COLLINGWOOD slumped to its first women’s wooden spoon in club history, and the first by the Magpies’ program since 1999. It was a culmination of injuries and players learning a new system under new coach Sam Wright, with a rebuild underway for the black and whites.

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2024 RECORD: 18th, 1-10, 44.3%
2024 PICKS: 1, 26, 55, 73

LIST CHANGES:
IN: Mattea Breed (Hawthorn), Airlie Runnalls (Fremantle), Kellyann Hogan (Ireland), Pick 26
OUT: Stacey Livingstone, Aishling Sheridan (retired), Charlotte Blair, Lauren Brazzale, Erica Fowler, Sarah Sansonetti, Imogen Evans, Eleri Morris (delisted), Pick 19, Pick 37

FIRST PICK:
Pick 1

The easiest choice of the draft is usually Pick 1, and while there are many worthy players, it is just impossible to look past Gippsland Power’s Ash Centra. With Gold Coast Suns officially nominating Havana Harris, it means that even if the Magpies opted to bid at pick one, the Suns could match with Pick 19 – a pick they ironically got off the Magpies – a full round later. Instead given the Suns will cough up Pick 19, it will not matter whether it is the Magpies at Pick 1, or Richmond at Pick 18 that bids on Harris as it is the equivalent same value.

Collingwood gets one of – if not the best – kick of the football to come through the girls pathway systems, with her decision making and vision elite, as well as her footy IQ and ability to play on all three lines. In 2024, Centra played as a midfielder/forward, something she will likely do at the next level, and the Vic Country tall will make an immediate impact and show her class from early on in her career.

REMAINING CROP:
Picks 26, 55, 73

Collingwood currently has three list spots open which would mean picks 26 and 55. The Magpies desperately need a tall, and if one of the Vic Metro forwards such as Georgie Brisbane or Grace Belloni was there it would be enticing for the Magpies. However GWV Rebels forward Claire Mahony – arguably the best contest mark in the game – would form a deadly one-two aerial punch with Georgia Clark if selected.

The Magpies also could do with some tall defensive depth, so could well pounce on a player like South Adelaide’s Esther Schirmer who is one of the best lockdown tall defenders – at 177cm – and can provide some run too. Powerful Tasmania Devil Mackenzie Williams or athletic West Australian Taya Chambers are other options, as is GWV Rebels’ Millie Lang.

Pick 55 will be swallowed up by matching a bid on father-daughter prospect Violet Patterson. The risk by trading out Pick 45 for Airlie Runnalls was if a bid on Patterson came earlier than Pick 37, the Magpies would be unable to match. Expect the black and whites to be confident it won’t, and they can secure the highly talented young star with future captaincy material.

KEY QUESTIONS:

– Where will Ash Centra play next year?
– Will the Magpies be able to match a bid from a rival club for Violet Patterson?
– With the various holes in the Magpies list, which one will they choose to fill with Pick 26?