Magpie Steele Sidebottom cops four-match ban

In a major blow to Collingwood, star midfielder Steele Sidebottom has been suspended for four matches for breaches of the AFL's COVID-19 protocols.

Sidebottom has received double the ban of any other player for a series of breaches of the AFL protocols, while teammate Lynden Dunn received a one-match ban for sharing an Uber ride with Sidebottom.

Sidebottom was found to have breached regulations on the Uber ride and visiting teammate Daniel Wells, who was not in the Collingwood's "bubble'' of players and staff who can mingle freely under certain conditions.

Sidebottom has also been sanctioned ''in relation to his conduct following his departure from a Collingwood staff member's home in an intoxicated state that resulted in him being picked up by police and delivered home'', the AFL said in a release.

The suspension means Sidebottom, one of Collingwood's best and most consistent players, will miss not only Friday night's game but the next match - scheduled to be Brisbane - and then Geelong in Perth, followed by either West Coast or Fremantle.