Geelong will be taking no chances with the fitness of All-Australian tagger Cameron Ling ahead of Friday night's blockbuster against Collingwood at the MCG.

The unbeaten Cats are coming off a short week and coach Mark Thompson, mindful of the heavy conditions at the MCG in last Saturday's slogging win over Richmond, has been careful not to go too hard.

The build-up has been easier still for the 11 Geelong players involved in the Hall of Fame Tribute match, all of whom, Thompson believes, were flat against the Tigers.

"They've had an extremely light week and the other guys have had just a light week," said Thompson at Skilled Stadium on Wednesday.

"We're hoping that by Friday with the six-day recovery … we're going to be in very sharp form."

Thompson said that Mathew Stokes would return after having served a one-match suspension, and he expects Gary Ablett to strip fit despite pulling up from the Richmond match where he was one of the best-afield, 'sore all over'.

Doubts remains, however, over Ling who, according to Thompson, has a 'few boxes to tick' to demonstrate he's fully recovered from an ankle injury he picked up against Sydney in Round 5 and which he tweaked against the Tigers.

"He's going to do a fitness test and he's got to pass that fitness test if he's going to play and we don't want him to play if he's not right," Thompson said of Ling.

Thompson acknowledged that, at 4-4, Collingwood's form is not as compelling as it was going into their most recent clash with the Cats, last year's preliminary final when the Pies ran Geelong to five points in a thriller.

"But they're still a threat because it's funny how sometimes it doesn't matter where teams are on the ladder, when two teams face they generally have good games and we have good games against Collingwood," he said.

"It's still a night game … Friday night, there'll be a big crowd and our boys will be looking forward to playing."

"We don't often get the chance to play in front of 80,000 people so every time you do it takes you to another level."

Thompson said that while the stakes are not as high, the desire for victory over Collingwood is every bit as strong as it was in late September last year.

"We're sitting at eight-love and we've met nearly every challenge we've faced this year," he said.

"Sometimes people say, 'you can afford to lose one', but I can tell you every time you get to game day you never think about losing one, you want to win every one you play in."

Meanwhile Thompson said he was well aware of the potential pitfalls of the new interchange system, despite the fact that the AFL gave the Cats the all-clear for their handling of the new procedures in the first week of their operation.

"It's very difficult, it's really difficult because of the paperwork side of it and the big multiple changes that coaches want to do and sometimes players take themselves off," he said.

"There's a lot that happens from the coaches box down to the interchange and onto the ground."

"As long as we adjust, we accept, we'll get it right - it is a difficult process."