Collingwood ruckman Brodie Grundy is expected to play against Greater Western Sydney after scans showed he sustained no serious damage in a frightening training mishap.
Grundy was taken to hospital on Friday morning after suffering a blow to the head in a warm-up drill.
The 21-year-old was placed in a neck brace and taken from the Pies' practice field at the Westpac Centre on a stretcher then transported to hospital in an ambulance following the incident.
Collingwood director of football Neil Balme said that while it had not been a heavy impact, Grundy had heard a "crack", with club medical staff deciding to send him to hospital for precautionary tests on his neck and back.
"He's had the CT scan, which has come up clear," Balme told the club's website on Friday afternoon.
"We're really pleased with (that) because it means there's nothing serious wrong with his neck, which we were pretty optimistic about.
"There's obviously a bit of soreness there so he's having an MRI just to check the rest of his back.
"We're pretty confident that will be fine as well.
"So right now he will remain in the side, we'll pick him, and we expect him to play, but obviously he's got a chance overnight to recover and we'll have a look at him tomorrow before we have to make that final decision.
"But we certainly expect him to play."
The Pies had faced the prospect of taking on dominant Giants ruckman Shane Mumford with a combination of 31-game ruckman Jarrod Witts and pinch-hitting forward Jesse White.
"He's a powerhouse ruckman," White said of Mumford.
"(Mumford's) follow-up (work) is huge but if we can take that away from him it will go a long way to helping us win the game."
The Pies enter round 11 in fourth spot on the ladder but with some question marks remaining over their form this season with their seven wins coming against teams that currently occupy the bottom seven rungs on the ladder.
The match has special significance for White, who will play his 100th AFL game, with 71 of those coming in a seven-year stint with the Sydney Swans.
"It's felt like it's taken me a while," he said.
"It's been nine years in the system and I've enjoyed every minute of it.
"It's good to look back but I still feel like a lot of good footy is ahead of me."
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