Reid, Krakouer, Young ready to take on arch-rival Carlton COLLINGWOOD'S consistency problems may be solved in coming weeks with the return of several senior players, beginning with Friday's season-shaping game against Carlton. Key defender Ben Reid, small forward Andrew Krakouer and Hawthorn recruit Clinton Young seem certain starters on Friday night for a match in which Collingwood has the chance to deal another blow to the finals aspirations of its biggest rival. Premier ruckman Darren Jolly also looms as a possible inclusion should a toe problem have healed sufficiently while, at reserves level, star midfielder Dayne Beams and the versatile Tyson Goldsack will take another step towards senior football. Scott Pendlebury yesterday said coach Nathan Buckley would find it hard not to select Young for what he termed the "biggest game of the year" after the former Hawk starred in the reserves last weekend by gathering 21 touches, including seven inside 50m entries. "I don't want to steal Bucks' thunder for later this week, but I think there would be a fair chance that Youngy will play," Pendlebury said. Not for the first time this season, Collingwood was criticised for its level of effort in the loss to Port Adelaide on Saturday. After the Magpies lost to Essendon on Anzac Day, Pendlebury said some of his teammates were cheating in their approach to football. He was more reserved yesterday, saying the Magpies had simply hit a flat spot. "I think every club has had a flat spot, here or there, and it does get frustrating," Pendlebury said. We got three in a row but then just came out on the weekend and we just couldn't execute that well. Obviously, we need to smooth things out in the run home. Pendlebury denied the fanatical approach to defensive acts that proved critical in Collingwood's 2010 premiership win under now Carlton coach Mick Malthouse was completely missing, saying rival sides were now better equipped to deal with the Magpies. "I think we've showed signs through the year that that manic Collingwood is still there, but other sides have improved and we've got to go up another level," he said. Pendlebury had no hesitation in labelling the clash between the eighth and ninth-placed sides the Magpies' most important this season. Sitting eighth, the Magpies are two wins clear of closest challengers Carlton, West Coast and Adelaide and can effectively end the finals aspirations of the Blues and Crows over the next fortnight. Victories in those two games would keep them within contention for a top four spot - they sit two wins behind third-placed Essendon - and Pendlebury said his teammates understood what was at stake. "I think most sides will talk about you've just got to control what you can control, the rest will fall into place," he said. We're obviously in a position now where this game is our biggest game of our season. We really need to win this game to create a buffer and stay close enough to the top four and if we lose it, it's probably hard to get top four. While Carlton fell to Sydney at the SCG on Friday in a match played in torrential rain, it again proved competitive against a flag contender. The Blues are also likely to receive a boost in experience after vice-captain Andrew Carrazzo was named in the best players at VFL level in his return from a calf injury. "Most of the boys know that they've been really competitive even when they've lost," Pendlebury said. It's been a three-goal margin, and early this year we had a really good battle against them.