Collingwood will head into next season with 10 players on their list over 30 – two more than any other team, and with Scott Pendlebury leading the age bracket at 37.
When the Pies won the flag in 2023, the team contained eight players over 30; the 2024 premiership Lions had six players aged above 30 and Geelong defied the critics to win the flag in 2022 with seven players aged above 30.
The ultra-consistent Magpie Jack Crisp shows no signs of slowing down as he charges into his 30s. Credit: AFL Photos via Getty Images
But three of this year’s preliminary finalists – Geelong, the Lions and the Sydney – are the only other teams to have more than six players aged above 30 on their list.
Premiership midfielder Jack Crisp, one of the 10 over-30s in Collingwood’s team, says age is just a number.
At 31, the dual best and fairest winner is the ninth-oldest player on the Magpies list as the club goes all in with their veterans to win next year’s flag after injury and form derailed this year’s campaign.
Though he’s over 30, Crisp is hardly a concern. He has not missed a game in 10 seasons at the Magpies to draw his consecutive games tally to 237. He is now just seven games shy of the league record, held by Melbourne legend Jim Stynes who played 244 consecutive games from 1987-1998. He finished fourth in the club best and fairest in 2024 and could break Stynes’ record against Geelong in round eight.
The midfielder was speaking at Kingston Heath, where he played on Sunday ahead of the Australian Open that starts on Thursday.
“Times have changed now. Blokes are really professional and look after their body and if they can keep playing at the high level, why do they have to retire?” Crisp said.
It’s the question the Magpies have had to ponder as they chased Port Adelaide’s All-Australian defender Dan Houston in the trade period, giving up a first-round pick from this year and the next year in the process.
The club also added the Giants’ Harry Perryman as a free agent and veteran Saints forward Tim Membrey as a delisted free agent. Their first selection in this year’s draft was pick 47, which they used on Sydney academy graduate Joel Cochran.
Crisp said he was looking forward to several younger players on the list making their way into the team next season and cementing a spot. Ed Allan was impressive in the final round last season while Tew Jiath, Harry DeMattia, Jakob Ryan and Harvey Harrison will be looking to edge out their more experienced teammates for a spot in the line-up.
“No doubt they’ll continue their development over the pre-season and probably get some looks early,” Crisp said.
He finished just ahead of champion midfielder Scott Pendlebury (fifth) and his All-Australian sidekick Steele Sidebottom (sixth) to be one of the three 30-pluses to finish top 10 in the club best and fairest.
Crisp said he was very optimistic the Pies could regain the form that helped them to a one-point preliminary final loss in 2022, coach Craig McRae’s first year in charge, and then become premiers in 2023 after winning a tight grand final against the Lions.
Only Nathan Murphy (retired) and Jack Ginnivan (Hawthorn) are missing from their 2023 premiership team.
“Last year [2024 season] we had a fair few things go wrong, particularly with injuries. We had makeshift midfields and forward lines and we didn’t really have a set team all year,” Crisp said.
“If all goes to plan this year and we don’t have any injuries … we bought in some good players, Harry Perryman and Dan Houston, to help lighten the load on a few blokes in different roles.
“We’ve got what it takes. It’s just about making sure we play consistent football.”
The absence of experienced football manager Graham Wright through 2024 unsettled the Collingwood football department as people were asked to step into unfamiliar roles. The Magpies are yet to appoint a football manager to replace Wright, who has since joined Carlton as their CEO elect, but are expected to do so soon.
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