One of Australian Football League’s most decorated modern players, Collingwood Magpies champion Scott Pendlebury, remains undecided on whether he will hang up his boots at the end of the current season or extend his legendary playing career, according to Magpies head coach Craig McRae. The uncertain future of the league’s all-time games record holder comes as a recent hamstring injury rules him out of the club’s high-stakes wildcard final clash against the Western Bulldogs this Friday, which will be played in front of a capacity crowd at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
Pendlebury, a veteran midfielder who cemented his place in AFL folklore earlier this year when he broke the league’s all-time games record, delivered one of the most iconic Anzac Day match performances in the competition’s history just months ago. He left the field in a hamstring injury against the Brisbane Lions just over a week ago, in what many fans are already speculating could be his final appearance in the black and white stripes.
When asked to share an update on Pendlebury’s thinking around his future, McRae told reporters the 400-game veteran is still weighing up his options, with the outcome of his decision currently too close to call. “It’s probably 50-50, to be honest, I could see opportunities for him to play on and retire,” McRae said. “I’m sure he’s weighing up those things.”
Rumors have circulated in recent weeks that if Collingwood chooses not to retain Pendlebury on its senior playing list for the 2025 season, the veteran could move to a rival club to extend his playing career one last time. McRae declined to comment on that speculation, noting that all future plans are currently Pendlebury’s to evaluate alongside his management team.
“These are decisions he’s obviously weighing up with him and his management,” McRae said. “It is a big story because he is a remarkable player for such a long time, but we will give him respect and the time that he’s asked for.”
McRae emphasized that the club has maintained consistent open communication with Pendlebury throughout the season, and has deliberately stepped back to let the club’s greatest ever player make a decision on his own timeline. He added that the pair held a direct conversation about the future over the weekend, pushing back on narratives that the club was pushing Pendlebury toward an immediate call.
“Yeah multiple times, I spoke to him Saturday about that. I heard some narrative about Pendles letting the player dictate their own decisions for the future,” McRae said. “Having these conversations with Pendles for the last five years around what’s best for him and best for us gives me great comfort that he’ll do what is best for the footy club.”
McRae said he has full confidence that Pendlebury will only choose to continue his playing career if he is confident he can still perform at the elite level that has defined his 18-year career. “He won’t go on and play, in my eyes, unless he can perform at a certain level – so that gives you great confidence, ‘Hey, over to you mate, you make those decisions when you think they’re appropriate’,” he said.
While Collingwood is leading the conversation around Pendlebury’s future, McRae noted the final call is not entirely in the midfielder’s hands, but the club is committed to centering Pendlebury’s input in the process. “(The decision) not entirely in his hands but led by conversations with him. We’re an open dialogue around that – I am giving him space as requested and he will make that decision at the end of the year and we’ll let him have that,” McRae added. For Pendlebury to take the field again this season, Collingwood will need to advance deep into the 2024 finals series, a path that starts without their games record holder this Friday night.