AFL Finals 2022 LIVE updates: Pies and Freo do battle for preliminary final berth

Key posts

  • Team changes
  • The McRae way: How new coach has changed Collingwood’s thinking
  • The burning questions facing the Magpies, Dockers
  • Tonight’s milestone
  • Listen: Real Footy Podcast

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Team changes

COLLINGWOOD
In: Trent Bianco, Josh Carmichael
Out: Taylor Adams (groin), Nathan Kreuger

FREMANTLE
No change

Trent Bianco of the Magpies is tackled by Liam Stocker.Credit:Getty Images

Subs confirmed

The medical substitutes at the MCG are Josh Carmichael (Collingwood) and Bailey Banfield (Fremantle), who is playing the role for the 10th time this year.

Bailey Banfield.Credit:Getty Images

The McRae way: How new coach has changed Collingwood’s thinking

Collingwood trailed the bottom team, North Melbourne, by 26 points at three-quarter-time and had been “playing like busteds”, as a pithy Scott Pendlebury put it, when Craig McRae came down to the huddle.

The Magpies had already honed their escape routine in the previous six victories. Skipper Pendlebury was braced for McRae to rip into the players for the first time in his remarkable first season as coach.

Click here to read more.

Craig McRae.Credit:Getty Images

The burning questions facing the Magpies, Dockers

Click here to find out where AFLW superstar Emma Kearney thinks Collingwood v Fremantle will be won and lost.

Jordan De Goey (third from left) celebrates a goal with Jack Crisp, Patrick Lipinski and Josh Daicos during Collingwood’s qualifying final defeat.Credit:AFL Photos

Who is Jack Ginnivan? We delved into his TikTok (and beyond) to find out

If you believe the “lemons”, Collingwood forward Jack Ginnivan is the most polarising player in the AFL.

He wears the most eye-watering peroxide job since Jason Akermanis. He chirps at opponents and shushes their fans.

Early on, he drew so many free kicks the AFL clarified its rules around head-high contact. Now he can’t buy one. His shorts are a size too big.

Click here to read more.

Jack Ginnivan is a new-age footballer, of the Tiktok generation.Credit:Getty Images

Pressure Pies face road-warrior Dockers

So far we’ve had five incredible matches out of five to kick off the 2022 AFL finals series, and there’s no reason why tonight’s semi-final between Collingwood and Fremantle can’t continue that trend.

The Magpies find themselves in the second week after losing an epic qualifying final to Geelong by six points last week at the MCG, while the Dockers progressed after executing one of the greatest comebacks in VFL/AFL finals history as they overturned the Western Bulldogs’ 41-point lead to win by 13 in their elimination final at Optus Stadium.

Despite last week’s thrilling defeat, the Magpies still head into this clash in magnificent form, having won 12 of their previous 14 games, and the same can be said of the Dockers who have won their last four games.

Collingwood have proven themselves to be well-suited to finals footy, with a spectacular 11-2 record in games decided by 11 points or fewer this year.

Fremantle have the wood over the Magpies, with three wins from their past four meetings, but Collingwood won their last encounter in stunning fashion with a six-goal upset victory in the wet at Optus Stadium in Round 10 – it was the result which sparked their incredible 11-game winning streak.

The Magpies’ record at the MCG this year is also sparking (12-3), and while Freo have only won two of their last seven at the ground, they did win their only game there this year against Melbourne by 38 points in Round 11, famously snapping the Demons’ 17-game winning streak.

The Dockers have also become a reliable travelling team, losing just two games out of 10 this year on the road, taking the scalps of Melbourne, Geelong and the Western Bulldogs, while they drew with Richmond as well.

Tonight’s milestone

Andrew Brayshaw (Fre) – 100 games

Andrew Brayshaw.Credit:Getty Images

Listen: Real Footy Podcast

Listen to this week’s edition of the Real Footy podcast as our experts discuss whether Collingwood’s wonderful season can continue beyond tonight’s clash?

Greetings, everybody

Hello and welcome to our rolling live coverage of the first semi-final between Collingwood and Fremantle from the MCG.

The time for double-chances is over and we are in sudden-death mode for the remainder of the season.

The winner of this game will face Sydney in the second preliminary final next Saturday evening at the SCG.

And with this game declared a sellout, the MCG could resemble something like Victoria Park on steroids, with the vast majority of the expected huge crowd to be Collingwood supporters.

For Fremantle, it could very well be a similar situation to the one GWS was confronted with in the 2017 preliminary final when they were confronted with a packed MCG filled almost entirely with Richmond fans.

Brody Mihocek against Fremantle earlier this year.Credit:Getty Images

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