Magpies season always fell short: Buckley

Updated September 22, 2012 14:14:57

Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley says his side's preliminary final loss reflects their season - full of character but never reaching the heights the team wanted.

The Magpies were never seriously in the hunt in Friday night's 13.18 (96) to 10.10 (70) loss to Sydney at the Olympic stadium, after the Swans dominated most of the first three quarters.

Collingwood rallied either side of the last change to cut the margin from 42 points to 20 and briefly pose a threat, but the Swans steadied and won comfortably.

The Magpies' season followed a similar pattern, recovering from a heap of early-season long-term injuries and some worrying defeats to manufacture a run of 10 straight wins, only to lose momentum late.

"We were just behind the eight ball from the beginning, we were pushing the proverbial up hill and we just weren't able to get there," Buckley said, initially talking about Friday night's loss.

"But we just didn't give up. We had blokes that still believed that there was a chance.

"For the most part, that's what our season was like.

"We had a patch of wins through the middle there where we were beating sides but we still weren't playing at our best.

"We came into the finals losing two of our last three games to top-eight sides ... if we'd have gone any further we would have been flicking a (form) switch and personally I don't really believe in that.

"We need to be better and find momentum earlier in the home and away to be able to give ourselves the best chance coming into September."

The Magpies' preliminary final exit meant they missed the grand final for the first time in three years.

Despite the large number of long-term injuries they copped, Buckley said the Magpies had to improve and work out why their depth, player development and tactical planning was not good enough to cope slightly better.

But he said their character was not in question, particularly during the finals, when they were also rocked by the death of former teammate John McCarthy.

"I've got great pride in the playing group and the leaders within it," Buckley said.

"All of our players have got great character, great competitiveness and I've got no doubt that we can achieve great things in the future because of that, because that is the basis for anything that we'll do in the future."

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Tags: sport, australian-football-league, sydney-2000, nsw, melbourne-3000, vic, australia

First posted September 22, 2012 12:02:50

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Swan denies Buckley rift rumours

Updated April 23, 2012 13:45:55

Collingwood superstar Dane Swan has dismissed rumours of a rift with his coach Nathan Buckley, saying they have a great relationship.

The Brownlow medallist fronted the media before the Magpies strolled around the Botanical Gardens as part of their rehabilitation before their massive Anzac Day clash with high-flying Essendon at the MCG.

"People can believe what they want," Swan said.

"I have a great relationship with him, just like I did with Mick (former Collingwood coach Malthouse).

"We're fine and we have no issues."

Former North Melbourne great Wayne Carey said last week that up to seven Collingwood players had fallen out with Buckley, a claim which was denied by the club.

In addition to the Buckley rumour, the heavily-scrutinised Swan has been criticised for being out of shape.

Swan said he was an easy target because until his stand-out performance in their last-round win over Port Adelaide, he had not been playing well.

"I think I wasn't playing well and we were losing so people tend to pick on you when you're not going well and you're at a high-profile club," the 28-year-old said.

"For everyone who has any interest, which I'm not sure why, I'm about 800g heavier and my skinfolds are two points lower so for all the people who care about that, there you go."

He said rumours were made up by some people to feed their inflated egos but it did not affect the players or the club.

"They think they're reasonably important so they make up rumours to get their heads in the papers and their name on Twitter.

"We only care about what happens internally at the club so people can write what they like."

Swan had 36 touches in Collingwood's 24-point win over Port on Saturday as his side got its spluttering season on track.

The Magpies are set to have Alan Didak and Nathan Brown back in the line-up against the Bombers after strong showings in the VFL.

"If Bucks (Buckley) decides to play them, they're both premiership players and in our best 22 so whether they'd be right to come in off a four-day break or wait until after Anzac Day, that's for the coaches to decide."

Swan described the clash with unbeaten Essendon as a "massive challenge".

"It was good to get a win on the weekend but we weren't at our best," he said.

"We'd like to think we kick-started it on Saturday and we'll hopefully build on that."

AAP

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First posted April 23, 2012 13:34:22

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McGuire slams Malthouse for not supporting Buckley

Updated April 16, 2012 09:54:48

Club president Eddie McGuire has slammed former coach Mick Malthouse insisting he "wouldn't have a friend at Collingwood today."

Malthouse and McGuire have been embroiled in an increasingly bitter war of words which has escalated following the 60-point loss to Carlton on Friday.

After just three games in charge of the 2010 champions, Nathan Buckley is already under pressure and McGuire, who also slammed Magpies fans for not supporting the team during Friday's defeat, feels Malthouse is adding to his former assistant's problems.

"Mick, if you're listening out there mate, your legacy is secure," McGuire said on Triple M.

"You've been a sensational servant to the Collingwood football club, we love you, but move on now because picking over the scabs, you're doing exactly what you used to hate (former coach) Tony Shaw doing to you.

"Give Bucks a bit of a go mate, because when Bucks was the captain he carried that team for you, he played his guts out for you - give the bloke a bit of a chance, he's in his first year."

McGuire said Malthouse "reneged" on the five-year contract put to him in 2009 that would see him coach for two years moving to a director of coaching role with Buckley as coach from this season on.

"We signed off on a plan two-and-a-half years ago that Mick was all over - and if he wasn't, certainly his manager was. We had it and he decided not to stay at the club," he said.

"But I'm disappointed this morning that basically he's bagged me, bagged Bucks, bagged (football manager) Geoff Walsh - which is very disappointing because of the support Geoff Walsh has given him.

"He's come out and blamed the grand final loss on Dane Swan, Chris Tarrant and the umpires. That's hard.

"You can't claim the glory for the coaching plan to get to the grand final and then bag the players who actually followed it out.

"I love Mick and I've supported him 100 per cent, but I tell you what, he wouldn't have a friend at Collingwood today. He hasn't missed anyone."

McGuire also bristled at suggestions from Malthouse that Leon Davis, a key defender for the Magpies in 2011, would have stayed with the club if there had not been a change of coach.

"I spoke to Leon Davis 15 minutes after the grand final and he told me that he was going home for family reasons," McGuire said.

"It wouldn't have mattered if he was offered a million bucks, he was going home.

"Leon was going for every reason other than football, let me tell you that. Whether Mick was going to be there or not, I don't think that was going to make any difference."

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First posted April 16, 2012 09:14:39

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Buckley wary of Blues assault

Updated April 08, 2012 14:55:56

Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley likes what he saw against Richmond on Saturday night, but knows a much bigger challenge awaits from Carlton on Friday night.

While the Magpies' 12.13 (85) to 8.16 (64) win over Richmond was their first of the season, the Blues have been extremely impressive in blasting away the Tigers by 44 points in the opening round then thrashing Brisbane by 91 on Thursday night.

Buckley said Carlton looked good in every department.

"They've been dominant really," he told reporters.

"Their midfield's up and running, their defence is very strong, their forwards are looking dangerous.

"They've given us plenty to think about."

Collingwood will almost certainly be without key defender Chris Tarrant, who was subbed out with a calf injury on Saturday night.

"If he can't get through a quarter of footy, I wouldn't think six days later he'd be right to play four," Buckley said.

But the Pies should regain skipper Nick Maxwell, with Sharrod Wellingham, Ben Johnson and Alan Didak also in contention.

The win over the Tigers was a gritty, unspectacular performance, apart from a five-goal burst in the opening seven minutes of the second half.

But Buckley said while it might not have been a crowd-pleaser, he much preferred it to the shoot-out loss to Hawthorn in round one.

"The first three quarters were exactly the way we wanted to go about it," he said.

"Our contested ball was good, our ball movement was okay, but I think we defended a lot better than last week."

The Magpies' decisive third-quarter burst was inspired by a three-goal term from midfield star Dale Thomas, which came after Buckley had urged him to lift on a quiet first half.

"It's not often you need to ask Daisy for a little bit extra and when you ask him, he finds it," the Magpies boss said.

The winless Tigers lost small forward Jake King to a posterior cruciate ligament injury, expected to sideline him for six weeks.

Their defeat sets the scene for a desperate struggle on Saturday with another winless club, Melbourne.

"We're 0-2, we need to win. Melbourne are the same," coach Damien Hardwick said.

"As far as we're concerned it will be a solid build-up for us and we'll come out and play our best, as Melbourne will. It's a really important game for both football clubs."

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First posted April 08, 2012 14:53:36

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Buckley and Pies experience 'wake-up call'

Updated April 15, 2012 07:36:31

Nathan Buckley said Collingwood's coaches and players must 'sharpen up' after the Magpies' sobering 60-point loss to Carlton at the MCG on Friday night.

Buckley, who is facing pressure after just his third game in charge since succeeding Mick Malthouse, said his club had been shown up by a hungrier side playing better as a team and with a greater spread of contributors.

Carlton's seven goals in the first quarter saw it race to a comfortable lead that only for a brief period in the second period did Collingwood look like being capable of pulling back.

A six goal second half saw the lead extended further ending up with a crushing 18.14 (122) to 9.8 (62) loss for Buckley.

"We've had a fairly big wake-up call tonight," Buckley said.

(Carlton was) "harder, more skilful, played as a team, and were more committed to the contest."

"If we thought we were going along in the right direction as coachesand as players in 2012, then we've just found out we better sharpen up a bit.

"Things just don't happen in this game; things change pretty quickly. You're either moving forward or you're moving backwards, or you might stagnate.

"We clearly haven't got the gap that we enjoyed towards the end of 2010 between where the club was and the competition.

"That gap clearly whittled away to nothing towards the end of last year, and perhaps we've got some catching up to do."

The club faces Port Adelaide next week before its Anzac Day meeting with Essendon where defeat would pile more pressure on the first-year coach.

Buckley wants the Magpies players to show the same attitude they did 2010 when the club hunted down its first flag in twenty years.

"This club has been in a similar position before, in 2010, and we have to see a similar commitment and endeavour, and a building of belief and hunger," Buckley said.

"When you've been at the pinnacle - when you've been a part of one of the better sides, you either come along for the ride and think that it's going to last forever, or you dig in, you roll your sleeves up, and you're prepared to be better.

"I've got a great belief in the characters at this footy club, and a great belief in the players' ability to dig deep and find something extra when they're challenged.

"And this challenge now for the club in the medium-term, from round three on, is a massive challenge.

"If we thought we were going along in the right direction in 2012 as coaches and as players, we've just found out that we'd better sharpen up a little bit."

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Tags: sport, australian-football-league, collingwood-3066, carlton-3053

First posted April 14, 2012 08:48:46

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Tarrant's return boosts Magpies: Buckley

Updated April 06, 2012 14:17:27

Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley says the return from injury of Chris Tarrant adds some steel to the Magpies' backline ahead of Saturday night's round-two clash with Richmond at the MCG.

The Magpies regain Tarrant and Dayne Beams at the expense of Luke Rounds and debutant Peter Yagmoor.

While last year's grand finalists Collingwood lost to premiership favourites Hawthorn by 22 points in round one under new coach Buckley, the Tigers failed to live up to their preseason hype with a 44-point loss to Carlton last week.

But Buckley says the Tigers showed throughout the preseason that they will be a strong side in 2012.

"'Taz' (Tarrant) is a great addition for us. Having him through our defensive rotations is important," Buckley said on Friday.

"It adds that bit of experience and steel for us in the second round. Beamsy has been coming back gradually and his form in the last couple of weeks was excellent."

Skipper Nick Maxwell trained with the side on Friday at Gosch's Paddock but has been ruled out of the Richmond game as he recovers from an ankle injury.

Buckley said Maxwell would not play VFL this weekend.

Maxwell's absence is a blow for the Magpies with Buckley admitting he is a fan of Richmond's attack.

"Richmond have been playing their three talls. (Ty) Vickery, (Jack) Riewoldt and (Brad) Miller have been as good as any through the preseason," Buckley said.

"Miller in particular, his form up around that front half has been quite damaging.

"Although Carlton were able to hold both Miller and Vickery for times last week, we expect that they'll want to bounce back pretty quickly.

"So it's going to be important early in the match to try to keep that ascendancy."

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First posted April 06, 2012 14:17:27

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Young Magpies impress Buckley

Updated February 19, 2012 20:37:07

Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley saw plenty of encouraging signs after giving the club's raw players experience in the AFL preseason competition in Sydney on Saturday.

But a serious knee injury to 2010 premiership player Brent Macaffer, who will undergo scans on an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), was Saturday night's obvious downer for the Magpies.

Macaffer joins a lengthy injury list, with Alan Didak (adductor), Ben Johnson (hamstring), Harry O'Brien (hand) and Ben Reid (shoulder) headlining a list of players unavailable for the Blacktown clashes.

However, the absence of so many premiership players provided the perfect platform for untried talent to shine.

"NAB Cup is about finding out about the depth of your list," Buckley said after his side's wins over Western Bulldogs and Greater Western Sydney.

"All of our young blokes were up and about and will be better for the experience."

Buckley singled out Jackson Paine, Peter Yagmoor, Jarrod Witts, Jonathon Ceglar, Shae McNamara and Marley Williams - all yet to play an AFL game - for praise.

Paine, a key forward taken with pick number 50 in last year's draft, produced the highlight of the night when he calmly peeled off a spectacular match-winning goal from the boundary line in the three-point win over GWS.

The 18-year-old admitted there was a touch of luck.

"I was trying to square it up and do the team thing but in the end it looked selfish," he told the club's website.

"In the end I got the goal and it was pretty exciting. I hope my celebration wasn't too 'wankery'."

Buckley was pleased with his charges' first hit-out for the year.

"Obviously to get the wins was a major aim," the coach said.

"We expect to win every game we play. Perhaps some people would look at the squad and say perhaps that's not the way we've selected the team.

"But ultimately we just needed those (young) players to get some experience playing their roles and I thought they did it pretty well."

Aside from a physical mishap with his chair, Buckley was content with how his new coaching team fared in the official start to the post-Malthouse era.

"I had some trouble with my seat. I kept sitting forwards and backwards, so I was going a bit nuts at times," he said.

"In the end, the communication was pretty good. We're after a style of play that we're trying to foster and it takes more than 80 minutes to be able to do that.

"But we're encouraged by some young players that came in and played their roles very well."

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First posted February 19, 2012 17:49:09

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Buckley backs Krakouer's preseason

Updated February 02, 2012 22:02:03

New Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley has thrown his weight behind Andrew Krakouer's off-season, saying the forward needed downtime in the wake of his momentous comeback.

Buckley said the plan was for the 28-year-old to be at peak fitness ahead of this year's finals.

His strong support was in response to talk that Krakouer might have needed to work on his fitness after taking a break.

But Buckley said Krakouer's time away from training had been invaluable.

Krakouer was one of the great AFL stories last year, making his comeback with the Magpies after serving a 16-month jail term in WA for assault.

"You can only be up for so long," Buckley said.

"The players still need to be able to fill the tank because by the end of the season, it's empty.

"There's no doubt 'Krak' had been up for a long time and he needed to go away and fill the tank a little bit.

"That off-season was really important for him, just to take stock, and he's on the way back and going well."

Buckley also noted that as soon as competitive ball work had started, Krakouer's competitive instincts had shone through again.

"He is training okay, but he still has a fair bit of work to do," he said.

"We have had some boys on restricted programs with injury - he had a few little concerns.

"We want him to play his best footy at the pointy end of the season because that's when he is going to be most important to us.

"He will have a run around in the NAB Cup and he will be up and about for selection, but he's on his own program.

"As soon as you start ball work and scrimmaging he is phenomenal."

Meanwhile, Buckley has praised two-time All-Australian Alan Didak, saying his preseason had so far been outstanding.

After finishing fourth in the club best-and-fairest two years ago, Didak struggled last season with injury and below-par form.

"He's probably exceeded expectations in many ways - he's had a very consistent pre-season," Buckley said.

"The body is in good nick, the mind is in good nick.

"He's looking forward to probably getting some momentum early in the season to counteract the way last year ended.

"There's no reason at this stage why he shouldn't have the confidence to start the year well, given he's been easily among the top three trainers on the track this pre-season."

Buckley said there was "no reason" why Didak could not return to his 2010 form.

AAP

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First posted February 02, 2012 22:02:03

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Media Call: Nathan Buckley

Published:Wednesday, September 28, 2011 3:59 AESTExpires:Tuesday, December 27, 2011 3:59 AEST

Collingwood assistant coach Nathan Buckley has fobbed off his team's two defeats to Geelong this year and says the Pies believe their best football is better than their grand final opponent's.

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Buckley and I never great mates: Malthouse

Updated October 03, 2011 16:30:29

Newly-retired Collingwood coach Mick Malthouse says he and successor Nathan Buckley were never great mates and he does not believe Buckley wanted him to stick around.

After Malthouse announced on Saturday he was walking out on a three-year contract to work with Buckley as director of coaching, the Magpies on Monday appointed ex-Western Bulldogs coach Rodney Eade to the job instead.

Malthouse, whose last game of his 28-year coaching career was Saturday's grand final loss to Geelong, was unsure how rookie coach Buckley would cope working as coach alongside an experienced mentor.

But he was certain the new Magpies coach had not wanted him in the role.

"If it's the same role that I was intended to be appointed to, Nathan was a bit resistant to it, I'm sure he was," Malthouse told Melbourne's SEN radio.

"I absolutely, totally can understand it and if I put myself in his shoes, I would understand it.

"It will be interesting to see how it works out, but I reckon Rocket (Eade's) mindset on football is very, very sound and he'll help the football club and he'll help Nathan.

"So good luck, I don't wish anyone any ill.

"I think it's terrific, but that position is finished for me and that's it."

Three-time premiership coach Malthouse said he had a solid working relationship with Buckley, who served under him as first a player, then as an assistant coach, but they were never close.

"We were never best mates, we worked on a professional basis," Malthouse said.

Malthouse said he had formed strong friendships with several other of his former players and assistants, but with Buckley, there was never the same "chemistry".

"It was never a great friendship, because he had his mates and I had a different opinion of my mates, so we went different ways that way," Malthouse said.

"But with say (Guy) McKenna and perhaps Brad Scott and Dean Laidley, there was a strong bond, in terms of we had more things of (common) interest, whereas Nathan's got his and I've got mine.

"That doesn't make you not work together."

Eade's official job title at the Magpies is football and coaching strategist.

The four-time Hawthorn premiership player brings great experience, having coached the Bulldogs for almost seven seasons, including to three preliminary finals.

He previously coached Sydney for six-and-a-half seasons and will also coach Australia in the upcoming International Rules series against Ireland.

Eade's appointment rules him out of the vacant St Kilda head-coaching position, for which he was being considered.

The Saints are the only club of the six who have lost or sacked coaches this year yet to appoint a replacement.

AAP

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First posted October 03, 2011 15:14:53

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