Pies called out for arrogant approach

KANE Cornes has called out Collingwood for their decision to let Hawthorn captain James Sicily do as he pleased in last Saturday’s thirty-two-point loss at the MCG.

Sicily played as a loose man in defence all day as the Magpies opted to have an extra at stoppages around the ground, allowing the Hawk to dominate with 19 marks, 37 disposals and four rebound 50s.

While the Magpies were able to claim most of the around the ground clearances as a result winning the stat 32-16, it didn’t pay off whatsoever as Sicily was always waiting as they began their offence.

Given Sicily has had similar games so far this season when he hasn’t been tagged, Cornes was stunned to see Collingwood allow him to roam free for the entire four quarters, a decision he believed was a sign of arrogance from the ladder leaders.

“They let [Sicily] do as he pleased,” Cornes said on AFL.com.au’s The Round So Far.

“We saw how much time St Kilda put into James Sicily last week after he got a hold of them earlier on in the year.

“Collingwood gave him no respect and there was just a little bit of arrogance about the way Collingwood went about it.”

Another tactical move that helped Hawthorn cruise to victory was Finn Maginness’ role tagging Brownlow Medal favourite Nick Daicos.

Daicos was held to just five disposals and a goal before he eventually came from the field with a knee injury.

Given how effective Maginness was, Cornes said it shows that clubs should at least use one of their 44 list spots on a player that can shut down the opposition’s best weapon.

“I didn’t think they [Collingwood] helped Daicos anywhere near enough and they knew that tag was coming days out,” Cornes said.

“Collingwood’s system is all about sticking to their own system, today that backfired.

“I can’t believe we have 44 spots on an AFL list, and Hawthorn is really the only team with a dedicated tagger.

“You must get one or develop one because you need one at some stage. It’s not every week, but he’s shown the importance of this.

“Hats off to Finn Maginness because people were saying through three-quarters of this season that this man [Daicos] is untaggable.

“Well that’s rubbish, and more teams should try and do the same.”

While the Magpies were able to control stoppages around the ground, those were often in their defensive end as the Hawks dominated field position thanks to an 18-3 thrashing in centre clearances.

Cornes believes that midfield victory is part of a blueprint of how teams will try and beat the premiership favourites for the rest of the season.

“I just wonder whether there is now evidence of a blueprint on how to beat the Pies,” Cornes said.

“Stop them intercepting the ball in their defensive half, guard the corridor, match them in the midfield so you can give your forwards an opportunity because their defenders are vulnerable and bring that ferocious pressure.”

– LACHLAN GELEIT/ SEN