COLLINGWOOD is putting its faith behind an ageing list to take the club to a flag in 2025, and AFLW All-Australian Kate McCarthy says recruiting former Port Adelaide star Dan Houston is proof of that.

Despite not making finals last year, the Pies are backing a list of experience over youth, bringing in Houston, 27, and 30-year-old ex-Saint Tim Membrey during last year's Telstra AFL Trade Period.

It came on the back of senior coach Craig McRae's revelation last year that he preferred players over picks in terms of building the Magpies' talent profile.

Now with an average age of 26.3 years, Collingwood has the AFL's oldest playing group heading into 2025, a full year older than reigning premier Brisbane's squad.

"They've obviously gone the approach that it's all or nothing," McCarthy said on a special pre-season edition of The Round So Far.

"[There's] 102 games average, between all the [Collingwood] players. Obviously, Steele Sidebottom and Scott Pendlebury lift that average a little bit … but you can see they've gone all in."

In recruiting two-time all-Australian defender Houston, McCarthy believes the Pies will be using his versatility to boost their hopes of snagging a second premiership in three years.

"Dan Houston, I think, has the potential to be the recruit of the year," McCarthy said.

"If Collingwood are going to take their game where they need it to be, I think Dan Houston is going to play a huge part in that.

"I see him getting all the way forward, kicking a few goals as well, just having real control over any line of the ground that he wants to play in – I think he's a big key pillar for them."

McCarthy acknowledged that looking to younger players was the "next step" for the Pies, but for 2025, adopting an "all-in policy" is what the Pies need to keep them within the premiership window.

With Pendlebury, Sidebottom and Membrey joined by fellow veterans including Jamie Elliott, Jeremy Howe, Tom Mitchell, Jack Crisp, Brody Mihocek, the Magpies have made a clear decision to prioritise immediate success.

"They need to look at getting some youth back into the team, but clearly this year, getting Dan Houston across, they're looking to go all in and win a flag," McCarthy said. 

Kate McCarthy and new host Xander McGuire will be the mainstays of a refreshed The Round So Far in 2025, with rotating panellists Riley Beveridge and Josh Gabelich bringing you all the headlines and highlights each Saturday night.  

Watch The Round So Far on AFL.com.au and the AFL Live App from Saturday, March 15.