Collingwood midfielder Daniel Wells is set to stay sidelined for their last AFL pre-season game, putting him in doubt for round one.
The star recruit has missed their first two pre-season matches and Fairfax reported on Monday night that he will not play against Richmond this Saturday in Moe.
Given Wells' well-documented injury problems, he would need a lot to go right for Collingwood to play him in their March 24 season opener against the Western Bulldogs
Wells, 31, could be an invaluable recruit for the Magpies.
He played 19 games for North Melbourne last season and at his best, is one of the league's most damaging onballers.
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But he only managed 12 games for the Kangaroos in 2014-15 because of lower leg injuries.
Speaking after Saturday's loss to Fremantle, coach Nathan Buckley said they had to be patient with Wells.
"We're not doing him any favours if we push him out before he's ready to go, whether it's the body standing up to injury or whether it's the workload and getting the right amount of kilometres in his legs to be ready to play the way he wants to play," Buckley said.
"The clock's ticking. We're three weeks away from round one, but we also won't be forcing him in before he's ready."
