Selection shock: Pies drop John Noble for Dees blockbuster

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Collingwood have dropped running defender John Noble for their qualifying final against Melbourne on Thursday night despite him having played every game this season.

Noble has played all 23 games this season and cut a dejected figure at training on Wednesday with his hoodie and baseball cap covering his head and face.

His hard-running and uncomplicated style of play has made him a fixture in the side playing 25 games last year and 22 in 2021, but he was squeezed out of the selected team.

Oleg Markov, a former Richmond and Gold Coast player who has played in 20 games and is 188-centimetre tall, stays in the team. Markov was named at centre-half-back.

As Magpies coach Craig McRae forecast, the Magpies have stuck with playing two ruckman with Mason Cox joining Darcy Cameron in the team while captain and key defender Darcy Moore is back from a hamstring injury to lead their defence.

Noble has played 83 consecutive senior games dating back to 2020, the seventh-longest streak in the AFL

Teams to be named at 6.20pm

Teams to be named on Thursday night

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Selection shock: Pies drop John Noble for Dees blockbuster

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