Jeremy Cameron could miss the Geelong Cats’ duel with the Collingwood Magpies

Should Cameron miss, the Cats could be without their two power forwards given the cloud surrounding Tom Hawkins’ fitness.

Hawkins had foot surgery in the off-season and did not play in Geelong’s scratch match with Brisbane as he races against the clock to get up for the first-round blockbuster.

Cameron said Hawkins is moving well on the practice track but he was no guarantee he would line up on Friday, which could force the Cats to name a provisional forward line.

“Tom is training really well and hopefully we’re both out there,” Cameron said.

“But if we’re not, I’m sure they are [the coaches] watched it several times over the week.

“We have a lot of people who can play different roles and I think we’re really lucky with that.

“We have some backmen who can move forward, we have new people coming in and we have people who play different roles coming in.

“Hopefully it doesn’t play out that way, but if it does it will be a slightly different way of looking ahead.”

Jack Henry was attempted in offense in the Cats’ unofficial scratch match against Hawthorn, but he will definitely miss the first few matches after injuring his foot in that match. The Cats also played with two ruckmen in the preseason and could use one of Rhys Stanley or Jonathan Ceglar as a ball forward.

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One player sure to start over Friday night is former Magpie Ollie Henry, who has impressed in the preseason, particularly in the Hawks match.

“What really struck me is his aerial work,” Cameron said of Henry.

“He’s like a mid-level player, but he plays really big. He loves jumping on the ball and he’s not scared in the air which is different.”

Collingwood faces a selection problem of its own with Billy Frampton and Nathan Murphy potentially vying for the same spot on defense.

Murphy had a breakout season as the third tall defenseman alongside Darcy Moore and Jeremy Howe in 2022, but the Magpies brought Frampton in from the Crows to play at full-back.