The 1991 AFL season started on 22 March and for Collingwood it began with a 12-goal win. But their season ended up being one of the more notable – and in some cases literal – premiership hangovers. For Leigh Matthews, alarm bells started ringing when a player yelled out in a scratch match “come on fellas, let’s show ‘em how good we are” (hardly Muhammad Ali-like braggadocio). For the rest of us, the fact that Collingwood players were propping up every bar west of The Burvale was a tell-tale sign.
These days, as we creep closer to playing for four points in summer, a footy club can find itself in full-blown crisis mode by 22 March. That will be this week’s narrative following Collingwood’s third loss in a row last night when they were downed by St Kilda at the MCG. Whether they’re flying or floundering, Collingwood always invites overreaction and the lead into this game was another example. This week there were serious discussions, by adults who vote at elections, about whether giving a low-five to a teammate in the middle of the ground was a sign of hubris. Expect that level of discourse to continue.
