Collingwood may have its hand forced into naming a debutant for Saturday's blockbuster against Carlton, with availability concerns over Billy Frampton and Jeremy Howe.
Untried key defensive pair Noah Howes and Joel Cochran will come into selection consideration if Frampton (suspension) and Howe (groin) are unable to face the Blues.
The Pies are considering fighting Frampton's one-game suspension for his dump tackle on North Melbourne tall Matt Whitlock in Friday's victory.
The Match Review Officer (MRO) charged the premiership Pie with rough conduct, deeming the incident as high contact, careless conduct and medium impact. Collingwood, if they challenge the charge, will attempt to remove the charge altogether, claiming Frampton acted in a reasonable manner. Or, they could attempt to reduce the grading of medium impact to low, with Whitlock continuing to play the game.
As for Howe, the veteran defender failed to finish Friday's match, leaving the ground with groin troubles. The high-flyer has a history of groin-related issues, ripping the groin off the bone last year. He still remains a chance to take on Carlton.
But if disaster strikes at Olympic Park, and both Frampton and Howe are unavailable, one of Howes or Cochran will be tipped to make their AFL debut.
The Collingwood duo have impressed throughout the year, although have battled respective injuries.
Cochran, who was drafted from the Sydney academy in 2024, has played 25 VFL games in the black and white, including eight this season. His last month has put his name into selection consideration, despite falling victim to the backline squeeze with a host of premiership defenders. He's averaged 18 touches and more than four marks in his past four games, with the latest performance against North Melbourne yielding an impressive 21 possessions and eight marks in defence.
Howes returned from injury a fortnight ago, and held up well in the backline. He's arguably behind Cochran given the interruption due to injury, but his last two weeks have been strong.
The mid-season pick-up from last year has played 20 VFL games for Collingwood, and has been redeployed in defence this year.
On the weekend, Carlton played with three genuine talls inside forward 50. Harry McKay led Mitch McGovern and Brodie Kemp as the tall targets, while Will Hayward poses as a unqiue option which could stretch Collingwood's defence.
The injury cloud lingering over Brayden Maynard (shoulder) will be worth considering for Craig McRae, and could look to add key stocks to his backline.
Aiding the Pies potential defensive struggles will be the expected return of Isaac Quaynor from an ankle injury.
Wil Parker has historically replaced Howe when the veteran is injured, and could also come into the frame.
Collingwood will need to replace Lachie Schultz after he suffered a suspected syndesmosis injury in the win over the Kangaroos.
Harvey Harrison was managed for Friday's game, and could be recalled, while Roan Steele (23 possessions, six marks and five tackles) and Will Hayes (17 touches, four marks and a goal) are names to watch.
