Collingwood coach Mick Malthouse admits a wave of relief at being able to deliver this season's AFL premiership as he prepares to hand over the coaching reins to Nathan Buckley in a year.

The Magpies crowned a dominant season on Saturday with a crushing 16.12 (108) to 7.10 (52) victory over St Kilda in front of 93,853 fans in the grand final replay at the MCG.

It was the Magpies' 15th premiership - and first since 1990 - leaving them trailing only Essendon and Carlton, on 16.

Malthouse, 57, became the oldest man to guide a side to a flag, 16 years after he claimed the second of his premierships as West Coast coach in 1994.

As in last week's drawn grand final, Collingwood dominated early, but the halftime margin of 27 points was close enough to give the Saints hope.

Last week's halftime margin was 24 but this time the Magpies took just 10 minutes of the third term to snuff out any chance of another St Kilda revival, posting three goals for a 46-point buffer.

At that stage, the Saints had just 1.9 on the board and were never coming back.

"We took the foot off the accelerator, I reckon, off the throat last week, and full credit to St Kilda who came back," Malthouse said of the drawn game.

"But I just thought that if we maintained that pressure, then I don't care who you are, what you are, you can't score against that pressure, that was the key to it.

"I thought the first 10 minutes of that third quarter was fairly intense, as intense as any third quarter can get given what had transpired in the first half."

The victory proved the ultimate vindication for former Saints skipper Luke Ball, who switched to Collingwood in the off-season, and was one of the Magpies' best, playing on Lenny Hayes.

Collingwood's other star recruit Darren Jolly also had an enormous impact, dominating the hit-outs and making a central contribution in a Magpies surge late in the first half.

He became the only multiple premiership player on Collingwood's list, adding Saturday's triumph to his 2005 flag with Sydney.

Midfielder Scott Pendlebury won the Norm Smith Medal as best afield, bouncing back after a quiet match in the initial grand final, when he was affected by illness in the lead-in.

Malthouse said the Magpies had the game plan and young list - 15 of the 22 were aged 25 or under - to remain a force.

But he said it was strange to know next season would be his last, with assistant Buckley then contracted to take over.

"I can honestly say now that I haven't enjoyed the finals series ... mainly because there's an end-point," Malthouse said.

"Every coach has got an end-point, but I know when it is."

It made relief his overriding emotion.

"It's very hard to feel any other emotion, or two emotions at once, and I've just got this sense of relief for the Collingwood people that have been supporting this club," he said.

"Sometimes we take it for granted. Until Darren Jolly comes along (from another club) and says I just can't believe how big and how passionate the Collingwood people are.

"It just keeps bringing you back and reminding you that there's nothing better than giving (success) to your supporters."

For St Kilda, it was more heartbreak, with just one flag, in 1966, to show for eight grand finals, including last year's 12-point loss to Geelong and last Saturday's draw.

"We certainly acknowledge we need to get better and to quote Winston Churchill, never never never give up," coach Ross Lyon said.

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