AFL boss Gillon McLachlan joked at a pre-game operate {that a} Collingwood supporter instructed him Nick Daicos’s return was greater than Jesus.
The younger famous person solely missed six weeks with a knee damage however Daicos’s absence felt like an eternity for the Magpies’ trustworthy.
After beginning on the bench, Daicos ran onto the MCG for the primary time since August 5 to the roar of greater than 90,000 Magpies supporters.
His vibe is just like Indian cricket supporters cheering Virat Kohli’s each run, or Argentine soccer followers going wild for Lionel Messi.
Daicos’s first sport again wasn’t fairly like Ben Cousins dominating with 38 possessions on return in 2007, or Jonathan Brown torching Essendon in 2005 with eight targets.
But the 20-year-old being on the market for the Pies in a preliminary closing was at all times going to be an enormous enhance no matter how he performed.
Daicos performed all over the place in opposition to GWS on Friday night time.
He began at half-forward, started the second time period within the midfield and spent prolonged intervals there, but in addition went to half-back, the place he made his personal when he was final 12 months’s unanimous Rising Star to instantly stamp his mark on the AFL.
“We just wanted the game to settle in a little bit,” Magpies coach Craig McRae mentioned.
“We just wanted to put Nick where we thought we needed him and we’re conscious of he hasn’t played for a long time and allow him to play to his strengths.
“We may afford a little bit of mid(discipline time) after which we transfer into halfback to get some run and carry that.
“I’ve got a feeling he’s gonna get better.”
Daicos completed with 28 possessions and solely obtained higher the longer the sport went on however the rust was understandably there.
His checkside snap at objective within the second quarter undoubtedly would have gone by the center early within the season.
But Daicos’s woes summed up the place Collingwood had been at within the second quarter as they struggled to comprise the Giants’ orange tsunami.
Luckily for Collingwood, fellow star midfielder Jordan De Goey stepped up with a best-on-ground show, ending with 34 possessions and 13 clearances to steer the Magpies to an exhilarating one-point win.
But there isn’t any cause to assume Daicos will not be probably the most influential gamers on the bottom in subsequent week’s grand closing.
Source: www.perthnow.com.au
