A big occasionBy Ashley Browne
afl.com.au
5:00pm AEST Wednesday, April 17, 2013NATHAN Buckley is so process and routine-oriented that he needed a reminder on Wednesday that Collingwood will not be facing any old opponent on the weekend.
The Pies will be up against a club, and involved in a clash, that carries a fair bit of tradition.
It is Richmond v Collingwood on a Saturday afternoon at the MCG. A crowd of more than 80,000 is expected and, after just a little prompting, the Collingwood coach acknowledged that this one might be more than just another game.
"When you take half a step back and allow yourself to have a look at the occasions you are going into - and that's the smelling the roses part I have always needed help with – it is great to see that," he said at the Westpac Centre on Wednesday.
"We know how feral the Richmond supporters can get; we know how feral our supporters can be and we know how loud both those supporter bases are. It's a fantastic opportunity for our players to play in."
Buckley's enthusiasm for the occasion came about partly as a result of some prodding from the assembled media, but he can be excused for that.
As he later explained, Richmond-versus-Collingwood in his playing days often meant a clash between two sides "at the wrong end of the ladder".
"When I played, we were two bottom-four clubs so that took some of the gloss off," he said.
The last meeting between the two clubs took place in the second weekend of last season. Buckley noted that Richmond's key performance indicators last season were those of a top-eight, perhaps even a top-six side.
"They've got a lot of talent there," he said when asked his assessment of where Richmond's improvement has come from in the past 12 months.
"It's just playing together more and understanding their systems more."
Buckley said the Magpies would need to pay attention to more than just Richmond's midfield trio of Brett Deledio, Trent Cotchin and Dustin Martin.
"They get the majority of the focus, but their back six is pretty strong and defensively, they have put a lot of work into the way they operate together.
"Jake King as a small forward plays his role well in comparison to the rest of the competition, Shane Edwards sneaks under the guard and Reece Conca is coming on," he said.
Saturday's clash also marks the 200th game for star midfielder Dane Swan.
http://www.afl.com.au/news/2013-04-17/a-big-occasion
