Collingwood have spoiled the party for record breaker Carlton coach Mick Malthouse, who coached his 715th game on Friday night at the MCG. The Pies dominated the Blues running out 75-point winners.
With Chris Judd back and glimmers of form in the opening four rounds, the Blues were only slight underdogs against a strong and confident Pies outfit. 7 first-half goalscorers for the Pies emphasised just how lost the Blues defence was on a night that will have their veteran coach back under the spotlight.
While it was the Blues big man Cameron Wood who opened the scoring, Carlton were no match for the Pies attack. To make matters tougher the Collingwood midfield were swamping the early opportunity to release from the defensive 50.
Captain Scott Pendlebury maintained control of the midfield for Collingwood providing 3 goal assists. Pendlebury was joined by first-half warrior Adam Oxley who racked up nearly 450 metres gained along with an assist of his own.
Small forward Jamie Elliott was slippery and far too quick for his markers, slotting 2.2 with confidence. Carlton just couldn’t take their chances which were few and far between.
Malthouse’s Blues managed only 1 behind from 3 turnovers in the Pies defensive 50. Down by 42 (2.3.15 – 8.9.57) heading into the second half, Malthouse needed a miracle to salvage something from his milestone match. Even with 406 wins in the last 18 years he has never come back from 7 goals down at half-time.
The Pies continued their onslaught in the third, kicking 6.2 to the Blues 3.3 and pushing the gap to 59 points. Inside 50’s were closer with Collingwood only just nudging the Blues 14-12, though execution was still a problem for Carlton.
Pemdlebury, Cloake and Elliott all finished with 2 goals each as the Pies enjoyed 15 individual goal kickers on the scoresheet for the first time in the club’s history.
Varcoe makes no mistake! That’s a perfect snap shot at goal #AFLBluesPies http://t.co/aJnPI74Uwc
— AFL (@AFL) May 1, 2015
The fairytale could not be completed for Malthouse who deserved better than what his players offered in front of a huge and expectant crowd.
‘Unfortunately tonight we had to ruin it for him, but it can’t ruin his legacy,” commented a respectful Dane Swan who shared a close relationship with Malthouse during his time at Collingwood.
The win has the Pies on top of the AFL Ladder after an incomplete 5th round of competition. Few punters would have given Eddie Maguire’s men any hope of achieving what they have already recorded this season and it will be interesting to see if they can maintain this current stream of form.
