Despite kicking the opening four goals of the match, the Swans were on the back foot for the remainder of the game as the Magpies dominated possession and pressured the home side into turnover after turnover.
Bolton said Collingwood, who won the possession count 388-318, controlled the ball for the majority of the match and made the most of their opportunities.
“It was really frustrating; we just didn’t give our best tonight,” Bolton told SwansTV after the match.
“It was a very ordinary performance and we were comprehensively beaten across the ground.
“We pride ourselves as a really hard, two-way running midfield and we probably got beaten in the spread at different times and they certainly beat us in the uncontested footy.
“All of their good players got a hell of a lot of the ball, especially through the third quarter and onwards.”
The 320-game player said the Swans, who pride themselves on pressure football, were beaten at their own game in Saturday night’s match.
“I think we just got a bit of a lesson tonight,” Bolton said.
“You have to be on your guard at any stage and I think it was definitely finals-like pressure.
“We saw the pressure they put on last week and they continued with it tonight.”
Co-captain Jarrad McVeigh (35 touches, eight clearances), 200-gamer Ted Richards (16 touches, seven rebound 50s) and forward Kurt Tippett (six goals, six marks) were the Swans’ best for the match, and were among a small handful of players who could argue they won their position on the night.
It was the second consecutive six-goal haul for Tippett, who has moved into the lead in the Swans’ goal kicking tally with 27 goals in just eight games.
Despite Tippett hard work up forward, Bolton, who was one of just five individual goal scorers for the hosts, said the Swans’ number eight did not receive enough support in tonight’s loss.
“Tippo has come back with six goals, but I think we had 38 inside 50s, so that’s pretty low,” Bolton said.
“On the number of entries, he’s doing really well down there, but we just need everyone else to be getting to his feet and also our hard running midfield as well.
“We obviously started really well early but momentum does change and (Collingwood) certainly got a hold of the game and we just stagnated and got a little bit predictable with our ball use and played into their hands.”
The Swans now have an eight-day turnaround ahead of the round 21 clash with St Kilda at the SCG on Sunday.
Bolton said he hoped tonight’s loss would be the catalyst for an improved all-round performance next Sunday against the Saints.
“We just need to get back and train really hard and get back into playing some good footy,” he said.
“We’ve got to make sure we really play well week in, week out and I think you certainly learn more from your losses than you do your wins, so we need to hit back hard and get back into it straight away.”
