Collingwood will attempt to secure just its second pre-season/night series grand final on Friday night since the competition originated in 1956.
The Magpies won their first and only pre-season/night grand final in the night series in 1979. In front of 37,753 at Waverley Park, head coach Tom Hafey and captain Ray Shaw led a young Magpie side to a 28-point win over Hawthorn.
Fullback Peter McCormack starred for the Magpies holding the Hawks to just five goals for the game.
CTV spoke with McCormack during the week as the club prepares to claim just its second pre-season/night grand final. During the night series, the preseason/night competition was conducted throughout the home-and-away season, with games played during the week.
In 1979 the format changed with the initial round of 12 expanding into two qualifying rounds featuring the VFL, WAFL and state (NSW and Tasmania) sides. Collingwood will appear in its fifth pre-season/night grand final and first against Essendon.
Notes on Pre-season/night series: 1956-1971, 1977-2010
| Club | P | W | L | P | W | L | P | W | L |
| Collingwood | 73 | 31 | 42 | 9 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 3 |
Pre-season/night series grand finals
| Date | Result | Venue | Margin | Crowd | Coach | Captain |
| 3/7/79 | Coll 12.8 (80) d Haw 7.10 (52) | P | 28 | 37,753 | Tom Hafey | Ray Shaw |
| 15/7/80 | NM 8.9 (57) d Coll 7.12 (54) | P | 3 | 50,478 | Ron Barassi | Wayne Schimmelbusch |
| 15/3/03 | Adel 2.3.8 (104) d Coll 1.9.10 (73) | D | 31 | 43,571 | Gary Ayres | Mark Ricciuto |
| 13/3/09 | Geel 0.18.19 (127) d Coll 1.6.6 (51) | ES | 76 | 37,277 | Mark Thompson | Cameron Ling |
Venue guide
D: Docklands
ES: Etihad Stadium
P: Waverley Park
