turn Collingwood in to its next phase of its life", McGuire said. "What do we do to make ourselves go from a $45 million a year turnover business to a $100 million turnover business? "They sound like big figures but in 1999 we turned over $13 million, so that is where we are heading as a football club."

Rivalries

Collingwood is arguably a fierce rival of each of the other 15 teams in the competition, due to its name, supporters, history and ability to dominate the headlines like no other. Carlton is the club's most bitter arch rival, with Essendon not far behind. Following this, rivalries with Richmond and Melbourne have faded slightly of late due to the fact that the teams have not enjoyed onfield success at the same time, however the feeling of resentment still lingers, the rivalry between the Magpies and Demons at its hottest between 1955 and 1964, when the two played off in the Grand Final on five occasions, the Magpies managing to hold Melbourne from equalling the club's record of four premierships in succession from 1927-1930 in 1958. The club's two opponents in the themed Rivalry Rounds staged todate have been Carlton (2005-2006) and Richmond (2007). In recent times, rivalries have been sparked with the new interstate clubs, including Port Adelaide and Brisbane, though it can be argued that the Lions were still major adversaries of the Magpies in their guise as Fitzroy.

The rivalry with Port Adelaide stems from the fact that the Power were also known as the Magpies in their local SANFL competition before switching to the Power when fielding a team in the AFL in 1997 (the Port Adelaide Magpies remain in the SANFL today). Feelings were heightened when Port midfielder Kane Cornes 'flipped the bird' at Nick Davis following the Power's close fought five point victory over the Magpies at AAMI Stadium in round nine, 2002, only moments after Anthony Rocca had missed he opportunity to tie the scores. Jarrod Molloy and Brodie Holland remonstrated with Cornes after the match, with a feeling of hostility lingering after the two sides had left the field. Collingwood managed to pip the Power in the Qualifying Final later in the season in a boilover at the same venue, before repeating the dose at the MCG in the 2003 Preliminary Final, heating up the choking phenomenon directed at the Power. To add to the feeling between the two clubs, the off-field battle over Port's desire to wear Black and White stripes was a major talking point between 2002 and 2007, when a resolution was reached.

Brisbane, meanwhile, first registered on Collingwood's rivalry list in 1999, when they thumped the Magpies in the final fixture at Victoria Park. A tense three point victory over the reigning premiers in front of a packed Colonial Stadium in round 8, 2002 took the Magpies to the top of the league table. Hostilities were renewed in that season's Grand Final, the Lions holding off a brave Collingwood by nine points on a wet afternoon. The situation became even more prominent the following season, when the two clubs clashed on four occasions. The Lions staved off the Magpies at the Gabba in round four before thrashing them in Heritage Round in round 19. Collingwood got its own back in the Qualifying Final, when Alan Didak broke the deadlock late in the final term, with two superb goals from the boundary line. However, it was the Lions who had the final say, walloping Collingwood in the Grand Final. The Lions battered and bruised the injury-riddled Magpies throughout 2004 and 2005, before Collingwood got its own back in round 10, 2006, six Nathan Buckley goals breaking the Lions backs under the Saturday night lights of the MCG. The night signalled the end of Blake Caracella's playing career, crunched by former teammate Tim Notting in the second term, very nearly paralysing the Magpie forward. After Collingwood won its first match in Queensland since 1995 in round 9, 2007, the Lions again had the final say, Jarred Brennan's seven goals piloting a 15-goal pasting of the Magpies in round 17.

Other information

The noted Australian playwright David Williamson scripted The Club, a play inspired by the internal politics of Collingwood, although "the club" is never actually specified in the play or film. A film version was made in 1980 and features Collingwood players in speaking and non-speaking roles.

The Magpies have been known as "The team people love to hate" and are less respected than other AFL teams, with many people outwardly and unitedly expressing their enjoyment at Collingwood's misfortune. As a result of this disrespect, Collingwood remain unseen underdogs throughout most games they play. When Collingwood experiences success, due credit is only given if the nature of the success is of massive historical importance, an example of this is Collingwood's 4 premierships in a row being respected by many rival supporters. The Magpies were once known as "The Flatties" because the suburb of Collingwood is flat.

The Jock McHale Medal is an award given to the coach of the winning premiership team in the Australian Football League. It is named in honour of coaching games record-holder, Collingwood player/coach Jock McHale, and has been awarded since 2001 and retrospectively awarded back to 1950.

Collingwood will field its own team in the Victorian Football League competition as of 2008, after ending its alignment with the Williamstown Football Club after season 2007.

Membership

File:Floggers.jpg

Collingwood supporters celebrating a goal

Year	Members	Finishing position
1984	16,313	3rd
1985	16,857	7th
1986	13,971	6th
1987	9,500	12th
1988	11,985	4th
1989	13,620	5th
1990	14,806	1st
1991	18,469	7th
1992	18,921	5th
1993	21,882	8th
1994	20,843	8th
1995	22,543	10th
1996	20,752	11th
1997	22,761	10th
1998	27,099	14th
1999	32,358	16th
2000	28,932	15th
2001	31,455	9th
2002	32,549	2nd
2003	40,445	2nd
2004	41,128	13th
2005	38,612	15th
2006	38,038	7th
2007	38,587	4th

Records

Premierships:

VFA: (1)

1896

VFL/AFL:

• Seniors: (14)

1902 1903 1910 1917 1919 1927 1928 1929 1930 1935 1936 1953 1958 1990

• Reserves: (7)

1919 1920 1922 1925 1940 1965 1976

• Under 19s: (4)

1960 1965 1974 1986

• Pre-Season/Night Series Premierships: (1)

1979

• McClelland Trophy:(5)

1959 1960 1964 1965 1966

• Runners Up: (25)

1901 1905 1911 1915 1918 1920 1922 1925 1926 1937 1938 1939 1952 1955 1956 1960 1964 1966 1970 1977 1979 1980 1981 2002 2003

• Wooden Spoons:(2)

1976 1999

Current playing list

Collingwood Football Club

Senior list						Rookie list		Coaching staff
1 Patrick Lipinski  2 Jordan De Goey  3 Isaac Quaynor  4 Brayden Maynard  5 Jamie Elliott  6 Tom Mitchell  7 Josh Daicos  8 Lachie Schultz  9 John Noble 10 Scott Pendlebury 11 Daniel McStay 13 Harry DeMattia 14 Darcy Cameron 15 Nathan Kreuger 16 Ed Allan 17 Billy Frampton 18 Finlay Macrae 19 Tew Jiath		21 Oscar Steene 22 Steele Sidebottom 23 Bobby Hill 24 Jakob Ryan 25 Jack Crisp 26 Reef McInnes 29 Joe Richards 30 Darcy Moore (c) 31 Beau McCreery 32 Will Hoskin-Elliott 35 Nick Daicos 36 Harvey Harrison 37 Oleg Markov 38 Jeremy Howe 40 Ash Johnson 41 Brody Mihocek 46 Mason Cox				20 Iliro Smit 27 Jack Bytel 33 Lachie Sullivan 34 Josh Eyre 43 Charlie Dean 44 Ned Long 45 Wil Parker (B)		Head coach Craig McRae Assistant coaches Hayden Skipworth (senior assistant, midfield coach) Scott Selwood (forward line) Jordan Roughead (backline) Justin Leppitsch (director of strategy and innovation) Brendon Bolton (director of coaching, learning, and leadership) Josh Fraser (head of development/VFL coach) Neville Jetta (development coach) Chloe McMillan (development coach) Andy Otten (development coach) Legend: (c) Captain(s) (vc) Vice-captain(s) Long-term injury list Upgraded rookie (B) Category B rookie Updated: 6 January 2008 Source(s): Playing list, Coaching staff

Squad Changes for 2008

Ins

• Jaxson Barham (father and son)
• Cameron Wood (traded)
• John McCarthy (national draft)
• Toby Thoolen (national draft)

Rookie

• Kevin Dyas (international)
• Luke Casey-Leigh (rookie draft)

Outs

• James Clement (retired)
• Nathan Buckley (retired)
• Paul Licuria (retired)
• Ben Davies (traded)
• Guy Richards (delisted)
• Danny Nicholls (delisted)

Individual awards

Best and Fairest

See also: Copeland Trophy

Brownlow Medal winners

• Syd Coventry (1927)
• Albert Collier (1929)
• Harry Collier (1930 tied)
• Marcus Whelan (1939)
• Des Fothergill (1940 tied)
• Len Thompson (1972)
• Peter Moore (1979)
• Nathan Buckley (2003 tied)

Champions of the Colony

• Bill Strickland (1896)
• Dick Condon (1898)
• Fred Leach (1900)
• Ted Rowell (1902)
• Dick Lee (1910, 1915)
• Syd Coventry (1927, 1929)
• Gordon Coventry (1933)
• Harry Collier (1936)
• Jack Regan (1938)

Leigh Matthews Trophy winners

• Darren Millane (1990)

Coleman Medal winners

• Ian Brewer (1958)
• Peter McKenna (1972, 1973)
• Brian Taylor (1986)

Norm Smith Medal winners

• Tony Shaw (1990)
• Nathan Buckley (2002)

Mark of the Year winners

• Billy Picken (1976)
• Chris Tarrant (2003)

Goal of the Year winners

• Mick McGuane (1994)

All Australians

• Gavin Brown (1991, 1994)
• Nathan Buckley (1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2003)
• James Clement (2004, 2005)
• Alan Didak (2006)
• Tony Francis (1991)
• Des Healey (1953)
• Mick McGuane (1992)
• Peter McKenna (1972)
• Peter Moore (1979)
• Len Thompson (1972)
• Geoff Raines (1985)
• Michael Richardson (1983)
• Robert Rose (1953)
• Chris Tarrant (2003)
• Terry Waters (1969)
• Ricky Watt (1969)

Australian International Rules Representatives

• Gavin Brown (1990)
• Nathan Buckley (1998), (1999 - captain)
• James Clement (2002)
• Alan Didak (2004)

Notable records

• Greatest winning margin: 178 points R4, 1979 (VP) - Collingwood 31.21 (207) v St Kilda 3.11 (29)

Records set by players

• Most matches: Tony Shaw - 313 (1977-1994)

• Most consecutive matches: Jock McHale - 191 (1906-1917) - VFL record until 1943

• Most goals kicked in a match: Gordon Coventry - 17 goals 4 behinds (R12, 1930, VP)

• Most Best & Fairests: Nathan Buckley - 6 (1994, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2003)

• Most matches as coach: Jock McHale - 714 (1912-1949)¹

• Most matches as captain/acting captain: Nathan Buckley - 162 (1999-2006)

• Most goals in a season: Peter McKenna - 143 (1970)

• Most goals by a single person: Gordon Coventry - 1299 (1920-1937) - VFL/AFL record until 1997

Team of the Century

Collingwood announced its team of the century on June 14 1997, celebrating 100 years since the beginning of the VFL. Gavin Brown was added as the 4th interchange player in 2002, as when the team was named in 1997, only three interchange players were permitted on a team. [2]

Collingwood Team of the Century

B:	Harold Rumney	Jack Regan	Syd Coventry (Captain)
HB:	Billy Picken	Albert Collier	Nathan Buckley
C:	Thorold Merrett	Bob Rose	Darren Millane
HF:	Des Fothergill	Murray Weideman	Dick Lee
F:	Phonse Kyne	Gordon Coventry	Peter Daicos
Foll:	Len Thompson	Des Tuddenham	Harry Collier
Int:	Tony Shaw	Wayne Richardson	Marcus Whelan
	Gavin Brown
Coach:	James "Jock" McHale

Club jumpers

Home

Clash

• These are the current 2007 jumper designs. The club has worn variations on this black-and-white-stripe design in every league game it has played over its 114-year history - the leagues in question being the Victorian Football Association and Victorian Football League (later Australian Football League).
• The clash jumper is described as the reverse of the current jumper, being a white background with black stripes, black collar and black number. The difference is the traditional jumper is white with three black stripes, while the current jumper is black with 3 white stripes on front and back.
• The club has reverted to the traditional black on white jumper for the AFL's Heritage Round since 2003, save for 2007, when the AFL deemed that the club's heritage jumper would clash with the alternative strip to be donned by its round 14 opponent St Kilda. Onwards from 2007, the club will wear it as their clash strip.
• In 2001, Collingwood changed it's jumper style, with the traditional 'black on white', which sees a white background with black stripes, traded in for a sleeker looking 'white on black', the change heralding a new era at the club.

Notable Fans

• Rob Lowe, actor
• Susan Sarandon, actor
• Tim Robbins, actor
• Peter Helliar, comedian
• Brian Naylor, former news anchor
• Mark Viduka, soccer player
• Mark Latham, former federal opposition leader
• John Brumby, Premier of Victoria
• Peter Brock (deceased), V8 race car driver

Club song

"Good Old Collingwood Forever" is the official anthem of the Collingwood Football Club. It is sung to the tune of "Goodbye, Dolly Gray".

The famed song is generally sung, in accordance to common AFL tradition, after a victory. It is also played before every match.

It is said to be the first club song in VFL/AFL history. The words were written and introduced in 1906 by Tom Nelson who was a young Collingwood player at the time.

Collingwood in popular culture

• David Williamson's 1977 stage play, The Club, was inspired by the backroom dealings and antics of the Collingwood Football Club; although Collingwood is never mentioned by name. The 1980 film version of the play — directed by Bruce Beresford and starring John Howard, Jack Thompson, Graham Kennedy and Frank Wilson[3] — is specifically set at Collingwood, and featured Collingwood players in speaking and non-speaking roles.
• In an Australian version of a play by Adam Kreuzer, based on the film The Wanderers, the Ducky Boys (The Irish Catholic gang) are all Collingwood Football Club supporters.

See also

• List of Collingwood players

External links

• Official website of the Collingwood Football Club