Collingwood coach Craig McRae has confirmed superstars Nick Daicos and Scott Pendlebury will return to their side for the blockbuster Gather Round clash against Fremantle.

Pendlebury was held out of the Magpies’ 54-point loss to Brisbane on Easter Thursday due to Achilles soreness, while Daicos was a late withdrawal after failing a late fitness test while battling a corked calf.

But after the pair both got through training on Wednesday, McRae declared they would feature against the Dockers on Friday night.

“Nick will play and so will Pendles, they did what they needed to do to get through this week,” McRae said.

The Dockers, who are heavy favourites going into the Adelaide Oval clash, will weigh up whether to tag Daicos following mixed results in their past two encounters.

Fremantle managed to restrict the three-time All-Australian to 18 disposals and a goal in the clubs’ first meeting of 2025 but lost the game by 14 points at Optus Stadium.

However, in their round 19 match-up at the MCG, Daicos got off the chain with a game-high 43 disposals, eight clearances and a goal but the Dockers prevailed by one point.

Daicos has missed just five games since being drafted in 2021, with Collingwood having a 3-2 record without him in the side.

Geelong premiership captain and one of the greatest taggers in AFL history, Cameron Ling, said opposition clubs should always send a player to Daicos.

“If you look at Collingwood and you identify who is the one who lifts the standard of that whole group and is so vital to what they do, Nick certainly fits into that category,” the Seven expert commentator told The West Australian.

“I’d always play someone on Nick. It’s different when you’ve got an even spread midfield and it’s a case of which one of the three, it’s not worth it because we can’t tag all three.

“But I think with Collingwood, Nick is so crucial that you have to. Even if you can get him to have 25 and kick one goal, it’s better than him having 35 or 40 and kicking three goals.

“You’ve just got to strip some of that impact back.”

Unlike the Pies, Ling said Fremantle had three important players through the midfield that the opposition could look to tag in Caleb Serong, Andrew Brayshaw and Shai Bolton.

While conceding the trio all bring different strengths to the Dockers engine room, Ling revealed the one he would look to shut down.

“Do you go Serong, do you go Brayshaw or do you go Bolton?,” Ling said.

“And then it’s a coaches call on who is the one of those who brings other teammates in and lifts the level of everybody else? Is it the one who’s starting at the contest in Serong? Is it the link-up player in Brayshaw who glues it all together or is it the x-factor of Bolton?

“That’s what you’re constantly wrestling with. Who do we go to? If it was me, I think it’d go to Serong... I think Serong is the one who lifts the level of a lot of other players in that team. He’s pretty special.”

Daicos had made a brilliant start to the 2025 season, winning 41, 33 and 36 disposals in his first three games, while the 38-year-old Pendlebury was brilliant in a quasi-substitute role as his side defeated St Kilda in Opening Round.

Meanwhile, the Magpies will also hand mature-aged draftee Angus Anderson his first AFL game.

The 22-year-old South Australian won the Jack Oatey Medal for the best player afield in last year’s SANFL grand final at the same ground where he will make his bow at the top level.

“Tough,” McRae said when asked to describe Anderson. “The fans will love his tackle intensity. Every time we show some highlights in the VFL, he’s really smashing in and hurting the opposition.

“His contest and clearance stuff is his strength and we play against an opposition that is number one in the competition for those parts of the game.”

Fremantle will be without Hayden Young for the game after Justin Longmuir confirmed on Tuesday the injury-prone left-footer was still at least one week away from returning from a hamstring injury.

Meanwhile, forward Michael Frederick (ankle) also remains at least one game away despite re-joining training on Tuesday.