Collingwood will flip to versatile tall Nathan Kreuger to assist fight an Essendon ruck mixture Magpies coach Craig McRae charges because the AFL’s greatest.
Kreuger will play his eighth senior sport within the Anzac Day blockbuster on the MCG regardless of having only one reserves sport underneath his belt since present process a right-shoulder reconstruction in January.
The 23-year-old has been one in all a number of Mapgies battling sickness over the previous week and skilled away from his teammates at Gosch’s Paddock on Sunday.
But second-year coach McRae has no considerations over Kreuger’s health, backing the previous Geelong tall to do a job with Billy Frampton in opposition to Bombers duo Sam Draper and Andrew Phillips.
“He’s right to go and he’ll be in,” McRae stated.
“In terms of playing games, he’s played one game in three months or whatever it is.
“But by way of his working load, he is achieved extra working than anybody else on our listing.
“He’s had a shoulder injury that hasn’t restricted him (in his running) and his GPS numbers have been huge comparative to other players on our list.
“So he is working match however he simply hasn’t performed a lot footy.”
Draper and Phillips have been crucial to Essendon’s impressive 4-1 start to the season and were influential in turning the tide against Melbourne last round.
The pair got on top of Demons ruckman Brodie Grundy – a former Magpies star – and led the Bombers to an outstanding upset of the flag favourites.
“The mixture of Draper and Phillips is the perfect within the competitors proper now,” McRae stated.
“Draper’s marking the ball, and so is Phillips, ahead of the ball and we actually respect Draper as a participant.
“He’s an enormous talent and we have to be on our game.”
McRae eased fears over captain Darcy Moore and Jordan De Goey, who’ve battled sickness in current days however skilled with Collingwood’s predominant group on Sunday.
De Goey was a late withdrawal from the win over St Kilda final spherical however will return instead of suspended teammate Taylor Adams.
“Jordy’s well. He’s one of those that had a little sniffle, had the man-flu earlier in the week, but he trained really well today,” McRae stated.
McRae stated defender Nathan Murphy is recovering nicely after struggling concussion within the incident that resulted in St Kilda’s Anthony Caminiti being suspended for hanging.
Murphy and Adams, who copped a one-match ban for a harmful deal with in spherical 5, might be out there to return in opposition to Adelaide in spherical seven.
Source: www.perthnow.com.au
