Collingwood forward Mason Cox said disparaging local media coverage of the club's finals trip to Perth was a “slap in the face” that served as motivation for their thrilling one-point win over West Coast.
Due to Western Australia’s strict border rules, the Pies were forced to undergo a seven-day hard quarantine period in the lead up to last Saturday night’s Elimination Final at Optus Stadium, where they were only allowed out of their resort to train and play the game.
The restrictions placed on the club were so onerous that some staff members were forced to sleep in caravans due to only one person being allowed per hotel room.
The club were also labelled “dirty” on the front page of The West Australian newspaper in the build-up, something that Cox took issue with.
He admitted he was a “bit filthy” to see the headline after Collingwood made sacrifices to ensure the game was able to be played.
“Going into the game, we were underdogs, but we enjoy the challenge of going into the game not being picked to be the ones that are going to come out on top,” he said on SEN’s Bob and Andy.
“I don’t think we pay attention to the media too much and it’s probably when it’s all done and dusted that you look at it and see what was said throughout the week.
“That headline was one of them that kind of came up that was quite annoying and (I was a) bit filthy that we made the sacrifices to go back over to WA to give them the home final and to be treated the way we were, it was probably a bit of a slap in the face.
“At the end of the day, you sort of use it as motivation. If it makes you want to go at the footy a bit more than you use it to your advantage.”
The thrilling victory against West Coast was the first time anyone had defeated the Eagles in Perth this season, and was the first time the two sides had met since in the finals since the 2018 Grand Final.
Cox said he was disappointed by the way he and his side were treated by the local Western Australia government, but said the club also believed they would taste victory in enemy territory.
“We felt like going in that game that no matter what, we were a chance,” he said.
“To be able to win that, (the margin) was obviously close by one point so every little point counted along the way.
“To have that scenario to go back to WA, do another week of quarantine and essentially be treated the way we were treated by the (Western Australia) Government, and then have to have people sit out in caravans and have player not being about to come (in our rooms) because we didn’t have a place that was big enough so every challenge was really against us.
“I think as a team, we galvanised around it and made the most of the situation.”