An “on the up” St Kilda outfit has consigned Collingwood to the dreaded 0-3 start to the season it was desperately trying to avoid, with an AFL icon declaring the Magpies “weren’t prepared” to physically commit.
The Pies attempted a late comeback after trailing by 20 points at the final change, but it was too little too late for the reeling reigning premiers.
A miraculous and slightly controversial Jack Higgins major from the boundary line put the final St Kilda nail in the coffin of a 15-point victory at the MCG on Thursday.
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Collingwood’s premiership candidacy — after an eyebrow-raising pair of losses to start the year — is now well and truly in question.
The last team to start 0-3 and win the premiership was North Melbourne in 1976. History is really starting to work against the black and white.
Higgo boots STUNNER… and he knows it! | 00:45
In a candid assessment of the Pies’ performance, Hawthorn legend Jason Dunstall criticised Collingwood’s physical approach to the contest.
“Collingwood, to be brutally honest, weren’t prepared to put their bodies on the line like St Kilda were.” Dunstall told Fox Footy post-game.
Dunstall also made sure to laud the Saints for their commanding effort against a formidable opponent.
“This is a significant moment for the St Kilda Football Club, to win a game like this against a high-quality opponent,” he said.
“They’re on the up … All 23 contributed very well tonight; you’d go a long way to find a bad player for the Saints.”
Dual premiership player David King added: “I don’t know when their next opportunity (to win a premiership) is, I don’t know whether it’s this year or next year but it ain’t too far away.”
St Kilda great Leigh Montagna pointed to Collingwood’s older players as a part of the root cause of the side’s early-season issues.
“To be fair, some of veteran senior players just aren’t quite the same,” Montagna told Fox Footy post-game.
“Some of their veterans — who have been so good for them for so long — they just haven’t come to the party to start the season.
“They don’t look invested, that’s obvious … They don’t look anywhere near as tough as what we saw last year.”
King criticised Collingwood’s defensive approach, as well as the side’s level of commitment.
“I don’t know if they’re as invested in this method of defence, or this pattern of play anymore,” King said. “They’re looking for easy kicks … they look jittery.”
“It’s a really disrespectful way of playing, it really is. When it fails, it looks really poor — I don’t know whether they paid the price on offence or defence.”
After tonight’s result, Collingwood joins 2023 Geelong as only reigning premier to be 0-3 in the AFL era.
Still searching for their first triumph of the new season, the Pies will travel to play Brisbane next Thursday night.
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