Garry Lyon has highlighted where he thinks Collingwood have been most disappointing in their 0-2 start to the 2024 season.
Coming off a premiership, some think that the Magpies simply aren’t as hungry as they were in 2023, but Lyon isn’t sure that’s the case.
Magpies coach Craig McRae was certain that his side’s pre-season was the best he's seen, particularly in terms of fitness measurables, and Lyon agrees that their summer isn’t where they went wrong.
Nor is it the midfield according to the Melbourne great, with Lyon instead thinking it’s both their backline and forward line that’s letting them down.
“Craig McRae, we (Fox Footy) interviewed him after the first game and he said, ‘Look, all we can go on is the measurements when they come back’, and they smashed all their measurements,” Lyon said on SEN Breakfast.
“The Collingwood boys, they come back (after winning a premiership) and you're looking for a sign (if they’re still hungry), but they ran their best times and they lifted heavier.
“So, there's no issue from that point of view, but the issue is they've played two games and maybe they've played the Grand Finalists, maybe Sydney and the Giants are going to be the best two teams in the competition going forward.
“But you want to see it (on the field) and it's not through the middle for me, it’s at both ends where they've got issues.”
While the Magpies have been dysfunctional at either end, Lyon believes it’s their forward line that concerns them the most with the backline capable of sorting itself out given the quality they have in defence.
Lyon thinks that the loss of Daniel McStay to a pre-season ACL injury as well as Jamie Elliott’s average start hasn’t allowed the likes of role players Bobby Hill and Beau McCreery to recapture their best.
“The forward line has been dysfunctional because they've had no McStay,” Lyon said.
“They've sort of gone (Reef) McInnes or Ash Johnson, and Johnson didn’t work.
“Jamie Elliott has started really slowly and then your role players, Hill and McCreery, don't get as many looks as they normally would.
“The forward line is more of an issue because the backline will sort itself out.
“(Darcy) Moore is a really good player, (Isaac) Quaynor is a really good player, (Brayden) Maynard is a competitor, (Jeremy) Howe helps them too.
“I haven't got that big an issue with Collingwood. They’ve been horrible, but I think they’ll sort it out.
“It’s the forward bit that’s my concern for them though.”
Collingwood will hope to turn things around when they face St Kilda at the MCG on Thursday night.
