Pies put faith in Fasolo to fix woes

NATHAN Buckley says Alex Fasolo has earned his spot after Collingwood turned to the forgotten forward in a bid to solve its attacking woes.

Fasolo will play his first game of the year against St Kilda tonight in a Pies side that could only scrounge five goals last week and still has Ben Reid (achilles) Jamie Elliott (hamstring) and Darcy Moore (hamstring) on the sidelines.

“Everyone we select we select for a purpose and for a reason, and [Fasolo’s] form has been really consistent. He’s put a body of work together in the VFL and he should feel really confident coming in for his next opportunity,” Buckley said.

“We’re a different team to last year, we’ve got slightly different expectations and a greater understanding of what each role is and ‘Fas’ will be expected to come in and play that and bring his strengths to the table at the same time.

“Fas has played some really good footy through the VFL ... and we’re looking forward to seeing what he can do.”

Fasolo, 25, kicked 29 goals from 19 games last year, but hasn’t played since Round 21 last season as he recovered from shoulder surgery and then looked to build form.

Buckley said the Pies were still searching for the right mix inside 50.

“We need to continue to add and find ways to kick winning scores while maintaining our defence,” he said.

“We’ve been moulding a front six or seven that can take advantage of some of our really solid defensive work and strong midfield. Last week we looked like we weren’t able to win enough contests or be dangerous enough. We just didn’t have enough teeth offensively. We’ve been able to hit the scoreboard heavily enough this year and take advantage of some pretty good ball use, but last week wasn’t the case.”