Craig McRae reflected on his debut as head coach after his side held on for a win against a surging St Kilda.

"(In the rooms) we reflected on the momentum swings and being able to capitalise when you have the momentum - tonight was an example of that," he said post-match.

"We love our fight and our spirit - we're trying to form a new DNA if you like.

"When our fans watch us play we want to show them we have a little fight in us.

"Our pressure is something we take great pride in."

Nick Daicos looked composed and gathered 27 possessions on debut while another young player in Ollie Henry stood up when it counted.

"Nick is an elite decision maker and kick," McRae said.

"He's one of many young players we're really happy with.

"Ollie Henry took a massive step forward too.

"He sort of fumbled a ball late in that last quarter and I thought 'oh no what's he going to do, is he going to drop his head?' ... but then he ends up kicking two last quarter goals that were critical.

"Those moments are huge for us as a young group."

Collingwood moved the ball with courage and kicked over 100 points - positive signs early.

"Hayden Skipworth is our ball movement coach and he's done an enormous job," McRae said.

"You've got to assess the game right now; you need to know when to go fast and when to go slow otherwise you can't defend behind it.

"We got it right sometimes tonight and other times we didn't but it's round one, we have a lot of improvement in us."