INFLUENTIAL Carlton ruckman Matthew Kreuzer is in doubt to face Gold Coast at Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon as he continues to battle a groin injury.

Kreuzer struggled in the season opener against Richmond and had long stints on the bench last week, with his mobility impaired.
The 28-year-old was heavily restricted at training on Friday, in what was a very light session.

Despite being named for the clash against the Suns, Blues coach Brendon Bolton said Kreuzer is still no certainty.

"We're going to give him every opportunity. He's really determined to play. We know how Kreuz goes about it so we'll give him every chance," Bolton said at Ikon Park.

"We'll leave it to the deadline."

Kreuzer made the Virgin Australia All Australian squad of 40 last year after playing 21 games.

Young tall Harry McKay trained on Friday and seems the most likely emergency to come in if Kreuzer is not declared fit.
Young forward Jack Silvagni was dropped from the team after picking up just six disposals against the Tigers. He had established himself as a regular in the senior side and played 20 games last year.

"It's just not unusual. Jack's a 20-year-old learning the craft of forward play and got some areas to develop on but he's really, really determined to grow those," Bolton said.

Tough midfielder Matthew Kennedy is hopeful of being fit to face Collingwood on Friday week after he sprained his left ankle in the first quarter against Richmond.

"As a rule of thumb, if you don't play out the game, you usually don't play the week after so we're really hopeful he's there next week," Bolton said.

One area to focus on will be limiting Gold Coast's scoring after the Tigers had 71 inside 50s and booted 17 goals against Carlton, something former Sydney and Melbourne coach Paul Roos observed in his media analysis during the week.

"Roosy summed it up pretty well this week, that we just need a bit better balance between offence and defence," Bolton said.

"This group is just so coachable, that's why I love coaching them. When we focus on something, they do it well but sometimes they do it to the nth degree."

Bolton confirmed Liam Jones will have the big job on Suns skipper Tom Lynch. The powerful forward booted seven goals the first time these sides met in 2017 but was restricted to none on the second occasion, with Jones doing the job.

Meanwhile, Sam Rowe will make his return from a right knee reconstruction in the VFL on Saturday.