Earlier this week, the former Sydney Swan told Melbourne radio while support was vital in his role, he “loved the challenge of playing solo”.
Jolly has been the Pies’ only specialist ruckman over the past fortnight and has played his best two games of the season during that period.
The Collingwood recruit said he played about 80 per cent of game time last week and believed he was reaching the right mark for his optimum output.
However despite his four-goal haul and domination of West Coast pairing Dean Cox and Nic Naitanui on Saturday night, Malthouse said he wasn’t convinced playing one specialist ruckman was the right way to go.
“He [Jolly] doesn’t pick the side,” Malthouse said. “The tail is not to wag the dog.”
“He [Jolly] needs time on the interchange, he needs time at full-forward or centre half-forward and I’ve always, and so have our match committee, operated on [the theory of] horses for courses.
“When the right time comes [we’ll make a change]. It may well be [at selection] tonight.”
The coach was speaking on Thursday ahead of his team’s clash with Port Adelaide on Friday.
Big man Josh Fraser is among those out of the senior side trying to earn a recall.
While Malthouse said neither he nor Cameron Wood will replace Jolly as the number one ruckman, the coach said Fraser - currently on 199 AFL matches - was doing everything right during his time in the VFL.
“Josh is around the mark,” Malthouse said. “He’s going about his business the way we expect him to go about his business.”
One man set to miss at least one more match is captain Nick Maxwell. The defender is nursing a calf injury and will be sidelined for a third straight week.
Maxwell initially believed he might not miss a match but Malthouse said this was simply a matter of a player wanting to play, rather than knowing the full requirements of rehabilitating his injury.
The coach said Maxwell’s injury wasn’t severe but the Pies were in no rush.
“[He’s] very much on course and everything’s going totally according to plan,” he said.
“He’s on track to play when we believe he’s ready to play and there’s been absolutely, categorically, no backwards step so far.”
