Collingwood midfielder Tom Mitchell determined to play on after injury-ravaged 2024 season

Tom Mitchell is determined to get back to his best for a successful Collingwood swansong after an injury-ravaged campaign where he was restricted to six AFL games.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - SEPTEMBER 30: Tom Mitchell of the Magpies in action during the 2023 AFL Grand Final match between the Collingwood Magpies and the Brisbane Lions at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on September 30, 2023 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

Collingwood midfielder Tom Mitchell wants to play on next season, despite lingering soreness from a debilitating foot issue that ruined his 2024 season.

There was a question mark over Mitchell’s ability to play on in 2025 after making slower-than-expected progress from his foot surgery to fix a plantar fascia problem.

Mitchell, 31, was limited to six games this season and had surgery on his left foot in June as well as his appendix removed in August as part of a nightmare year.

But the veteran on-baller remains keen to play on next season and regain his fitness over summer in preparation for the likely final season of his glittering AFL career in 2025.

Tom Mitchell with Isaac Quaynor after Collingwood’s Grand Final victory. Picture: Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images

Teammate Jordan de Goey is another Magpie who faces a massive summer trying to regain full power in his legs after a year dealing with groin issues and a late-season hamstring injury.

De Goey suffered a high-grade hamstring tear with tendon involvement in Round 22 which will see him rejoin the group for pre-season on a modified program to rebuild the strength in his hamstring.

Mitchell will face a fight to secure a position in the midfield as back-up onballer Finlay Macrae, who played nine games this year, looks set to stay at Collingwood for next season as well. Macrae has not yet attracted strong interest from rivals and is tied to the Magpies for one more season.

Unless a new home emerges in the trade period, he will stay in black and white.

Collingwood is keen to land GWS Giants utility Harry Perryman to add some run and versatility and will trade John Noble to Gold Coast for an expected second-round draft pick.

Mitchell also has one year remaining on his deal after the popular ball magnet signed a three-year transfer at the end of 2022 to move from Hawthorn to Collingwood.

Tom Mitchell is keen to play on next year. Picture: Albert Perez/AFL Photos via Getty Images

It was a shrewd trade from the Magpies as Mitchell repaid the club’s faith, finishing fourth in the Copeland Trophy as part of a premiership campaign last season.

But Mitchell did not play after the Round 8 game against Essendon on Anzac Day this year due to foot soreness and faces a significant battle over summer trying to regain his full fitness after months out of the game.

The man who won the 2018 Brownlow Medal bravely played with a sore foot in the early part of the 2024 season and went under the knife after rest failed to fix the problem.

Collingwood hoped Mitchell would be able to return to the senior side after the surgery but his recovery was slow.

Mitchell was originally drafted to Sydney as a father-son where he spent four seasons before a trade to Hawthorn in late 2016.

Collingwood’s midfield mix will be a major source of intrigue next year as the Magpies attempt to return to the eight after a disappointing season.