TYSON Goldsack may have kicked five goals over the past two rounds, but he's not about to start wearing pink boots or go for the one-glove look.

The premiership defender, who snared two goals against the Western Bulldogs in round six - and three last week against the Brisbane Lions - admits he loves the opportunity to kick a major.

He's also spent time on the wing this season in his seven games, and in a defensive forward role against Essendon's Dustin Fletcher. 

Despite all that, he remains a defender at heart.

"Naturally, I defend. It's just the way I've been moulded as a player," Goldsack told collingwoodfc.com.au this week.

"Even as a winger, I'm still defensively minded. I'm starting to get that offence into my game, and that's where the next stage of my footy might come from - to be more offensively minded with a defensive aspect still there.

"It's just about trying to find that balance."

The evolution of Goldsack's role this year has been curious. He was earmarked in the pre-season to play on the wing, but injuries to defenders forced him down back.

Then, he was called up to play the role on Fletcher in round five and has found himself in the front half of the ground since.

"I think he's enjoyed freshening up in different roles," coach Nathan Buckley said.

"We've used him in the forward line at times, he's played through the wing and we know he can play at half back.

"He's likely to be used in all three of those roles at various times throughout the year. Hitting the scoreboard helps him in that forward role because he brings a lot of defensive pressure and speed, and puts a lot of pressure on defenders trying to run the ball out."

It's that defensive pressure, along with the contribution from Sharrod Wellingham and Ben Sinclair, which has caught the coach's eye.

After a full pre-season, Goldsack is simply happy to be fit enough to play.

He was struck down by viral meningitis in the 2010 pre-season, before glandular fever ravaged his slight frame and robbed him of nine kilograms the following summer. 

It affected his ability to run out games, and consequently, hold his spot in the seniors with his disposal affected when he became fatigued, sometimes as early as the first quarter.

The illnesses weren't linked to each other, although they have left him with a mindset to eat the right foods, rest up away from training and generally look after himself.

"You can get chronic fatigue later down the track [from glandular] and I'm out of that initial window now and it shouldn't come back but it still wasn't good to go through," Goldsack said.

"Coming back from it was hard and I'm conscious not to slip back into it. It just destroys you physically."

Playing all seven games this season has given Goldsack confidence, and has enabled him to finally settle into a routine that doesn't involve bouncing between two teams and training schedules.

He signed a two-year contract extension in 2010 after gaining a recall for the Grand Final replay following his omission from the drawn game's team.

While he's one of several Pies out of contract at the end of this season, he expects his negotiations to be smooth ... "after we sign up the big dogs".

"It's hugely different [from 2010]. It was a different world back then for me," he said.

"It was the unknown [during the season]. It was like, 'Why would I stay at a club where I felt I was doing the right things but not getting a regular game?'

"I knew I wasn't fit enough, which comes down to pre-season, but this season, it's totally different.

"I'm not in any hurry to sign and I don't want to go anywhere. They've shown faith in me and I want to repay that back, and at the moment it's going that way.

"I'm in a pretty happy spot."

The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the AFL or its clubs.

Jennifer Witham is a reporter for AFL Media. Follow her on Twitter @AFL_JenWitham.