There are few games I look forward to during the home and away season the way I do the Anzac Day game between the Bombers and Pies. Maybe the Showdowns in Adelaide come close, but for sheer spectacle, emotion, and meaning, it’s difficult to go past April 25th at the MCG.
29 years ago, it was Sav Rocca kicking nine, and Nathan Buckley collecting thirty touches for the Pies. In red and black, James Hird snagged a couple, and Smokin’ Joe Misiti had his own footy, as the Pies and Bombers locked horns in what was to become one of the great traditions in the AFL, playing in a privileged position on ANZAC Day. In the heaving cauldron called the Melbourne Cricket Ground, that one ended in a draw.
Fast-forward to the current day, and the contest was just as hot. The pressure was high, with the teams swapping momentum, and at the end of the day, perhaps a draw was fitting – the second in the history of the Essendon-Collingwood Anzac Day history. I couldn’t split the teams – either would have been considered unlucky to lose this one.
There were opportunities aplenty – Mihocek twice missed with out on the full kicks, Kyle Langford botched a set shot, and Jamie Elliott has his chance slip through his fingers, as well…
The end result may have left many flat – I am sure everyone would have loved to read about their team rising above the opposition in the dying seconds to snatch a win, but in this game, we got a draw.
This result will undoubtedly open up conversation about extra-time, once again. It’s probably inevitable, as our game continues to follow the lead of sports all over the world, but for me… I don’t mind a draw. It does tend to make things interesting when we get to the pointy end of the season, doesn’t it?
Anyway, enough yapping from me – let’s get into The Mongrel’s Big Questions stemming from another ripping Anzac Day clash.
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