COLLINGWOOD will be without important defender Jeremy Howe for Saturday night's clash with Sydney, but will blood a debutant in his place.

Howe has failed to come up for the trip to the SCG after last week's concussion against Richmond, with 25-year-old Jack Madgen to take his spot in Collingwood's back half.

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Madgen, who joined the Pies as a category B rookie after playing college basketball in the United States, was elevated to the club's senior list last week.



SWANS V MAGPIES There's a lot on the line

Coach Nathan Buckley confirmed Madgen will play as the Pies continue to deal with a run of injuries to important players.

"Jack will play his first game and it's been an interesting first year for him on the senior list. He had a really good pre-season and was given an opportunity in the AFLX [competition] and stood up under the contest and was able to raise his game when playing against AFL players for the first time,"

"He's worked his way through the VFL competition. He broke his jaw, worked his way back and has played some really good footy in the last month.

"He gets his opportunity due to 'Howey', who will miss, so he's played as a key back and [we're] looking forward to him coming in and playing his role."

The club was optimistic earlier this week Howe would be available to take on the Swans, but Buckley said the flying backman hadn't recovered as quickly as originally hoped.

"It was a pretty big hit and the combination of the head knock and the body shot, and we're anticipating a really physical game this weekend, so we're picking 22 of the fittest players to compete and contest over four quarters," Buckley said.

"He wasn't able to train Tuesday and wasn't able to train today, so that discounts him from selection."

The Magpies also had expected defender Tyson Goldsack to make his rapid return from a knee reconstruction in the VFL this weekend, but a jarred back has put the 2010 premiership player’s plans on hold.

Buckley backed his side's "system" to stand up despite the club's injury list continuing to stack up, with first-choice players Jordan De Goey, Jamie Elliott, Matt Scharenberg, Adam Treloar, Daniel Wells, Ben Reid, Lynden Dunn, Howe and Goldsack among those unavailable for the important clash with the Swans.

The coach said he hadn't considered whether the Pies were reaching a tipping point with their injuries.

"Everyone's talking about that, [but] it's not something we're discussing internally," he said.

Brody Mihocek (ankle) and Brayden Sier (leg) have been cleared to play against the Swans after their minor fitness concerns.

Jack Madgen contests with Ben Reid at training on Thursday. Picture: AFL Photos

