Collingwood assistant coach Guy McKenna says the players and coaches kept believing in themselves even when trailing by nearly four goals late in the third quarter of Friday night’s semi final in the west.

Speaking on CTV’s weekly match review show The Weekend That Was at the Lexus Centre on Monday, McKenna was full of praise for the players keeping the faith when the Eagles were getting on top.

“The win was exceptional. It was the first time I’d been to extra time in a game, so for the boys just to keep persisting, it was fantastic for the whole 22,” explained McKenna.

“Just the mental resilience of the group… to be 23 points down, to come back from that and win in extra time was fantastic.”

Many things had to go right for the Magpies to beat the reigning premiers on their home turf, and according to McKenna handling the pressure of the occasion was crucial in the win.

“To put yourself in the finals race is to stay disciplined from the first bounce to last bounce, and I thought the boys did that.

“Obviously with the pressure, they used the ball well, and did that for most of the night.

“Again our defensive pressure was really good when West Coast had it, and knew we had to be at our best, given the size of the ground, you get those loose players in open space, and look out because they’ll score pretty heavily against.”

McKenna also highlighted the performances of four key Magpies, including midfielder Dane Swan, who was arguably the best player on the ground with 38 possessions and 11 important clearances.

“He’s a freak. Starts on the bench, comes on, plays his role, does his bit, and one thing that gets missed is he’s a pretty strong character.

“One, he’s got a strong body, so his one-on-one work is fantastic, but he’s certainly got a fair bit of pride in the way he performs, and he’s pretty hard in the head as well. He doesn’t like to get beaten, and that’s a bonus.

“No matter where he plays, half forward, half back and obviously on ball, he’s pretty strong over the ball, and that certainly helps his performance.”