AN UNWELL Dayne Beams is no certainty to return for Collingwood's trip to Brisbane next week, while Chris Mayne was taken to hospital after the match against the Western Bulldogs to determine the extent of his back injury.

The Pies were forced into a late change ahead of Friday night's narrow 14-point victory over the Bulldogs, with youngster Callum Brown replacing a sick Beams.

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Brown performed admirably despite his late inclusion, winning 17 disposals and taking six marks in an influential display to earn the praises of coach Nathan Buckley after the match.

Collingwood still managed to improve its record to 2-2 with victory despite Beams' absence, but will be sweating on his fitness due to a six-day turnaround before taking on Brisbane.

"Not definitely," Buckley said of Beams' chances of playing next week.

"It was a late call this afternoon. He was just unwell. He wasn't at 100 percent capacity.

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"We've always been a club and a team that believes that the next bloke in is going to play the role, and Callum came up late and executed really well.

"The name doesn't matter at all. The capacity to play the role and execute for the team is all that matters. It was Callum's turn to cover and we prepare all our players to do the same."

Mayne, playing in his 200th match, was forced from the game after just five minutes having copped a knee to his back from Mitch Wallis after dropping a regulation chest mark.

The utility looked in pain before heading from the field, stretching for a number of minutes with club medics before eventually heading to the changerooms and not returning.

He is likely to head to hospital on Friday night to undergo scans, with the club unsure over whether he suffered any internal damage as a result of the brutal collision.

"He copped a knee in the back," Buckley said.

"He's still pretty ginger and really sore. We won't know exactly whether there's any structural damage or internal damage … he's cleared a few tests if he's still here, but there's a likelihood that he'll get to hospital to make sure that we cover a few bases."

Chris Mayne's 200th game was possibly his shortest. Picture: AFL Photos


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