Demons players huddle around injured teammate Christian Petracca,before he leaves the field with a rib injury (right).Credit:AFL Photos
In a bruising encounter before 84,659 people at the MCG,Collingwood’s superstar and one of the Brownlow Medal favourites,Nick Daicos,also had to be substituted out of the game midway through the last quarter after he suffered a corked shin.
Collingwood coach Craig McRae said he did not think the injury would keep Daicos out of next week’s game against North Melbourne. The undermanned Magpies,who McRae said will not welcome any of their injured players back next week,have a bye the following week.
The victory,which lifted Collingwood back into sixth place on the ladder,was as significant in shaping the Magpies’ season and finals ambitions as it was for the Demons,who remain 10th on the ladder,and have now lost four of their past five games.
Goodwin,however,was optimistic,saying the Demons had taken a step forward after the 92-point defeat last week to Fremantle.
“We’re optimistic that we’re just going through a little patch at the moment that we need to work through. And we’ll come out the other side. But most teams will go through a little patch like we’re going through. We’re very optimistic about what’s possible as we move forward,” he said.
“Today we walk away losing a game of footy,but we walk away optimistic about our path forward. We don’t sit here comfortable with where our game sits,but we’ve got work to do and we get a chance to do it over the bye.”