The Collingwood juggernaut rocks on.
Sadly, it’s the Collingwood hype juggernaut.
Inside a single quarter of the grand closing being performed, individuals started texting me that it will’ve been a greater grand closing had Tom Papley been penalised for a push within the again towards Darcy Moore within the Sydney-Collingwood preliminary closing, implying then Collingwood would’ve received, and would’ve supplied Geelong a harder contest within the grand closing.
By the tip of the match, individuals had been brazenly posting this sentiment on social media. Memes began making appearances – image of the Papley-Moore contest, with Moore (being pushed ahead) being labelled “a very good AFL grand closing” and Papley being labelled “Sydney”.
Right here we’re once more in Collingwoodland: regardless of the details, regardless of the indelible historic document, we will all stroll away and console ourselves for being nearly crucial membership within the competitors.
Even after we’re not.
Why can we do that? Why does the rank and file stick with this narrative?
One other instance is the 2018 preliminary closing, when Collingwood trounced Richmond, however then misplaced to West Coast within the Grand Last. Nonetheless, Richmond received flags in 2017, 2019, and 2020. Fortunately, we stopped Richmond’s four-peat, despite the fact that at this stage they had been solely going for again to again.
We even go the double whammy in 2018: not solely did we cease Richmond’s four-peat, we had been additionally robbed within the Grand Last itself as a result of Brayden Maynard wasn’t paid a free kick for being blocked.
If solely.
It’s the Collingwood lament: “If solely [insert lament].”
At Collingwood, we have to be about probably the most unlucky membership to grace any aggressive sport as a result of there are such a lot of causes for failure, and so many pseudo celebrations for all the wonderful hypotheticals. We cling to those myths as if we’re prescient, and communicate of them with infallible certainty.
The reality is that if Collingwood overcame Sydney within the preliminary closing, we don’t know the way they’d’ve fared towards Geelong within the Grand Last. The Pies may’ve received, may’ve misplaced narrowly, may’ve been smashed, or may’ve been smashed by much more than the margin the Swans suffered.
(Picture by Quinn Rooney/Getty Photos)
Absolutely the fact that we will exalt is that this 12 months, Geelong are an excellent crew, and so they performed a near-faultless Grand Last. Congratulations to the Cats. They’re worthy winners.
Return to the Richmond fallacy, we don’t know what would’ve occurred had the Tigers overcome the Pies within the 2018 preliminary closing. They may’ve misplaced to West Coast, may’ve crushed them, or may’ve smashed them. Who is aware of how Richmond may’ve come up in 2019 in the event that they’d gone again to again 2017–18?
We are able to theorise, speculate, and outright fictionalise, however the actuality that continues to be is we simply don’t know, so assigning any significance to Collingwood in conditions like that is simply an train in black and white martyrdom.
Blaming umpiring selections – such because the Maynard block, or the Papley push (and there’s a litany of those that adorn Collingwood failures) – solely excuses the actual wrongdoer: simply not being ok on the day.
I laud Craig McRae for his language and positioning in press conferences following the qualifying closing loss and the preliminary closing loss, however that perspective has to permeate by anyone and all people related to Collingwood.
(Picture by Daniel Carson/AFL Images through Getty Photos)
Followers will defend their stance. They’ll espouse Collingwood as being the best, being on the proper path (after only one season), and that if not for just a little luck, we might be extra profitable – if not in the end profitable this 12 months.
When there are such a lot of {qualifications} on self-image, you must marvel how distorted that self-image turns into. And, as soon as distorted, how does that influence the collective psychology of the membership transferring ahead?
Why take accountability for a loss (and thus tackle the actual points) if it’s as simple as blaming an umpiring resolution? Or attributing the failure to a single incident (e.g. Anthony Rocca’s level in 2002), or an exterior issue (e.g. Phil Carman’s suspension in 1977)?
Why discover that edge to go above and past within the pursuit of final glory once you’re celebrated for some hypothetical achievement (that may by no means be confirmed)?
In my actuality, Geelong had been too good for Sydney, and each had been too good for Collingwood this 12 months – they each beat Collingwood in finals, and so they each beat Collingwood throughout the home-and-away season.
That’s all there may be to it.
If Collingwood are to maneuver ahead right into a profitable new period, it’s time they did so with out all of the unwarranted hyperbole and speculative ballast.
It’s the one method to get higher.
