Collingwood key forward Travis Cloke is craving the sort of AFL redemption that St Kilda counterpart Nick Riewoldt enjoyed on Sunday.

At one end of the MCG, Riewoldt went a long way to eliminating queries about his goalkicking with a five-goal, best-afield performance as the Saints beat the Magpies.

At the other, Cloke missed an easy shot at goal, hit the post with another and kicked out on the full.

`Pies fans have their hearts in their mouths at the moment when Cloke has a shot on goal.

"I've missed some ... sitters over the last couple of months and I've sat down with Anthony Rocca and (assistant coach) Paul Hudson, we've gone through what I've done right and what I've done wrong," Cloke said.

"We think, as a group, we've got something under control and I'm looking forward to getting out there this weekend and trying to have a couple more shots.

"I'm feeling very confident in front of goals, I missed that one on the weekend and hit the post, but I guess that's football.

"Hopefully it's showing to the supporters that I'm trying to improve in that area."

Collingwood only kicked seven goals against St Kilda, but Cloke and his fellow forwards were also starved of supply.

One small positive was the return of Rocca, who kicked two goals and was far from Collingwood's worst player.

He is nursing another ankle injury and Cloke hopes he will be fit for Saturday night's MCG semi-final against Adelaide.

"He might have only had a couple of touches but, gee, he was important for us up forward," Cloke said.

"His impact and his voice is so important for John Anthony and myself, we're probably the younger ones in our forward half.

"Him being out there and his instructions - just Anthony Rocca being Anthony Rocca on a football field is very important to us.

"I'm really hoping his ankle is fine and he's up and running again this weekend, because I love playing with Anthony."

Another Magpie who needs a big game against the Crows is utility Leon Davis, whose form has tapered off in the last few weeks.

He was well down against the Saints as the Collingwood midfielders struggled to gain possession.

"It's been a bit of a long pre-season, but that's why you put in the hard yards in the pre-season, to be able to last all season," Davis said.

"I know I've dropped off a bit, but I'm looking to come out this week and work extremely hard to try and bounce back."

Davis admitted the loss of Scott Pendlebury with a leg fracture will mean a difficult hole to fill in the lineup.

"We've got a good number of players who can play in the midfield - he's going to be a massive loss, he's a key part to our midfield," Davis said.

"He'll be missed, but we'll move on.

"Hopefully we can fill the void there, come out and play well."

Brought to you by AAP © 2024 AAP