Buckley narrows focus as Pies eye future

As Collingwood look to the future, Nathan Buckley is narrowing his focus.

The off-contract AFL coach remains under pressure as the Magpies embark on a wide-ranging review designed to set a blueprint for the next decade and beyond.

Collingwood's board gathered for a scheduled meeting on Tuesday evening, a day after long-serving chief executive Gary Pert announced his resignation.

The noise surrounding Buckley's future has grown throughout the season and is certain to increase further as the finals picture becomes clearer in coming weeks.

Barring a miracle, the Magpies will fail to qualify for a fourth straight year - something Buckley had declared a prerequisite for his survival.

Buckley has described himself as pragmatic about his future but said close friend Pert's resignation would have little impact.

"I'm really narrowly focused on the next five weeks," Buckley said.

"The fact that Perty's made that decision is above my pay grade.

"Not that much changes from a football perspective. Our focus is on performing and preparing for the Crows this week."

The Pies have lifted their spirits with consecutive wins over the past fortnight but face a major test against ladder-leaders Adelaide on Sunday.

They will be without skipper Scott Pendlebury, who is unlikely to return this season after undergoing a second operation on his broken finger.

Travis Varcoe will be unavailable after suffering a concussion and dislocating his elbow, while key forward Darcy Moore (neck) is also in doubt.

Adelaide will be without star forward Eddie Betts (appendix), while prime mover Brad Crouch (cheekbone) is no certainty to line up.