COLLINGWOOD ruckman Darren Jolly says his body is intact and he's over last year's knee problems but hasn't ruled out further management this season to ensure his recovery between games.

The 30-year-old, who will play his 50th game for the Magpies on Sunday against Gold Coast, admits getting up to play each week is getting harder as the years go on.

He missed rounds six and seven - with achilles soreness, "someone said my knee, some my groin, it wasn't [either]" - but is over that problem now.

Listen to Darren Jolly reflect on his 2011 season on CTV.

While his knee, which was operated on mid-season last year, is also repaired, the grind of football in his 12th AFL season may change his program slightly this season.

"With old age, you tend to recover a little bit slower and I've certainly found the older I'm getting, the harder it is to recover and takes longer," Jolly said on Thursday.

"So yeah, rest here and there, and I think with the position and the depth we have in the list, I'm able to do that."

Jolly is contracted for next season, which is the final year of the four-year deal he signed with the Pies after being traded from the Sydney Swans at the end of 2009.

He said he didn't expect any issues with his body honouring the full term.

"That'll be sweet … I've got plenty of games left yet," he said.

"As the cliché goes, I'm taking each week as it comes and making sure I get my body right for every game.

"I look forward to this year, and then I'll sit down and have a break and recharge and go again for next year."

As for post-football, Jolly has coaching in his "options box", and there's also the possibility of property development, which he told AFL.com.au last year.

But there could be a push for him to cross over to the media full time after his column on the coaches he's worked with - published in The Age last week - made quite a splash.

Jolly said he wouldn't hold back from being honest in future articles, despite being criticised by AFLCA CEO Danny Frawley for labelling ex-Melbourne coach Neale Daniher "a very intimidating person to talk to", and one who treated star players differently.

"I was [brutally honest] but I made sure it was my opinion and I didn't quote anyone else's opinion, and what I said about Neale, and that's probably the criticism I've had from the article, I didn't say he was a bad person or a bad coach," he said.

"I quoted saying how I felt in my time at Melbourne. I didn't see anything wrong with it and I've had a lot of positive feedback from it as well.

"[I don't want to] tread on too many toes but I like doing it, it's something new and I'll continue to do it."

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.