Dale Thomas has been chosen for Collingwood for their round three meeting with Geelong today, and the big forward Anthony Rocca has been named as an emergency. The dashing midfielder Thomas was missing from the Magpies' drubbing of Melbourne, last weekend through illness. Rocca, who was tipped to make a return for one of his team's biggest challenges of the year, has been out since he injured an ankle halfway through last season.
Whether he is going to run out on to the field today is up to his coach, Mick Malthouse, and you can bet he won't be telling anyone. The unbeaten Cats, who have lost their ruckman, Brad Ottens, for between two and four games to a knee injury, will be smarting from their match against the Tigers last week but Collingwood could pose a real threat. This week's Easter round will be played over five days. On Saturday, St Kilda will be hoping to make it three on the trot against the Eagles at Etihad Stadium, and the Brisbane captain Jonathan Brown will lead his team at home against Sydney after being cleared of wrongdoing by the match review committee.
The blockbuster Carlton v Essendon game follows at the MCG that night, with the Blues hoping to stay on top of the ladder at the expense of their old foes. On Sunday, Port Adelaide have their turn to play Melbourne, at AAMI Stadium; the Kangaroos will have to forget all about chickens to take it up to the Hawks, last year's premier; and Fremantle play Adelaide, but who really cares?
And on Monday, the Western Bulldogs will be trying to make it 3-0 against the Tigers. pstafford@thenational.ae