COLLINGWOOD coach Mick Malthouse has refused to field questions on recent events that started with last round's quarter-time slanging match with St Kilda's Stephen Milne.

As a result of that incident, Malthouse later apologised to the Saint and was fined $7500 by the AFL.

Collingwood's media department made it clear before Malthouse's press conference on Friday that he would not be discussing it.

However, one journalist raised the coach's article from earlier in the week, where he likened his actions of first concealing his actions to that of British wartime leader Sir Winston Churchill.

Asked whether he subscribed to the ethos that truth was the first casualty of war, Malthouse dismissed the topic.

"I think we're touching on last week there. What don't you get about what we spoke about?" Malthouse said.

"That issue is dead and buried. I've got bigger things in front of me than worrying about last week."

Malthouse wouldn't be drawn on whether it had been a tough week for him either.

"We lost a game of footy [last week]," he said.

"Not many things become tougher than losing a game of footy and facing up next week."

Collingwood meets Hawthorn at the MCG on Saturday night and has made two changes to its side - one being the omission of veteran Shane O'Bree.

Malthouse said the decision to axe the reliable midfielder was among the most difficult of his past 12 months.

"Unfortunately you use the word 'omitted', which is for the media … he's been a little bit of a victim of us making sure that through the pre-season competition we elected to play some players and not others early," he said.

"The goal now is to ensure he gets back into the side playing the way we want him to play.

"Professionally it's an easy job [to make the decision but] emotionally it's certainly the toughest thing I’ve had to do this week. That or [in] the last year."

Heath Shaw and Ben Johnson trained well on Friday morning and the coach confirmed the pair should play on Saturday.

Key forward Chris Dawes also trained among a squad of 26.

"[He's] very, very close," Malthouse said.