Collingwood skipper Nick Maxwell is confident Andrew Krakouer won’t be lost to AFL.

Krakouer has been granted four weeks’ leave by the club on the eve of the season to deal with “personal issues”, understood to be family related.

Maxwell backed the club’s decision to grant leave to the 29-year-old forward, who was jailed for 16 months in 2008 for assault.

Maxwell was confident Krakouer’s absence would be temporary and he would return to the grand finalists as soon as he was ready.

“Krak is going through some personal issues and, as a club, we want to support him as much as possible,” Maxwell said.

“The player group is fully supportive of that.

“He’s a great person, he’s added a lot to our footy club in the past 12 months and we’re going to make sure he looks after himself off the field … and we’ll welcome him back with open arms when he tells us he’s ready to come back.

“Whenever there’s personal issues for guys, you just want to make sure they get that right.

“That’s the number one priority and number two is their football and trying to get them back here.”

Krakouer provided one of the feelgood stories of 2011, returning from his jail stint to help Collingwood to the grand final, kicking 35 goals for the season.

His absence and those of injured duo Alan Didak and Ben Johnson for the pre-season competition will open the door for younger players.

“Only two weeks ago, we were talking about how we were going to fit everyone in, how we were going to see these young guys,” Maxwell said.

“Now it throws it open for guys like Billy (recruit Jamie Elliott) and guys like (Alex) Fasolo who want to get in the midfield where Johno and Dids would have been.

“Those three guys who aren’t playing will all be back pretty soon.”

Maxwell also said defender Nathan Brown, who missed last season following a serious knee injury, would be ready to play in round one.

Maxwell and his team-mates took part in a charity run on Saturday to raise funds and awareness for Friedreich Ataxia, a fatal degenerative, neurological disease.

The players ran well within themselves, and even the injured Didak and Johnson completed the course – walking their 3.8km lap of The Tan track in inner Melbourne.