Varcoe has players’ support as he plans to play in final

TRAVIS Varcoe will pay tribute to his sister in Saturday night’s qualifying final against West Coast in Perth.

Varcoe’s sister Maggie died on Friday after suffering a head injury while playing in an Adelaide football league grand final the previous Sunday.

The funeral is expected to be held this week but the dual premiership Cat has told the Collingwood hierarchy he will play his first final for the Pies.

They will fly to Perth in separate groups on Thursday and Friday in time for a Friday night training session at Optus Stadium.

Varcoe flew into Melbourne last week for a mid-week training session before heading back to Adelaide, and was at the Holden Centre yesterday.

Collingwood captain Scott Pendlebury said yesterday that, while he still was not sure what Varcoe would do, he would support him in any way he needed. “I spoke to a couple of players,” Pendlebury said.

“Everyone is asking the same question. Trav has been around long enough now that if he wants to play, no doubt he will, and if he thinks he needs some time, then we fully understand that and support him whichever way he goes.

“We are just letting him know we are here for him. We all wrap our arms around him, we love the bloke. We spoke about it as a group, (we’re) just rallying around Trav and giving him the support he needs.

“If he plays this weekend that’s fantastic. If he doesn’t we understand why.”

Jeremy Howe is ready to return from a corked leg, while Tyson Goldsack would seem unlikely to play after two possessions in the VFL.

Midfielder Adam Treloar did not play in Sunday’s VFL clash as he recovers from a hamstring tendon injury, instead shining in a match simulation session on Friday at the Holden Centre.

The Magpies will weigh up the risks of losing a player early in a huge final with the reality that Treloar has done every- thing asked of him in the past fortnight of training.

“If he’s back he’s a huge boost for us, so my personal preference would be he plays but that is just me,” Pendlebury said.

Pendlebury admits he is now a huge supporter of the post-Round 23 bye after his condition worsened after flying back from the Fremantle clash, having suffered from a weeklong virus. “Yeah, I don’t think I would have played on the weekend so I am a big fan of the week off,” he said.