Round 5 – Collingwood Vs Hawthorn

Saturday May 23 1953

Collingwood were expected to dominate their Round 5 encounter with Hawthorn at Victoria Park and ended up winning by 70 points. In front of just 9,627 people (1) in atrocious conditions both teams struggled with their being just 12 points separating the two teams at three quarter time. The Magpies finally broke the shackles with a devastating 9 goal final quarter.

The Hawks were tenacious for the first three quarters (2) and held a ruck advantage (3), with John Kennedy’s ruckwork being a highlight of the match. (3) Hawthorn also proved to be more adept at handling the greasy ball. (4) Unfortunately for the Hawks Kennedy’s efforts were often nullified by the roving of the Richards brothers Lou and Ron. (5)

The Magpie ‘Machine’ could not slip into gear until the final quarter when every player started producing his best. (6) Hawthorn were swept off their feet as Collingwood took control (7), the Hawks being unable to halt the sudden, systematic brilliance of the Magpies. (8) This final 9 goal burst boosted Collingwood’s percentage enough to put them into the four for the first time since Round 1. (8)

Bob Rose playing on the half-forward-flank proved to be the moving force behind the majority of Collingwood’s attacks with great ball-handling and kicking despite the conditions. (9)

Scores

Teams	1st Quarter	2nd Quarter	3rd Quarter	Final Score
Collingwood	3.3.21	3.10.28	4.13.37	13.18.96
Hawthorn	3.3.21	3.3.21	3.7.25	3.8.26

Goals

Collingwood – Tebble 2, B Rose 2, Hickey 2, R Richards 2, Kingston, Merrett, Finck, Clarke, Healey

Hawthorn – McCann, Coghlan, Collins

Best

Collingwood – B Rose, L Richards, Healey, Merrett, Tebble, R Richards, Mann, Waller, Kingston

Hawthorn – Kennedy, Simmonds, Crane, O’Mahoney, Philp, Robison, Coghlan, Pearson

In Other Games

Footscray went to second place on the ladder with a 60 point victory over Fitzroy at the Western Oval that the Argus’ Hugh Buggy said resembled a swamp. (10) If it was not for a goal from Alan Ruthven late in the last quarter the Maroons would have had the dubious distinction of being the first team in VFL history to have gone through a match scoreless. (11)

Geelong beat Richmond by 54 points with Goninon kicking 11 goals. John Coleman could only manage 2 goals in Essendon’s 11 point loss to Melbourne.

In Financial News

Alf Brown reported in the Herald that whilst it costs Collingwood £250 to field a side each week, Collingwood lost £240 on this game. (12) The gate for the match in which less than 10,000 fans attended due to inclement weather and Hawthorn’s poor form, was just £212. (13)

In Injury News

Jock McHale was injured during the week when a log fell on his left foot and badly bruised his big toe. The former coach received treatment for this injury at half-time. (14)

VFL Ladder after round 5

Team	Win	Draw	Lose	Premiership Points
Geelong	5	0	0	20
Footscray	4	0	1	16
North Melbourne	4	0	1	16
Collingwood	3	0	2	12
Carlton	3	0	2	12
Fitzroy	3	0	2	12
Essendon	2	0	3	8
South Melbourne	2	0	3	8
St Kilda	2	0	3	8
Richmond	1	0	4	4
Melbourne	1	0	4	4
Hawthorn	0	0	5	0

Leading Goalkickers

Player	Team	Goals in Round	Goals For Season
J. Coleman	Essendon	2	37
G. Goninon	Geelong	11	28
J. Hickey	Fitzroy	0	22
N. Trezise	Geelong	0	17
J. Collins	Footscray	3	16
P. Bennett	St Kilda	3	11
G. Marchesi	North Melbourne	2	15
A. Aylett	North Melbourne	2	14
A. Walsh	Carlton	2	13

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Footnotes

1. The Argus, Monday May 25 1953 – page 12
2. The Argus, Monday May 25 1953 – page 12
3. The Argus, Monday May 25 1953 – page 12
4. The Argus, Monday May 25 1953 – page 12
5. The Age, Monday May 25 1953 – page 7
6. The Argus, Monday May 25 1953 – page 12
7. The Argus, Monday May 25 1953 – page 12
8. The Argus, Monday May 25 1953 – page 12
9. The Age, Monday May 25 1953 – page 7
10. The Age, Monday May 25 1953 – page 7
11. Buggy. H – The Argus, Monday May 25 1953 – page 12
12. Brown. A – The Herald, Monday June 1 1953 – page 12
13. Brown. A – The Herald, Monday June 1 1953 – page 12
14. The Sun, Monday May 25 1953 – page 25