AFL News

Collingwood “can’t quite commit” to out-of-contract stars yet as list management talks heat up

The Pies have plenty of work to do with 15 players coming out of contract at the end of the year.

Published by
Aidan Cellini

With the season nearing an end, list management calls start to become a sole focus as clubs start to eye off the future.

Collingwood has a host of key players who are currently without deals beyond 2024, with coach Craig McRae weighing in on the situation.

Veterans Scott Pendlebury, Will Hoskin-Elliott and Steele Sidebottom all look poised to be added to the playing list in 2025.

However, the future of milestone man Jeremy Howe, who will run out for his 250th game on Friday against Sydney at the SCG, remains undecided, with McRae opting to focus on the week ahead.

2024-08-09T09:40:00Z

“We had a meeting last week, and we've got another one today funnily enough. We're meeting weekly at the pointy end of this season,” McRae said on Wednesday.

“We go through all out-of-contract players, some we can't quite commit to yet, that's just the natural course … most teams will be doing that.”

SEE MORE: Collingwood out-of-contract players

Aside from the trio of premiership players, the Pies have a host of young talent who are keen to sign on the dotted line.

Charlie Dean and Reef McInnes would likely to be the next off the rank while the reported interest in small forward Joe Richards may speed negotiations along.

Pre-season and mid-season selections Lachie Sullivan, Jack Bytel, Josh Eyre and Ned Long are all without deal in 2025 but have showed plenty in their application at the AIA centre.

That leaves the tall trifecta of Nathan Kreuger, Aiden Begg and Oscar Steene, with the likelihood they'd hang around given Mason Cox's veteran status, despite being contracted until the end of 2025.

Published by
Aidan Cellini