Nathan Buckley’s coaching philosophy is set for an intriguing test when Collingwood take on a Western Bulldogs side led by in-form midfielder Jack Macrae on Friday night.
The 10th-placed Magpies head into the Etihad Stadium clash well-placed after notching a convincing 28-point win over St Kilda, while the Bulldogs (13th) registered a dire scoreline of 2.14 (26) during their wet-weather loss to Adelaide.
But the Dogs have a trump card in the form of ball magnet Macrae, who is having a breakout season averaging 34 disposals per game.
The likes of North Melbourne’s Ben Jacobs and Carlton’s Ed Curnow have shown that an old-fashioned hard tag still has a place in the modern AFL.
But Buckley has been reluctant to engage such tactics against even the most prolific ball-winners, preferring to back in his midfield as a collective.
“Jackson Macrae’s been a prolific player over the last three or four weeks and we don’t want him getting off the chain,” Buckley said on Wednesday.
“Some of that will be about what we want to do as a team and some of it will be about the individual attention we’re giving.
“The main thing for us if we don’t get our team plans right, it makes it a lot harder to dim the effectiveness of the better players in the opposition.”
The Magpies will be without classy midfielder Daniel Wells (rested) but have one of the competition’s most in-form players in Jordan De Goey, who slotted six goals against St Kilda and five against Brisbane a fortnight earlier.
FILLING THEIR BOOTS: THE AFL BALL MAGNETS CAUSING HEADACHES FOR COLLINGWOOD
* Tom Mitchell: The gun onballer had a record 54 touches as the Hawks opened their season with a 34-point victory over the Pies. Mitchell was largely allowed to roam free despite having had a 50-disposal game against Collingwood last season. North Melbourne’s Ben Jacobs proved a few weeks later that Mitchell can be stopped, keeping him to 19 touches as the Kangaroos beat Hawthorn by 28 points.
* Dayne Zorko: Brisbane’s pint-sized star had been tagged out of losses to Greater Western Sydney and Gold Coast. But he was let off the chain against Collingwood and racked up 34 disposals and four goals. The Magpies still managed to scrape through for a seven-point win but many questioned the decision to give Zorko such freedom.
* Jack Macrae: The Western Bulldogs prime mover has surged into Brownlow Medal contention, gathering more than 30 disposals in all but one game this season. His ability to win the ball in tight makes him difficult to restrict, as does the constant threat posed by superstar teammate Marcus Bontempelli. A tough strategic call awaits the Magpies on Friday night.