Former Adelaide coach Brenton Sanderson is intrigued to see how Darcy Moore leads as Collingwood captain.
Sanderson, who coached Moore as an assistant at the Magpies from 2016 to 2021, is keen to see how Moore’s leadership shines through with former skipper Scott Pendlebury still playing.
Moore’s first game as skipper comes against Geelong at the MCG on Friday night and Sanderson says he’ll keep a close eye on how the defender communicates with Pendlebury still having an influence on the side.
“There’s one thing to watch … how does Moore and Pendlebury work?” Sanderson said.
“For me, that’s just a watch.
“When you take over as captain and the captain you’re taking on from is still there and still an influence on the team, just watch those two on Friday night.
“How much they are talking to each other on the field, in between goals, around stoppage and obviously if they’re both playing (down back).
“It’s intriguing for me.”
Sanderson believes it’ll be hard for Pendlebury to not act as an on-field captain given he did the job for 206 games.
“It’s going to be hard for Pendlebury not to be captain on the field,” Sanderson said.
“He’s done it for so long, so what does Darcy Moore do differently?
“Maybe it’s nothing, maybe it’s just the status quo.
“But it’s interesting that they’ve made that change with Pendlebury still playing.”
While Sanderson is intrigued about the side’s leadership dynamic, he does feel Collingwood will be an even stronger side in 2023 and is tipping them to beat the Cats in their season-opener.
“I think maybe the Magpies by six points, less than a kick,” Sanderson said.
“I know we say, ‘Collingwood can’t win those close ones again’, and, ‘Can they repeat those close victories?’.
“Well maybe those five, six or seven point wins last year become 12, 15 or 20 point wins this year, I think they’ve improved.
“Maybe we won’t see as many close games, but I still think they’re a top four, five or six side.
“If they turn up, I think Collingwood are going to be really hard to beat.
“If the hunger is not there for the Cats, and we’ll know early, then Collingwood are going to be right in this.
“I think it’s going to be a real cracker.”
The bounce for Friday’s big game at the MCG is set for 7:40 pm (AEDT).