Collingwood may be sitting a game clear inside the top four heading into its bye, but coach Nathan Buckley says the week's break provides no time for rest for his side. 

The Magpies' 42-point win over Greater Western Sydney on Sunday capped a sensational start to the season, which will see them turn to the second half of the year with a win-loss record of 8-3. 

However, with Fremantle, Hawthorn, Port Adelaide and West Coast to come in the month after the bye, the Magpies cannot afford to let up.

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"It's a pretty good time to sit back and look at what you've done well and improve, and we'll do that," Buckley said.

"We've got to look after the little things. All the basics will come home to roost. If you do them well, then you'll be rewarded, or if you take your eye off the ball, or if you blink or you exhale then you'll be caught out.

"We're not going to do that. We're not feeling like we're waiting for a particular moment to gather ourselves." 

Buckley said he felt his side was able to stabilise the momentum of the game through its supremacy on the inside of the contest against the Giants. 

Collingwood had a considerable advantage in the contested possession count (156-125), a sharp turnaround from a disappointing effort in that area against Melbourne on Queen's Birthday. 

"For the most part we played the type of footy to have the game in some form of control, which is easier said than done against a side so damaging," Buckley said.

"Bar that 10-minute period through the middle part of the second quarter, we felt like we'd stabilised the momentum of the match and we were in control of how the match was being played." 

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Buckley singled out the performance of Jarrod Witts, who rucked basically one-out because of the neck injury sustained by Brodie Grundy in a training mishap on Friday, against Mumford. 

The Magpies coach also heaped praise on Nathan Brown's shutdown role on dangerous Giants forward Jeremy Cameron. 

Brown kept the competition's equal-second leading goalkicker to two goals, four marks and just six disposals. 

Buckley said the Brown-Cameron and Jack Frost-Cameron McCarthy matchups were only consolidated on Saturday morning. 

"Harty (backline coach Ben Hart) and I had a conversation about 10 minutes before walking into the team meeting yesterday morning and we said 'What do you reckon? Yep, we'll go this way,'" Buckley said.

"We could've gone six of one and half a dozen the other… but it was as near a run thing to a 50/50 as we've had." 

Grundy is unlikely to be fit for the trip to Perth to face Fremantle on June 25, while Jarryd Blair – who missed Sunday's game because of an ankle concern – should be fit to reclaim his place in the side. 

"Blairy will be right. He was touch and go, so it was wise not to force it especially with the bye on the other side," Buckley said. 

"Brodes has had a scare. He's going to be in a neck brace for the next couple of weeks. I'd say he'd be unlikely for Freo but he might be a chance, but we don't know exactly how it's going to go – it's still a fair way away."