Collingwood could be without both Steele Sidebottom and Bobby Hill for Friday's clash with Carlton, while coach Craig McRae will welcome the return of premiership defender Brayden Maynard for the affair.
Sidebottom is one of several Magpies dealing with an illness this week, with young ruckman Iliro Smit and small forward Lachie Schultz also spending time away from training.
The situation for Sidebottom has him unlikely to suit up in the black and white this week, with the Anzac Medal winner touch-and-go for selection off a six-day break.
Livewire Bobby Hill is also unlikely to face the Blues as he continues to deal with a personal matter.
Hill was a late out of McRae's side for last week's win over West Coast, and while he has been training, the Magpies are yet to commit to confirming Hill will play.
Collingwood are weighing up a smaller side when taking on the Blues this week, potentially moving away from the four-pronged attack of Brody Mihocek, Charlie West, Dan McStay and Tim Membrey, while they could remain smaller in defence, heavily relyong on Darcy Moore and Jeremy Howe on their last line in the absence of Billy Frampton.
Rookie Will Hayes was also hindered from the VFL over the weekend but has made himself available to play and could earn a senior recall. Veteran Tom Mitchell is also pushing his case for a return to McRae's side.
Maynard will return after a period of time on the sidelines with a Plantar Fascia injury, with McRae keen to have his backman back in the side, but his return comes ahead of some further potential changes.
"Yeah, finally we can declare he will be fit and available. He wasn't quite there last week, as I addressed, but this week he'll play," McRae confirmed.
"Steele is a bit ill. He's got the man flu at the moment. So I think he's unliky to play. It's probably a bit early to completely rule him out, but I'd say he'd be unlikely.
"It's great to see Bobby back today. We haven't seen him around for a few days. He trained really well and we're excited having him back. He's a day-to-day thing at the moment. I'm not sure if he'll be available this week, but I'm really pleased to see him back in the club."
Young defender Jakob Ryan's season is over after he reported stress in his foot, with the South Australian undergoing a campaign-ending operation on Tuesday.
"Unfortunately, Jacob's got a stress reaction in his fifth metatarsal," McRae revealed.
"So he'll miss the rest of the season. It's sad for the young lad. He's had a good VFL season."
Meanwhile, ace Jordan De Goey has faced a setback in his recovery from an Achilles injury, suffering a concussion at training on Tuesday that will see him sidelined for 12 days at least.
The aforementioned Schultz is likely another week away at least, as he continues to battle both a hamstring injury and illness.
Collingwood will name their side for Friday night at 6:20 pm (AEST) on Thursday.
