Collingwood overcomes setbacks to beat North Melbourne COLLINGWOOD has spent a hellish summer on the ropes, forced to defend its culture, its misbehaving stars and even its game plan. Under extreme duress the Pies applied that pressure to their Round 1 rival, and the result was a victory for the ages. A Collingwood side with no right to win - ravaged by late withdrawals and mid-match injuries - instead defied the odds to set the template for its season of redemption. The "swarm" is back, and on the limited sample size so is Collingwood, after a victory achieved despite the late withdrawals of Heath Shaw (gastro) and Dayne Beams. The Pies played beautiful football through the poise of Scott Pendlebury, the silky finishing of Steele Sidebottom and the brutish strength of Travis Cloke. Yet they combined it with the grit and collective will to tackle that was so absent last year as their season ended with a whimper rather than a bang. For a half of astonishingly high quality they traded blows with North Melbourne, but where the Roos wilted the Pies just turned the pressure gauge higher and higher. Seven minutes into the last term after six straight goals the Pies were 34 points up, yet also out on their feet. War of words between Bucks and Scott With Ben Johnson (leg) subbed out, Ben Reid knocked out (by Lindsay Thomas) and the cramping Ben Sinclair long out of petrol tickets, a North Melbourne comeback was inevitable. But even Collingwood's ability to hold firm after North Melbourne's four straight goals turned a cakewalk into a nailbiter was a resounding positive. Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley had spent the summer preaching that talent was not enough, and that lesson clearly fell on a willing congregation. VIDEO: See Thomas's big bump on Ben Reid It might be Round 1 - with September over five months away - yet given the likes of Dale Thomas, Luke Ball and Alex Fasolo were also absent this was right up there with any win on Nathan Buckley's watch. Only a week ahead of his clash with former mentor Mick Malthouse, his side's actions showed that if it was ever in doubt, this is very much his team. Travis Cloke battled in a gripping one-on-one battle with Scott Thompson for four goals, the small forwards relentlessly chased and tackled, and Quinten Lynch (two goals) played his forward foil role perfectly to keep Cloke isolated. Dane Swan's industrious game (31 touches) was capped by a strong defensive mark in the final moments, while Maxwell's stats camouflage a game full of spoils, smothers and one-percenters. Collingwood's stars might have been on fire, but the real winners were the kids and the recently acquired mature-agers that would not give up the fight. Sam Dwyer has real dash and poise, Josh Frost was steady down back, and late inclusion Josh Thomas (seven clearances) turned the ball over early but then just got on with the job of winning it at the coal face. For that exceptional first half it looked like North Melbourne were the exact replica of the side that took part in barnstorming run to last year's finals. But if Daniel Wells, the mighty David Swallow and Ryan Bastinac were brilliant, the likes of Leigh Adams, Shaun Atley, Sam Wright, and Kieren Harper were content to be total passengers. North Melbourne's night was summed up by the performance of Thomas, so effective with four first-half goals and then totally shut out by Alan Toovey. That the Roos were able to close on the limping Pies was mostly due to Thomas, who took it upon himself to shepherd Reid as he chased Lachie Hansen. The result was brutal, and the aftermath will be severe. The head clash kept Reid out of the rest of the game, and Thomas was booed for the rest of the game despite the absence of malice. Yet there is no doubt Thomas is in massive strife. He initiated the contact so is responsible for it, has 88.75 carry-over points, and if the incident is graded intentional and high impact faces 550 more points before a guilty plea. Now North will return to the drawing board without Thomas for as much as a month, aware that their last-term comeback was as empty as their win tally. Ben Cunnington goal in the first quarter Picture: Salpigtidis George Source: HWT Image Library