SAME TIME THIS WEEK

Now that you have had a chance to digest the sheer, blinding acuity of my analysis prior to last week's draw, we move onto today.

Talk since the draw has been about how Collingwood blew the premiership with poor kicking for goal. Collywobbles may have been mentioned.

Less talk, if any, has covered StKilda's own Collywobbles. A lone premiership in 1966 has been followed by losses in 1971 (led at 3/4 time), 1997 (led at 1/2 time) and 2009 (led at 3/4 time). The Saintywobbles, and the Saints' heavy history of failure, were the reason I was confident Geelong would win last year.

Last Saturday, had StKilda been playing one of the clubs used to winning premierships - Carlton, Essendon, Hawthorn, for instance - the Big Club would have been a Good Thing.

See where I am coming from? For Collingwood and StKilda the elephant in the room is the gorillas on both their backs.

Yes, the Pies blew it, but late in the game StKilda had put in a massive effort to come back, were all over Collingwood, took the lead, and still did not win.

Where does that leave this week? Buggered if I know. StKilda let Collingwood off the leash for a quarter, then did brilliantly to reel them in. If the Saints can clamp Collingwood for the whole match they should win. But if Collingwood get loose at any point, they will probably break the game open and win comfortably.

And yet. I can't help thinking about how the Saints failed to pinch the game. Scientifically speaking: that bounce that eluded Milne is the sort of bounce that eludes Saints' players, but lobs in the lap of Carlton players.

Conclusive enough for you?