At the halfway point of the 2025 season, the Pies looked unstoppable.
Things were clicking and they appeared that they were the best team in the competition by a pretty wide margin. The defence was standing up, despite the absence of Jeremy Howe, the midfield were dominant, and following a Round Zero hiccup where people were quick to label them “tired” and “slow”, the Collingwood machine started to hum along nicely.
Rattling off 14 wins in 15 games, it seemed as though the Magpies had one hand firmly on the premiership cup.
People forget how far out in front they got.
However, like a sprinter in a marathon, it didn’t end well.
Collingwood limped into the finals, winning just two of their last six games, and the team that seemed invulnerable at one stage, now displayed a weakness.
Despite a big Qualifying Final win against the top-of-the-table Crows, Collingwood’s season ended in the Preliminary Final, falling to the eventual premiers, by 29 points.
Was this a wasted season? Did the Pies peak too early? What have they learnt from the 2025 season that will serve them well in 2026?
There are a lot of people looking to write the Pies off this year, almost as though they forgot about the first half of 2025. However, the club has a habit of shutting mouths pretty quickly. Is this the year they make up for what could have been last season?
If you’re reading all our previews, you can skip ahead a little bit – It’s the standard intro.
We’re steaming toward a new season, and as we do, it is time to turn our attention away from the glory of last year and look at the possibilities of the new one.
The players have been on the track for a while now – the Christmas break is over, and as we work through January, the charge into the new season ramps right up.
This is where premierships are won and lost. This is where improvements are made and lists come together. This is where the kids show if they’re serious or not, and young projects become the next group of stars. New faces, new colours, old heads with renewed passion… so much feeds into the making of a contender. And as the days tick down toward the intra-club clashes, practice games, and eventually the real stuff, questions are raised about each team and how they’re going to perform in this new season.
And that’s where HB and The Mongrel come in.
We don’t do things by halves here, at The Mongrel Punt. When we do a season preview, we go all in to make sure it is the best, most comprehensive coverage you’ll receive. We pride ourselves on it. If you want to read one season preview for your team, or any team, this series will provide what you’re after.
The way it works is as follows.
Each club has a minimum of 15 questions asked about the upcoming season, their coaches, their players, and their expectations. The answers are not glossed over. We dive deep on each and every one of them – some singular answers would normally be long enough for an entire column. The first five questions/answers are free for you to consume. The next 10-14 for each club are for our members, including a special appearance from Mrs Mongrel to throw her two cents in the mix.
Isn’t it a bit early for a season preview? Well, I suppose, but do you know how long it takes to write seven-to-nine thousand words? That’s 18 x 8,000… gets out the calculator… that’s 144,000 words. The average novel is about 85,000 words, so buckle the hell up with these previews; HB goes deeper than anyone else covering the game..
Also, if there are any issues that arise after the publication of the preview for any team, they will be covered in standalone articles to act as additions to this preview.
You will not read a more comprehensive season preview than this – I guarantee it. This is where we start the run to the new season, and believe me – nobody does it better than The Mongrel.
Let’s jump into the season preview for the Mighty Pies.
1 – CAN JACK BULLER BRING THE SAME HEAT THAT BRODY MIHOCEK DID?
If you don’t know a lot about Jack Buller, I can’t blame you.
Playing in Sydney, and used primarily as what I would describe as a combative forward, Buller snuck into the Swans team in Round 16, and he never left.
Meanwhile, the Pies watched on, as their own combative forward, Brody Mihocek, finally succumbed to years of crashing and bashing with little regard for his own body. He was banged up late in the season, and it was reflected in his play. With one goal in his last four games, Mihocek’s time with the Pies was coming to an end, and the club needed a way to fill the role he occupied so well for years on end.
A five-time Gordon Coventry trophy winner, Mihocek will forever be remembered as a wonderful contributor to the club, and when all is said and done, will be welcomed back with open arms. But for the 2026 season, a change needed to be made, and the business of football demanded that he be replaced.
So, the question here is – can Buller replicate what Mihocek brought to the Pies?
Make no mistake, he will try his guts out to do so.
Buller is no kid wandering into the system like a lost lamb. At 24, he broke into this Swans team to offer them some genuine mongrel up forward – something the Swans forward line was sorely lacking. He attacked the contest hard, and his return of 1.2 goals per game was a wonderful result.
The Pies were taking notice.
For me, however, the value Mihocek brought to the Pies was not as easily accounted for by just looking at his goal average (1.6 per game last year, for the record). It was Mihocek’s relentless effort and heart that added so much, and I often found that this was represented best in how he worked without the footy.
Mihocek averaged 1.3 tackles inside 50 in 2025. That’s elite for a big man, and it is what found him a place in the hearts of Pies fans, and footy lovers in general.
That’s what Buller has to bring.
In 2025, Buller averaged 0.9 tackles inside 50. That won’t cut it.
I know it’s a lot of pressure on a bloke with just ten games to his name, but when you’re targeted for a role, and brought into the club to cover the loss of another, the onus is on you to prove you can do it.
Can Buller do it?
I found it interesting that one of our Swans-supporting Mongrel writers believed that Sydney with Buller up forward was a better outfit than they were with Joel Amartey, or Hayden McLean as the main target, and that was because he never gave up on a play.
If he brings that heat to the Magpies, Buller’s acquisition could be one of the better bargain pick ups in recent history.
Remember when Brody Mihocek forced his way into the league on the basis of hard bloody work?
Jack Buller did the same thing, and if the Pies get a season or two of the same type of results that Mihocek gave them, then they’re onto a winner.
2 – IS THE MOORE/FRAMPTON/HOWE TRIO RELIABLE ENOUGH?
I am sure there are a few nervous Pies supporters watching and listening to track reports about the Pies in the pre-season. Darcy Moore and Jeremy Howe suffering calf strains is not ideal, but in isolation, it is not too big a deal, right?
But when we factor in the last few years of Howe’s injuries, it starts to become a concern.
Billy Frampton is what he is – a battling, physical beast in the back half. As long as you don’t ask him to start lacing people out with the footy, and use him as an option for quick, precise ball movement, the Pies will be fine with what he offers.
And Darcy Moore gave people a reminder just how good he can be when the team supports him, playing a blinder in the Qualifying Final.
But as a collective, is this the trio to carry the Pies’ back half to the Promised Land once again?
I believe many in the footy world are forgetting that the Pies played just about the entire season without Reef McInnes, who was earmarked as a key defender by Craig McRae.
McInnes tore his ACL in Round Two, and whilst the Pies were able to cover his loss, it hurt them later in the season when Howe started to falter.
A return in 2026, and some confidence in both his body, and the club’s faith in him (that they re-signed him after the knee injury was a class act by the Magpies), perhaps McInnes is poised to repay the Pies’ faith in him?
He is 194 centimetres tall – not overly big – and just 23 years of age. Whilst many look at Collingwood and lament the lack of young talent coming through the ranks, McInnes’ name is often forgotten.
2026 could serve as a big reminder that Collingwood aren’t just playing stop-gap by recruiting older players, but are also cultivating young players to continue contending on an annual basis.
So, that’s all well and good – McInnes gives them some respite if Howe’s legs start to resemble old rubber bands this season, but what can we expect from him?
His sample size as a defender is only small, and there will be a lot of eyes on him as the preseason progresses, but in the Collingwood defensive structure, you’d expect McInnes to take one of the “lesser” forwards in the opposition. Frampton takes the biggest boy, allowing Moore to become more of a floating backman, and as long as McInnes ensures his man is not getting off the chain, I could see him coming in over the top to spoil and help Frampton out.
There is also this bloke named Isaac Quaynor who has gone from strength to strength, and Brayden Maynard, who has proven that he can play tall when required.
I liked the Moore/Frampton/Howe dynamic. Up until injuries hit, the Magpies’ record with those three in the team was excellent. However, I like it a lot better with a young defender like McInnes thrown back into the mix to support Maynard and Quaynor is things go awry with teh talls.
3 – IS THIS A DO-OR-DIE SEASON FOR DAN MCSTAY?
It’s not been a great time for Dan McStay.
His trade from Brisbane at the conclusion of the 2022 season could have seen him play in a flag.
But an ACL injury robbed him of the chance.
Returning in 2024, he managed just five games late in the season.
And in 2025, he managed 18 games, and I reckon I could count on one hand the number of those games where he had a significant impact.
He is a man who has seen his present and former teams win the last three premierships. And he has been part of none of them. It must sting.
McStay at Collingwood has not played out the way both parties envisioned. He was meant to come in, provide that powerful marking target inside 50, and give the Pies another reliable avenue to goal. However, with just 47 goals over the past three seasons, McStay has spent almost as much time watching the Pies play as he has running around in black and white.
He needs a big season, desperately.
I’ve always thought that McStay played his best when he was permitted to use his big tank to run up through the wings and take the big ‘Get out of Jail’ marks. A few years back, I sat and watched every game in order to track the players taking these marks on a weekly basis.
McStay was right up near the top. He was the important link, giving the defence an out and then opening up space behind him as he dragged defenders into his space to attempt to spoil. He’d only take a couple of them per game, but the trickle down effect of those grabs often resulted in great looks for Hipwood and Daniher inside fifty.
Doing that at Collingwood would endear him to Jamie Elliott, Tim Membrey, and Jack Buller.
McStay is suddenly 30 years of age. That really snuck up on me. I started writing this section thinking he had years left, but given his recent injury history, he needs to treat this season as THE biggest season of his career. He has the skills to be the best linking big man in the league. He just needs to be given the opportunity to play that role, and he also needs his body to cooperate.
A best-case scenario probably sees McStay play 20 games and kick 30-35 goals. If he can manage that, the heat comes off players like Elliott and Membrey, and the Pies become more of a threat.
With a year to run on his contract after this, I am not sure he will get a better chance to reward the Pies for investing in him. It really is time that investment paid off, both for the club, and for him.
4 – WHAT IS THE KEY TO THE 2026 FORWARD LINE?
It might even be the key to Collingwood, in general – forward pressure.
And right at the forefront of that stat is a bloke named Beau McCreery.
He has never had a season in his short AFL life (six years, now) where he has not averaged over one tackle inside 50) and I don’t see any reason that streak will end in 2026. Actually, I’d love to see him bump those numbers up to around two per game, which would put him right up near the top of the league (Paul Curtis of North led the competition with 2.89 per game last year and Lachie Schultz was second, with just over two).
The thing about McCreery’s tackling is that they hurt. He is not one of those blokes who wraps his arms around you like it’s foreplay. No, he ragdolls opponents… like it’s foreplay!
Or maybe that’s just what gets me excited?
I’m not joking, though – he might be one of the most aggressive tacklers in a system that now openly dissuades aggression. To be tackled by McCreery leaves you entirely dependent on his good will.
And to this point, players have been lucky he has been so nice about things.
I love the pressure McCreery applies, even when it doesn’t have an immediate pay off. He runs from 30 or 40 metres away on the off chance the bloke with the footy has a fumble, and when that time comes, McCreery is all over him like our Prime Minister on an opportunity to gaslight the public.
In the second half of the year, McCreery started to spend a little bit of time running through the middle. I get why – his burst pace is something the Pies have lacked, particularly with Jordan de Goey unfit for most of the year, but in 2026, the club is going to have to weigh up what they’re losing inside 50 when he adopts that role.
Not only have Brody Mihocek and his 1.3 tackles inside 50 left the club, but what happens with Bobby Hill is anyone’s guess. Between McCreery, Mihocek, and Hill, they’d be down 3.74 tackles inside 50 per game.
That’s a massive load to heap onto Lachie Schultz, who is already at 2.04, and Jamie Elliott, who is at 1.44.
Do you roll the dice and throw McCreery into the guts for 25% of the game?
Or do you maintain him as a forward half menace, capable of making the defence constantly look over their shoulders?
More on this in the section on Bobby Hill… that’s sure to be a good one.
5 – HOW MUCH BETTER DOES DAN HOUSTON NEED TO BE THIS SEASON?
To say Dan Houston was disappointing in 2025 would be a gross understatement.
When the Pies pulled the trigger on the deal, sending off both John Noble and a future first rounder as part of a three-way deal, many expected him to give the club the rebounding defender that landed him an All-Australian blazer with Port Adelaide.
But the Power version and the Magpie version were like two different players,
With Josh Daicos stationed at half-back, Houston did not have carte blanche to run and gun the way he had at Port. Instead, he was thrust into a secondary rebounding role, and kind of got lost in the Collingwood shuffle. The good news is, well… we can probably expect him to be a whole lot better in 2026 because, let’s face it, he would have a hard time being any worse.
That’s a bit hyperbolic – he could et a whole lot worse, really. But here are some damning numbers for you.
Houston was -6.2 disposals per game on his 2024 efforts. He was -2.3 in Rebound 50s, -0.8 in intercepts, and -193.6 metres gained per contest. In short, he went from star to average in one season.
I always give players 12 months to find their feet at a new club. Some find it easy, and slot into a role like they were born to play it. Others have to be given time. Maybe they’re making adjustments in more than just an onfield capacity, and it takes a while for things to genuinely click.
The hope is that this is the case with Houston, because he is a far better player than what we saw in 2025.
Elsewhere in this article, I mention the possibility of Josh Daicos moving into the midfield more often, and perhaps this is the trigger that sets Houston on the path to redemption. Daicos had a magnificent season, but a big part of me wonders whether he has the skill set to be just as damaging elsewhere.
That same part of me wonders whether Houston could do the same?
Perhaps 2026 sees both silky defenders spend time running through the midfield? I am not sold on the Pies running with a similar on-ball unit to last year. They were slow and started to look old late in the season. By adding a second Daicos, or a tag team with Houston, it could start to solve a number of issues.
And it could also re-establish some confidence in Houston.
Those with a half-decent memory will remember how damaging Houston was for Port. His run through the guts and long kicking tore games open. That is the player the Pies need. It is the player they thought they were getting.
He is contracted until the end of 2030, so Houston is secure. He is a class act, but he needs to be the number one rebounder for the club to get back for buck out of him.
It is time to have a bit of a serious chat at Collingwood about whether the Daicos/Houston combination works, and what the other options are. Otherwise, he is a very expensive, and inferior replacement for John Noble.
The remainder of this article, and the next 15 questions are for our members. They support me, and I provide for them. It’s a good deal.
Oh… a Mongrel paywall… the worst of all paywalls. We’re on the march to the 2026 AFL season and it all begins here. The Mongrel’s Big Questions Season Previews are THE best in the business. If you know, you know… if not, maybe it’s time to find out. Pre-Season, Practice Games… we’re all in. Dump the mainstream lip service and dive into articles like this – you will never look back. If you don’t want to, that’s fine. You’re welcome to re-read the first five questions again, but if you do… there is a heap more below.
