COLLINGWOOD pair Jordan De Goey and Will Hoskin-Elliott missed Friday morning's training session due to gastro, but neither have been ruled out of Sunday's clash against Gold Coast just yet.
De Goey and Hoskin-Elliott weren’t at the AIA Centre as the club looks to ensure there isn’t a breakout ahead of the game at the MCG.
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The Magpies lost dual All-Australian ruckman Brodie Grundy (PCL) and new recruit Nathan Kreuger (shoulder) earlier this week after they suffered injuries in the 11-point win over Essendon on Anzac Day and could be forced to make more changes if De Goey and Hoskin-Elliott don't improve in the next 24 hours.
"We've had a little bit of gastro go through the place this week," Collingwood coach Craig McRae said on Friday.
"A couple of coaches have gone down. Now Will and also Jordy have been out today. Hopefully in the next 24 hours they will fill better.
"He [De Goey] hasn’t trained the last 24 hours. He has done a little bit himself away here.
"Everything at the moment is sensitive around illness; when they show signs of anything we keep them out of the place. We'll have to wait and see how he is feeling. Not only him, but Will is the same."
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With Grundy out for up to the next three months and Kreuger expected to miss the rest of the season, Collingwood will need to tweak its attack to provide Darcy Cameron with some support in the ruck and the forward line with another target.
The Magpies named American utility Mason Cox and untried rookie Aiden Begg on the extended bench on Thursday night and are likely to go with one rather than both this weekend.
McRae said the match committee will need to factor in the form and size of Gold Coast co-captain Jarrod Witts, who has made a strong return from a knee reconstruction across the first six rounds of 222.
"We'll work through this. He [Cox] trained really well," McRae said.
"We've got Aiden Begg in the squad as well. His form at VFL level has been really strong. He's improved considerably.
"When I arrived, I thought: who is this big kid? Just to watch him grow in front of our eyes. I never thought he'd be in a position where we would be considering his name for round seven. It shows his growth and the work Josh Fraser has done."
Small forward Jack Ginnivan has been the flavour of the week after winning the Anzac Day Medal on Medal, following a five-goal performance against the Bombers in front of 84,205 people – the most at an AFL game since the start of the pandemic.
McRae is confident the 19-year-old can handle the expectation and interest that has skyrocketed since his career-best performance on Monday.
"It's about getting back to work. It's about the processes of why you're performing well. For him, it's about creating habits," he said.
"He's played ten games; he's learning how to be an AFL player. It’s the first time he's played in front of that many people.
"I'm constantly having conversations around players about that, building these winning habits and behaviours."
Collingwood levelled the win-loss ledger at 3-3 earlier this week and now face a Suns outfit who has lost four of its past five games, but beat the Magpies in the corresponding fixture last year.
