Jordan Lewis feels Collingwood captain Scott Pendlebury would be the perfect player to take care of Brisbane’s Lachie Neale on Thursday night.
The reigning Brownlow Medallist was kept to just 16 disposals in his side’s one-point loss to Geelong last weekend with Mark O’Connor expertly performing a close-checking role.
Ahead of the Round 3 opener between the Magpies and Lions at Marvel Stadium, Lewis has suggested a fairly simple tactic that Nathan Buckley could employ to negate Neale.
“I think the evolution of Pendlebury in the last two to three years is he’s become more accountable,” Lewis said on SEN Breakfast.
“We speak about them playing Brisbane tonight and should they have brought in a player to really lockdown on Lachie Neale and follow exactly what Geelong did so effectively last weekend. They haven’t done that.
“I think they’ll back themselves in to have one defensive mid at a stoppage on him. That might be Pendlebury.”
The three-time premiership Hawk further explained why Pendlebury is a good fit for Neale and how it could open things up for the Pies through Steele Sidebottom.
“So instead of Pendlebury getting tagged, they send Pendlebury to their best midfielder knowing that their best midfielder won’t be as accountable on the other end,” he added.
“Let’s try and exploit them that way. Then the opposition go, ‘well, if he’s on our best midfielder, there’s no point tagging him, let’s get someone on Sidebottom’.
“The Collingwood midfield would back themselves in to be more accountable on Lachie Neale.
“Sidebottom’s a hard one because he provides so much outside run. You do lose a lot of structure if you sit on a wingman because you are just following them around the whole time.”
The last time Neale played against the Pies he had 27 disposals and five inside 50s as the Lions won by eight points in a low-scoring affair at the Gabba in Round 15 last year.
Chris Fagan’s side enters Round 3 with a 0-2 record in what shapes as an early must-win game relating to their top four hopes.
The Magpies bounced back to 1-1 by beating Carlton in Round 2 and go in as favourites for this fixture against last year’s Preliminary Finalists.