Collingwood coach Craig McRae says there is no concern surrounding his star player Nick Daicos in the wake of a 52-point loss to GWS on Sunday.
Daicos - who was heavily tagged by Toby Bedford - looked uncomfortable for most of the second half, with vision showing his inability to reach top speed.
Throughout the contest, the Brownlow medal favourite appeared to be cramping, with physios and club doctors appearing to have handed him pickle juice to ease the pain.
Although the logical decision would be to sub Daicos from the contest, utility Will Hoskin-Elliott showed back soreness and was replaced by Ned Long in the third quarter.
"We were aware that Nick was cramping at half-time and unfortunately Will had a sore back," McRae said post-game.
"We tried to take (Daicos) out of the middle and then let him get the minutes through because (while) there's him struggling a little bit, if he comes off the ground there's another load for others.
"Within reason, we were trying to look after him and look after others. I think he's pulled up fine."
Daicos finished with a low 21 disposals, five clearances and two tackles, but the stat that pops off the page is only 88 metres gained.
The Pies are hopeful that star on-baller Jordan De Goey will be available for selection next week, while prized recruit Dan Houston will line up against his former side.
McRae revealed that De Goey is "touch and go" but has been training well for the past month.
Collingwood will be reluctant to bring the matchwinner in too early, like in 2024, as injuries continued to compound, resulting in a measly 14 matches.
