Partly it is because longer-term players are back from injury or the wilderness. Will Hoskin-Elliott was a shadow of himself for two years but has rediscovered his game. He has had a good year. Ditto Steele Sidebottom.

Jeremy Howe only played eight games last year,while Jamie Elliott missed nine. These are big ins this year.

Nathan Murphy began the year as a fringe player distinguished more for not finishing more games through injury than for his actual play. Although only 192 centimetres,he has emerged as a very good intercept-marking defender and one of the discoveries of their year. He is relatively undersized but reads it so well and is good overhead that he plays tall. But until now he has also had Moore there.

Now Moore will be missing. For how long we don’t know at the time of writing. It appears the best-case scenario would be a matter of weeks and the worst case a year out.

This is Collingwood’s Jacob Weitering moment. Moore is the player,like Weitering at Carlton,that the Magpies could least afford to lose. They have no real coverage for him. The player who might have come in for him and made his debut,Charlie Dean,limped off in the VFL. Howe will come back in and he plays tall but is not key-position size. Jack Madgen lost his place in the team to Murphy and has been playing forward in the VFL. He is also under-sized.

Will Kelly has played back and forward and has struggled for form in the VFL. Liam McMahon,too,has been shifted to defence and shown glimpses.

If Moore is out for the short-term Collingwood’s run of opponents would potentially enable them to hold their ground until he gets back. If it is longer term,it is tremendously damaging for while their defensive system is good they don’t have the manpower to confront a McKay and Curnow or a Cameron and Hawkins in finals.

Collingwood have largely had a good run with injuries this year but those they have had – Brodie Grundy – has been in the one area of the ground they have depth. They have no depth of key defenders.

How long Moore,more than any other Collingwood player,is out will inform what they can do come September.

GRAND PREVIEW

Last week when Melbourne played Brisbane it was the top-of-the-table clash that was a fizzer. Brisbane disappointed.

On Thursday night Melbourne play Geelong in what looks more like a top-of-the-ladder clash worthy of its billing and worth considering a finals preview.

Played on a Thursday night in school holidays,Melbourne will be annoyed it is in Geelong and not the MCG.

For Geelong,the home ground advantage will off-set the ill-timed loss of Tom Stewart.

It’s the only badly timed player management the Cats have had. They have nursed and managed Patrick Dangerfield well. They brought him back for North in a game that basically turned into a VFL game and he got the run he needed. The blending of Jeremy Cameron and Tom Hawkins has looked better this year than last as Cameron has become the dominant partner in the relationship.

HIPWOOD UMP HIT

Eric Hipwood’s push of Ryan Gardner into umpire Jacob Mollison was rightly referred directly to the tribunal.

Technically,it could have been graded and a fine issued but the rules also provide for discretion in a direct referral and MRO Michael Christian was correct in directly referring it. Hipwood appeared to deliberately push a player towards the ump if not necessarily meaning to push him directly into him.

He might have pushed the player over knowing it was out of the umpire’s vision. He might have tried to use the ump to screen the player away from him and get a break. But the consequence of his act was the player cannoning into the umpire and knocking him down.

This feels akin to a player choosing to bump then making head contact – you are responsible for the foreseeable consequence of your action and being suspended.

RANKING RANKINE

Izak Rankine played one of the worst games of his career when Gold Coast lost to Collingwood at the MCG in round seven. On Saturday at home it was the best of his career. He is a different-looking player.

His work ethic has changed on the field and only helped him to get more involved to kick the freaky goals like his goal-of-the-year contender on Saturday. He is now playing the best football of his short career,playing with energy and commitment and giving every impression of being a player happy where he is.

The wrinkle in him staying at the Suns is Essendon have made an approach,which sources say is sufficiently large if not to completely turn his head then to at least give him pause before re-signing.

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