Magpies steal victory in extra time

Collingwood   74 defeated St Kilda   73

Collingwood has advanced to the quarter-finals of the NAB Cup following a thrilling one-point victory in extra-time over St Kilda at the Telstra Dome tonight.

Josh Fraser emerged as the hero for the Magpies with his match winning goal in extra time, although it could have been much worse for the ruckman when he was harshly penalised before the full-time siren, allowing the Saints to level the scores.

Fraser gave away a debateable free kick for a minor ruck infringement in the dieing stages of the fourth-quarter, giving St Kilda full-forward Fraser Gehrig the chance to win the match after the siren.

Gehrig unexpectedly missed from about 30-metres out directly in front, which levelled the scores at 66-66 and sent the match into two five-minute periods of extra-time.

Nick Riewoldt kicked truly to give the Saints the lead, while Magpies’ Chris Tarrant and Anthony Rocca both missed set shot opportunities before Fraser managed to find himself in the right place at the right time to put Collingwood in front with a snap shot over his shoulder in the second period of extra-time.

Riewoldt had a final shot on goal in the last minute that was touched on the line by Jason Cloke, securing the Magpies first AFL victory since July last year and a quarter-final appearance against the winner of West Coast and Fremantle next Sunday in Perth.

There was no shortage of action or drama for the 24,567 fans at the Dome, despite the poor skills and lack of key players in both sides for the opening round of the 2006 pre-season competition.

Nathan Buckley, James Clement, Scott Burns, Shane Wakelin, Rhyce Shaw and youngster Sean Rusling were all missing for the Pies, while the Saints were without Justin Koschitzke, Xavier and Raphael Clarke, Justin Peckett and Andrew Thompson.

Paul Licuria was dominant for Collingwood with 35 possessions and was well supported in the center by Shane O’Bree (30) and Brodie Holland (28), along with Jason Cloke who showed further signs of improvement across halfback.

Fraser (two goals), Alan Didak, Rocca and Tarrant (one goal each) all made encouraging returns from injury, although there was concern for the Saints as Aaron Hamill left the field in the first quarter after receiving a knock near his thigh.

Riewoldt was arguably best-on-ground with his ten marks and three goals, while St Kilda veteran Robert Harvey and new captain Luke Ball were both very impressive throughout the midfield.

The Magpies got off to a great start in the first quarter with two super goals courtesy of Cameron Cloke and Ryan Lonie allowing them to gain an early 18-point lead before Gehrig reduced the margin with the Saints first six-pointer midway through the term.

A further two goals before quarter-time gave Collingwood a 25-point advantage, although it was quickly reduced in the second-term as Brendon Goddard nailed a super goal followed by a regular goal from Saint recruit Fergus Watts.

After trailing by 15-points at the main break St Kilda managed to pile on four goals to one in the third-quarter, which gave them the lead going into the final term.

The Saints extended the margin to 20-points before the Magpies were able to stop the flow and fight back with three quick goals to reclaim the lead with minutes remaining.

Stephen Milne, who was kept reasonably quiet throughout the match, had the chance to put St Kilda back in front with a set shot at goal, although it hit the post and bounced back into play.

Goddard intercepted the ball on its return at half-forward and looked to seal the match with his second super goal, but he could only manage another behind for the Saints, bringing the margin to one-point.

Gehrig’s shot on goal after the siren sent the match into extra time, in which the Magpies managed to pinch an exhilarating and surprising win, amazingly with the same score line as the 1966 Grand Final, although this time the teams were reversed and it was Collingwood who were victorious.

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