Brayden Maynard has all but ruled out a Round 24 return for Collingwood premiership player and Norm Smith Medallist Bobby Hill.
Hill has only played one match since Round 15 as a substitute against Brisbane, while spending time away from the AIA Centre due to personal reasons and a bout of gastro.
He wasn't seen at training on Monday.
Maynard alluded to the Pies needing to focus on the job at hand, likely without the gun small forward, as the club prepares for Friday's clash against Melbourne.
"I don't think so. It's highly unlikely, but we'll have to wait and see," Maynard said.
"I didn't see him around the club today, but hopefully he's in sort of Wednesday and can get the ball rolling.
"We are a lot better team with him, so hopefully he does turn up and get the ball rolling. It's an ongoing process, day-by-day process."
Maynard was adamant that the club was supporting Hill, all the while focusing on an upcoming finals campaign with a top-four berth on the line.
"It's a day-to-day process with Bob," Maynard said.
"He knows that he's got our full support, and we believe that he will get the ball rolling with a few things that he's got going on.
"We are a better team with him in it, and he knows that, and we all know that.
"But at the same time, we've got big things on the horizon, and we need to focus on what we can do, with all due respect, without Bob, if he's not turning up.
"But he knows that we're a much better team with him in it.
"So yeah, it'd be good to see him come in as often as he can, because we love him in our team when he's playing (and) up and going."
The Pies returned to some form against ladder leaders Adelaide last week, despite going down by three points.
