Collingwood midfielder Dayne Beams will return to the AFL club on Monday following his recent mental health break, but it remains unclear when he will play again.
And star midfielder Jordan De Goey and defender Isaac Quaynor have been ruled out of next Sunday’s home clash with Gold Coast through injury.
Beams stepped away from the Magpies in early July, saying he was a “broken man” and needed time away to sort through some issues.
The 29-year-old was dealing with a serious hip injury at the time, and he still faces a race to play again before finals this year.
“It is anticipated that Dayne will speak publicly about his recent period of leave once he has settled back into the program,” Collingwood said in a statement.
“But until such time the club asks that his privacy be respected.”
Scans have confirmed that Quaynor suffered a foot stress injury during Friday night’s loss to Richmond, while De Goey has a low grade hamstring strain.
“Isaac suffered a stress reaction and will have his foot in a protective boot for the next 10 days or so,” Magpies head of football Geoff Walsh said.
“Jordan played out the match against Richmond but reported minor hamstring soreness afterwards and a scan has revealed a low grade strain that will put him into rehabilitation for 10 days or so.
“We’ll look at both boys then and make calls as to their immediate prospects.”
Darcy Moore, Tom Langdon, Lynden Dunn, Daniel Wells and Ben Reid are other Magpies players who have been hit hard by injury this season.
Collingwood (11-7) have lost four of their past five games to drop out of the top four.