Collingwood's Jeremy Howe feared his 2025 season would be over after his latest injury battle that saw him "clean pop of (his) adductor" against Melbourne in Round 24.
Howe is firming as a shock selection recall for Saturday's preliminary final against Brisbane in a bid to secure a second flag in three seasons.
The Pies veteran hasn't played a full game since Round 16, citing concussion and various injuries that have largely kept him on the sidelines, and he dreaded that his latest issue was the final nail in the 2025 coffin.
"I got the scan the next morning, and I was sitting there by my phone waiting for the results from the doc, and he pretty much told me that it doesn't look great," Howe said on Fox Footy's AFL360.
"The way that I did it was I'd already been off the ground before then.
"I ended up making a spoil on Bayley Fritsch from behind and ended up almost splitting my legs like a frog.
"I think it was going to go regardless.
"That's when I felt the pop, went off, got assessed. Tried to get back up and going.
"That ball that Brayden Maynard kicked me, I didn't really want it because I knew I was injured already.
"The damage was already done, so I managed to have a clean pop of the adductor."
Howe began running only days after the injury in the hope of being available for selection this weekend, which was enhanced by Collingwood's impressive qualifying final win over Adelaide.
The Pies enjoyed the pre-finals bye and the week off, giving the high-flying defender every possible chance to feature.
"We've had to get aggressive. I've had to push things a lot quicker, and that in the end has actually set me up to be really well and put myself in a great position," he said.
"I've had an amazing three-week period. I've certainly been tested and put through a number of hoops I've had to jump through. Thankfully, everyone has been ticked off to this point in time.
"Obviously, I've got another session on Thursday where I'll have one element of assessment, no doubt.
"All things are looking pretty positive at the moment."
The Pies are also set to make a call on 2023 Norm Smith medallist Bobby Hill, who hasn't played a full game since Round 15 due to personal reasons.
Hill has produced a strong fortnight, but with fears over his conditioning, he may be left out of the senior side.
"It was great for him to start drip feeding coming back into the club," Howe said.
"He seems to be in a lot better place mentally.
"He's training fully with us … He's given himself a chance and I think that's all he ever wants."
