AFL 2025: Collingwood coach Craig McRae on Josh Daicos the midfielder
Daicos made the most of his opportunity in the midfield last week against Gold Coast with one of the more impressive single quarters of football.
But Houston (abdominal) and Howe (adductor) are set to leave holes in the Magpies' defence across the next fortnight.
Collingwood coach Craig McRae admits it will be hard to leave Daicos out of a wounded back six this week but says the Pies would also 'be silly' not to push him into the middle more.
'I think everyone in the footy world will be wondering where he starts this week,' he said.
'With Dan out it would be challenging to keep him out of the backline for major parts, but I think also we'd be silly not to explore what that (midfield) looks like.
'Whether that's this week or going forward, he had such a remarkable impact on the game.'
McRae says Daicos is itching to get into the midfield alongside brother Nick but will move his magnet in line with team demands.
'I remember saying to him in the third quarter, 'Josh, you ready to go into the midfield?' And he jumped up before I even made the decision,' McRae said with a laugh.
'He was that eager to get in there and put his real stamp on the game, it was fantastic.
'He's got elite talent and he's got to a level of the game where he's an elite talent in the game.
'We could honestly play him anywhere and he would impact, but it's about what the team needs in Josh's best skill set.
'This week we might need him a bit back, a bit in the mid and a bit on the wing – gee it's nice thought to have, that you could play him in multiple positions.'
The Magpies will have three first-choice defenders out for Sunday's game against Fremantle, with Billy Frampton needing another week on the sidelines.
But in a welcome addition, Collingwood will welcome back pressure forward Beau McCreery from his hamstring lay-off.
'Did you watch training today? (Beau) was outstanding. We're really excited to have Beau back, he was touch and go last week,' McRae said.
'We chose to get a bit more load into him over the weekend, so Beau will play and bring back that customary chase and pressure which we've missed the last month.
'Billy (Frampton) won't play this week … fingers crossed he'll be available next week, but we'll see how we go.'
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