With Collingwood sitting three games outside the top eight and coming off back-to-back wins, the GIANTS will have a tough task on their hands at Spotless Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
The Magpies’ wins can be attributed to their miserly defence, having conceded only 37 and 45 points against Fremantle and Carlton since the bye.
Collingwood have conceded on average just 40 inside-50s in the last two weeks.
They will have their backs against the wall this week with the GIANTS averaging 109 points per game, ranking them second in the competition.
In comparison Collingwood are ranked 14th with 81 points per game.
Collingwood are a high-pressure team, ranking third in the competition for tackling and sixth for smothers.
A tough game is to be expected with both sides great around the contested ball.
Collingwood are ranked fifth in AFL for hard ball gets with Scott Pendlebury, Levi Greenwood, Adam Treloar, Taylor Adams, Jack Crisp and Steele Sidebottom leading the way.
The GIANTS and Collingwood are evenly matched when it comes to contested possessions – The GIANTS rank sixth averaging 147.2 per game compared to the Pies in ninth with 142.2.
The GIANTS continue to be the best clearance team in the competition this year, averaging 40.4 per game, while Collingwood sit at the complete opposite end of the table, ranked last with 32.4 per game.
The GIANTS’ backline will be looking to drop a man back into marking contests to prevent the likes of Travis Cloke, Darcy Moore, Jesse White and Alex Fasolo getting the upper hand in one-on-one contests.
Despite his recent run of form, the GIANTS must be mindful of the damage Cloke can inflict; the last time the two teams met he kicked five goals as Collingwood ran out winners by 42 points.
The GIANTS will be relying on their midfielders to continue their stellar form, however the likes of Dylan Shiel, Callan Ward, Stephen Coniglio, Tom Scully and Josh Kelly could carry a tag from Greenwood.
Greenwood has been influential in the Magpies’ back-to-back wins, dulling the influence of Fremantle’s Lachie Neale and Carlton’s Bryce Gibbs.
Season 2016 has been a year of firsts for the GIANTS - first win in Perth, first win over Geelong and membership passing 14,000 for the first time – so they will be itching to get their first ever win over Collingwood tomorrow.
