COLLINGWOOD AND RICHMOND - A TALE OF TWO CONTRASTING SEASONSBy Andrew Slevison
SEN
25 July 2022It has been a peculiar 2022 season so far.
Even more so if you are a Collingwood or Richmond supporter.
For the Magpies and the Tigers, it has been a tale of differing seasons, of differing results.
Under Craig McRae, the Pies have simply found ways to win. They sit fourth on the ladder with a 13-5 win-loss record courtesy of nine wins on the trot.
Jamie Elliott’s goal after the siren was the latest in a string of heart-stoppers the black and white have been able to navigate successfully.
Since Round 11, they have won seven games by 11 points or less. Six games by seven points or less. Five games by five points or less.
Of those seven tight victories, six have come against sides outside the eight. The other was against seventh-placed Carlton.
The two other wins in their run of nine straight have been over reigning premiers Melbourne and Fremantle, who have been in the four for much of the season.
Despite only scarcely accounting for lesser opponents, the wins over finals contenders shows their form does stack up to a degree.
With former Tigers assistants McRae and Leppitsch at the helm, the Magpies just find a way. They have won eight matches by less than two goals. They have lost just one by under that margin, to Brisbane by seven points.
Talk about making the most of your chances. That’s 32 points of a possible 36 in tight matches.
On the other side of the coin, Richmond continues to find ways not to win.
Their string of narrow defeats and one draw has them sitting 10th with a record of 9-1-8, two points out of the eight.
Remarkably, it was Round 11 when the Tigers’ run of narrow losses commenced.
They let a lead slip against Sydney to lose by six points. Then coughed up another final-quarter advantage to lose to Geelong by three points.
Next up was the unthinkable after-the-siren loss to Gold Coast having led by 40 points.
The Tigers then went down to North Melbourne by four points when kicking 11.22. It was the Kangaroos’ second win of the year.
And just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse, it did.
Damien Hardwick’s side had Fremantle at their mercy, but could not put them away. They had two chances to win it. They just needed one solitary point.
A pair of Noahs - Balta and Cumberland - took too long and then played on. It’s not pointing the finger, it’s merely pointing out how close they were to a win.
They had to settle for two points, making it two of a possible 20 in games decided by less than two goals.
That is 18 points they’ve left on the table. They currently sit 10th on 38. If the close ones went their way, they’d be in the four and rubbing shoulders with the Pies.
They COULD be there. Not SHOULD. But they aren’t.
It’s a game of inches and at times even millimetres. The Pies have made the most of those close moments.
It has them sitting where not many imagined and on the cusp of, what was considered at the start of the season, an unthinkable finals berth.
On the flip side, the Tigers have been forced to lick their wounds and now embark on a period of the season where they must be faultless - a very hard thing to do amidst an error-ridden patch of form.
The current fortunes of one team has been due to their ability to win at the death.
The other side would be wondering what has gone wrong.
Where it all lands for the Tigers is still to be played out, but if they miss the eight, it is their own doing.
One thing is for certain, however, and that is that the Pies have done everything in their power (mixed with a little luck) to be in the current position they are in.
https://www.sen.com.au/news/2022/07/25/collingwood-and-richmond-a-tale-of-two-contrasting-seasons/
