Chris Mayne will spend Sunday night in hospital, having suffered a suspected fractured cheekbone following a bruising collision with Patrick Cripps during Collingwood's stirring victory over Carlton on Sunday.
Mayne braced to tackle Cripps in a crucial contest in the fourth quarter, but was collected by the point of the Blues co-captain's shoulder and forced to walk from the field aided by club medics.
He immediately had a bruise developing on his right cheekbone, with Magpies coach Nathan Buckley praising the manner in which Mayne has put his body on the line for the team over the last fortnight.
"He's going to hospital," Buckley said.
"He's probably got a fractured cheekbone, that's the early diagnosis, and he was knocked out.
"That's the second week in a row that we've been out here and a contest of his has been really crucial in the flow of the game. The bloke continues to put his body on the line and his teammates love him.
"He's not in a great way at the moment, so he's a sore boy."