Tough-tackling Collingwood powered their way to top spot on the AFL ladder with a 48-point demolition of St Kilda at the MCG on Saturday.

The Magpies had lost their previous four games against the Saints but made a mockery of that poor record, winning 15.10 (100) to 6.16 (52) before a huge crowd of 81,386 in the top-of-the-table clash at the MCG.

The Saints were riding a seven-game winning streak but never looked like extending it to eight as the Magpies dominated all over the ground, nowhere more than in the tackle count which they won 76-52.

"We've won a number of big finals against (Collingwood) in the last couple of years and they've struggled to beat us, so at some point teams make a stand," said St Kilda coach Ross Lyon.

"I was disappointed that we didn't match that intensity, especially in the first half.

"... there was a bit more to like in the second half but certainly they played quite hungry.

"I thought they were pretty aggressive and had the ascendancy.

"We were on the back foot and it was hard to get back from there on a difficult day."

Dane Swan continued his stellar season with a game-high 36 possessions, while Dale Thomas and Ben Reid were also among Collingwood's many individual winners.

The Saints drew first blood through Justin Koschitzke, only for Collingwood to pile on the next six goals to take an early stranglehold on the match.

The signs were good for the Magpies as early as the fifth minute when former Saints skipper Luke Ball slotted their opening goal of the match against his former club.

Collingwood led by 32 points deep into time-on in the second term, only for Nick Riewoldt - in his second match back after a long layoff due to a hamstring injury - to trim the halftime margin to 26 with a long bomb after the siren.

To have any chance of getting back into the encounter, St Kilda needed to get off to a flying start in the third quarter.

But it was Collingwood, with three goals in the opening eight minutes through Leon Davis, Steele Sidebottom and man of the match Swan, who put the result beyond doubt.

St Kilda's dirty day was best encapsulated late in the final term when Jarryn Geary was handed a downfield free kick, only to blaze his shot wide from point blank range.

The outclassed Saints were best served by Sam Fisher and Leigh Montagna, while youngster Jack Steven booted two final-term majors to be their only multiple goalscorer.

The Magpies shared the scoring load with nine different goalscorers headed by Brent Macaffer and Leigh Brown with three apiece.

The Magpies would be pleased with their 15-goal haul, having only kicked a combined total of 16 majors in their previous three games against St Kilda.

"The opposition over the last year or two had been outstanding, so the boys played very well against them," said Collingwood coach Mick Malthouse, who was not prepared to compare it with any of the previous victories by his side in 2010.

"I'm not going to draw best wins, worst wins, second best wins, that's not for me to start to compare wins."

St Kilda suffered a blow before the opening bounce with the late withdrawal of gun midfielder Nick Dal Santo due to back tightness.

The victory saw Collingwood (50 points) move up two places above Geelong and the Saints (both 48) to first on the ladder following the Cats' shock loss on Friday night in Adelaide.

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