Collingwood suffer Jordan De Goey and Tom Mitchell blow as Bobby Hill addresses major flag concern

Collingwood stars Jordan De Goey and Tom Mitchell have both been ruled out of Friday night's AFL blockbuster against traditional rivals Carlton. De Goey has been unable to train since the Magpies' draw with Essendon on Anzac Day due to groin soreness, while Mitchell has been suffering ongoing foot issues. It is a massive blow for Collingwood who have got their season back on track in recent weeks after having their worst start to a season in 25 years.

De Goey will be forced to sit out of his first game of the season after not handling the short five-day turnaround leading into the Bombers match. The explosive midfielder didn't feature in Pies' main training on Wednesday, while Mitchell failed to complete the session.

"He's got tight groins so we're just going to back him off a little bit and hopefully get those things settled down," Collingwood coach Craig McRae said. "Who knows when he's available, ideally next week.

"The reality is it (the injury) has come reasonably quickly, so my expertise, which is none, suggests that ... if it comes on quickly, it may go away quickly."

Mitchell was subbed out of Collingwood's Anzac Day draw, with McRae saying the former Sydney and Hawthorn player has been dealing with a plantar fasciitis issue. "He's been struggling with it a bit. At the opportune time, like now, we're trying to get him ready to play and he couldn't get through (the session)," McRae said.

As Collingwood suffers somewhat of an injury crisis, Carlton are set to welcome back a pair of their injured stars. Off the back of a loss to ladder leaders Geelong, they are expected to be bolstered by the return of Adam Cerra (hamstring) and David Cunningham (calf) from injuries against Collingwood, while Mitch McGovern (hamstring) is also a slim chance of making his return.

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Bobby Hill can't put his finger on major Collingwood problem

After another slow start last weekend, Collingwood dynamo Bobby Hill says he and the club are miffed by why they continue to start slow this season. The Magpies conceded five of the first six goals against Port Adelaide to trail by 30 points and then shipped the opening four goals against Essendon on Anzac Day.

While Collingwood recovered in both games - beating the Power and then drawing with the Bombers - their sluggish starts are a serious concern at the club. While Hill can't pinpoint the reason why, he says it's something they need to address and fast if they want any chance of winning the flag again in 2023.

"I think it's just more the way we want to start, we've got to get a bit better at that because slow starts are not what we want," he said. "During the week we'll train that and get on to that and hopefully get the ball in our hands first in the first bounce and get it forward. I think that's what we'll practice this week."

with AAP