Collingwood coach defends Scott Pendlebury from 'selfish' claims ahead of AFL games record achievement

Collingwood coach Craig McRae has stepped in to defend Scott Pendlebury from external claims that the champion's attempt to break the AFL games record had put himself before his team.

The 38-year-old missed round eight's draw with Hawthorn after pushing hard in the Anzac Day game to win the medal and break his personal disposals record.

He will then also be rested following round nine's clash with Geelong, missing the trip to Sydney, in order to break the V/AFL games played record at the MCG against West Coast, passing North Melbourne champion Brent Harvey's 432.

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Had Pendlebury been managed through the second half of the dominant win over Essendon, there's an argument he could have played five days later against Hawthorn and likely would have swung a game that ultimately ended in a draw.

McRae however has hit back at any suggestions of selfishness on the 432-gamer's part.

"We've got a deliberate plan; Pendles hasn't played too many five-day breaks in his history," McRae told reporters on Thursday.

"That's been reported around being selfish, I would have thought Pendles is probably the least selfish person in our team.

"But he wouldn't have played last week, he wasn't in a position to play physically.

"He's about to break the games record, that's so significant in our game.

"We'll continue to celebrate this incredible player within our building, and not walk past it. You don't get to have legends, actually a living legend in your building.

"What he's currently doing is quite remarkable. We're all seeing that we don't want to walk past that."

Pendlebury will wear a unique jumper with a golden number when he breaks Brent Harvey's record against the Eagles.

It will be part of the celebration, making him stand out from his teammates - a fact that doesn't sit right with former Magpies captain Tony Shaw, who said he is "uncomfortable" with the concept.

McRae however believes people are overthinking the situation.

"If we're just considering that someone's bigger than the team for that one day, can't we celebrate one person?" McRae said.

"It doesn't mean he's going to play outside the rules, doesn't mean he's going to play different to our game plan. It doesn't mean the team's going to just try to give him the ball all the time.

"If it's a jumper with a different colour, we're probably reading a bit too much into it."

Collingwood will soon be bolstered by the return of 2023 Norm Smith Medallist Bobby Hill, who has not played at all this season as he has worked his way back from a personal situation that also impacted his 2025 season.

McRae said they will take their time with Hill, who will have to play full games in the VFL to earn his recall.

"He didn't play a full game last weekend, as much as we like what he's doing on the field," McRae said.

"He's still got a lot of work to do. This is a long time that he's been out of the game. He's working towards that again.

"Some of it's performance, some of it's around his ability to get through a full game, which he's not quite doing."