COLLINGWOOD is hopeful Adam Treloar has escaped a serious hamstring injury, despite the star midfielder going to the ground and writhing in pain in an incident late in the final quarter of Sunday's 20-point win over Carlton.
Treloar was attempting to burst clear from a Blues opponent along the wing in the last term when he pulled up short and appeared as if he may have seriously injured his right hamstring.
However, coach Nathan Buckley allayed Magpie fans' concerns after the match with the expectation being that he instead suffered a severe bout of cramp.
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"You probably have a couple of those incidences in a full career where you could have serious injury and we presume he's out of the woods – the reports that we've got is that it was cramp," Buckley said.
"If he's got away with that then it's a credit to his preparation, the work he does in the gym, his dedication to the program because the mechanism didn't look great.
"If he has indeed escaped that (a serious hamstring injury) then that's the best news we get out of today."
Defender Levi Greenwood was placed in the concussion protocol after a high-hit from Blue Dale Thomas blindsided him as he was attempting to man the mark. Greenwood was ruled out by club doctors prior to three-quarter time.
Buckley said the hard-nosed backman and sometime tagger would be monitored cautiously ahead of next Saturday night's clash against Gold Coast.
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The Magpies won their fifth game in a row for the first time since 2012, however Buckley is well aware things can change quickly particularly with upcoming meetings against the Suns at Metricon Stadium and MCG clashes against Essendon, West Coast, North Melbourne and Richmond.
Sitting in fourth position on the ladder on percentage, the Magpies know they must continue to improve to keep pace with the AFL's top sides.
"We've played some good footy but what we've done up until now is going to count for naught," Buckley said.
"Clearly we'd like to be a little bit more consistent about how we go about it on today's form, but we'll review that game and look for areas of improvement as we always have.
"We've got some players in form and are up and about, but I think what today shows is that if you don't play well together as a side then you open yourself up a little bit."
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Buckley said star forward Jamie Elliott (hamstring) and Darcy Moore (hamstring) would be re-introduced to football via the VFL after a lengthy spell on the sidelines.
Travis Varcoe (hamstring) and Ben Reid (leg) are also close to resuming after injury layoffs.
Moore is set to return to defence when he does resume in the VFL in the coming weeks and Buckley admitted he was unsure how that might change the Magpies' defensive structure.
"It's something that I can't give you an answer to at the moment. I'm crystal balling a bit, so when we get closer to it I can probably flesh it out a little bit more for you," Buckley said.
"Darcy, when he comes back, will play in the VFL and play as a defender and then we'll select the side on form."
