COLLINGWOOD has not given up hope on securing a spot in the top four, defender Alan Toovey says.
The Magpies head into Saturday night's clash with the Sydney Swans with their backs against the wall following a 70-point drubbing at the hands of Fremantle in the first week of round one.
Star tall Ben Reid has already been ruled out with a calf complaint, while a couple of key Magpies are still trying to shake off injury issues.
Despite those concerns, Collingwood has not lost sight of its end-of-year goals.
"If things go well, we're definitely looking at top four and being around the mark at the end of the season," Toovey told AFL.com.au.
"The list we've got is really strong and there's a lot more upside to come from the team than what we showed against the Dockers.
"We're not writing off the season or anything like that."
The Magpies have spent their time since round one working on correcting the errors that proved so costly against Freo, particularly their skill execution and work rate around the ball.
As Toovey put it, "the basics" let them down against the Dockers.
Some of that can be attributed to the different personnel Collingwood had on the ground and Toovey admitted there were definite signs of confusion.
"Whenever you have new blokes and young guys coming into the team it takes a while to get that experience with them," Toovey said.
"The longer you play the more tight-knit you get. I think that'll take a bit of time, but we don't want to take too long.
"I think it's up to the on-ground leaders and the senior players to make sure they're talking to them so that all the setups are done well."
Toovey's return from a knee reconstruction against Fremantle was one of few highlights in a drab night for the Magpies.
The 27-year-old defender played his first game since rupturing an ACL against Essendon in the clubs' Anzac Day clash in round five last year.
"It was satisfying that I'd done all the rehab and done all the work to get there and to get through the game was really pleasing," Toovey said.
"Just to be rewarded for all the energy and effort you put in to get back out there and being finally able to do it … that was a really big highlight."
Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley believes it will take Toovey a few weeks to readjust to the tempo of AFL football.
"He's fit and he's up and about, but it takes players a while to come back from serious injuries," Buckley said.
"When you haven't played the game for the best part of 12 months, I think the game shifts really quickly.
"It's become far more transitional than even 12-18 months ago so you need to make those adjustments even as an experienced senior player when you come back into the fold."
