Collingwood midfielder Dayne Beams is no certainty to face his old AFL side Brisbane next week, while veteran Chris Mayne is also in doubt.
Beams was a late withdrawal for Friday night’s 11.12 (78) to 9.10 (64) win over the Western Bulldogs at the MCG after suffering a migraine.
And the Pies went a man down in the opening minutes when Mayne, playing in his 200th game, copped a heavy knee to the back and forced off the field for treatment.
The 30-year-old was taken to hospital after the game and coach Nathan Buckley said he may have suffered internal injuries.
“He’s still pretty ginger and really sore,” Buckley said.
“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 cover a few bases.”
Buckley was also unsure whether star midfield recruit Beams would recover from his illness in time for Thursday’s clash with the Lions at the Gabba.
Beams would be a significant loss for the Magpies if unavailable given how much Brisbane’s midfield has improved with the injection of Lachie Neale, who has already been spoken of as an early Brownlow Medal contender.
“It was a late call this afternoon. He was just unwell and wasn’t at 100 per cent capacity,” Buckley said.
“We’ve always been a team that believes the next bloke in is going to play the role. Callum (Brown) came up late and executed really well.”
Buckley had challenged his midfield to improve after being comfortably outpointed by their West Coast counterparts last week.
And while he noted that the challenge wasn’t limited to his core group of onballers, Buckley liked what he saw from a Magpies engine room that lifted late against the Bulldogs.
“Generally you’re going to measure that through clearances, contested ball, ground ball and pressure numbers,” he said.
“They tracked upwards tonight against a side that we rate in all of those areas.”