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Collingwood stars Alan Didak and Dale Thomas are among four inclusions for Saturday night’s clash with Port Adelaide at AAMI Stadium.
Two-time All Australian Didak will play his first game since injuring his calf against Sydney in round 14, while Thomas missed one game with a corked thigh sustained in the win over Gold Coast a fortnight ago.
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Didak and Thomas are joined in the side by ruckman Cameron Wood and quick defender Luke Rounds.
Harry O’Brien will miss his first match of the season with knee soreness, while Brent Macaffer, Lachlan Keeffe and Ben Sinclair have been omitted.
O’Brien’s exclusion means the 2010 All Australian defender’s sequence of 104 consecutive matches, a streak that began in round 14, 2007, comes to an end.
Sinclair, Macaffer and Tom Young are the three emergencies.
The game will mark key defender Chris Tarrant’s 250th at AFL level.
Tarrant played 161 games and booted 299 goals for the Magpies from 1998-2006, then played 72 games in four seasons with the Dockers before returning to Collingwood at the end of last year.
Didak played the first 12 matches after overcoming off-season pectoral surgery. Before his injury he had shown signs of returning to the blistering form that saw him top the Magpies’ goal kicking with 41 last year and play a crucial role in the 2010 premiership success.
Thomas has been one of the midfield stars of the competition in 2011, having missed only one game for the season prior to last week, due to suspension in round 12.
He is ranked third at Collingwood for total disposals and marks, and is fourth at the club for clearances and inside 50s.
Wood, meanwhile, returns for his 10th appearance of the season. His last game was an impressive effort against the Suns in round 18.
It will be the first time this season that Wood and fellow ruckman Darren Jolly have played in the same side.
20-year-old Rounds, who is one of four Magpies to have debuted at AFL level this season, comes in for his fourth game since appearing in each of the round 15, 16 and 17 victories.
Senior regulars Sharrod Wellingham (groin), Chris Dawes (hand) and Alan Toovey (finger) remain sidelined and are all at least one week away from returning.
Port Adelaide has lost four players including Jay Schultz (99 games/ 117 goals), Troy Chaplin (118/ 10), Matt Thomas (65/ 21) and Tom Logan (89/ 22) to injury and have brought in Matthew Broadbent (29/ 8), Daniel Stewart (21/ 18), Jasper Pittard (12/ 2) and Ben Jacobs (9/ 2). Thomas and Chaplin were Friday withdraws with Broadbent and Jacobs coming into the side.
The Magpies are coming off a 74-point victory over Essendon last week and sit on top of the ladder with 16 wins from 17 outings with a percentage of 175.8. Port Adelaide has lost seven on the trot and is last on the ladder with two wins.
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AFL ROUND 20
Port Adelaide v Collingwood
Saturday 6 August, 2011
AAMI Stadium, Adelaide
COLLINGWOOD
B: Leon Davis, Ben Reid, Simon Buckley
HB: Ben Johnson, Nick Maxwell, Tyson Goldsack
C: Dane Swan, Dale Thomas, Alan Didak
HF: Jarryd Blair, Chris Tarrant, Andrew Krakouer
F: Steele Sidebottom, Travis Cloke, Leigh Brown
Foll: Darren Jolly, Scott Pendlebury, Luke Ball
Inter: Luke Rounds, Dayne Beams, Cameron Wood, Alex Fasolo
Emg: Ben Sinclair, Brent Macaffer, Tom Young
In: Cameron Wood, Alan Didak, Luke Rounds, Dale Thomas
Out: Harry O’Brien (knee soreness), Brent Macaffer (omitted), Lachlan Keeffe (omitted), Ben Sinclair (omitted)
Milestone: Chris Tarrant (250 AFL games)
PORT ADELAIDE
B: Nick Salter, Michael Pettigrew, Ben Jacobs
HB: Hamish Hartlett, Jackson Trengove, Jasper Pittard
C: Danyle Pearce, Travis Boak, Kane Cornes
HF: Robert Gray, Daniel Stewart, Cameron Hitchcock
F: Brett Ebert, Chad Cornes, Justin Westhoff
Foll: Matthew Lobbe, Domenic Cassisi, Matthew Broadbent
Inter: Steven Salopek, David Rodan, Mitchell Banner, Cameron O'Shea
Emg: Jason Davenport, Jacob Surjan, John Butcher
In: Daniel Stewart, Jasper Pittard, Matthew Broadbent, Ben Jacobs
Out: Tom Logan (foot), Jay Schultz (foot/back), Troy Chaplin (foot), Matt Thomas (knee)
