Collingwood was super-impressive at the MCG against St Kilda on Saturday to make it official that we have one of the most wide-open seasons in many years.

The Pies sit on top of the ladder - and deservedly so - after thoroughly dismantling St Kilda and its patented 'Saints Footy', grabbing with both hands the opportunity presented by Geelong's stumble against Adelaide on Friday night.

The one justifiable knock against Collingwood had been its form against the top two sides of the last 18 months - Geelong and St Kilda. The Cats still stand in their way, but they stand to gain enormous confidence from the manner in which they disposed of St Kilda.

Exactly how much remains to be seen, with Mick Malthouse pointing out afterwards that results over the next few weeks will determine precisely what the win over the Saints will mean.

Certainly the performance will enhance the Brownlow chances of Dane Swan, whose strength and class were a feature from the opening bounce. He hit the ball hard early and 21 teammates followed suit. He is a star.

Swan, Luke Ball, Scott Pendelbury and Alan Didak were also great. The Pies dominated the inside 50s from early in the opening term and really, it was apparent from about 15 minutes in that they were the better team.

They broke down the St Kilda 'full-court press' with some swift and precise ball movement, and didn't seem to miss the suspended Travis Cloke. They'll need him back as soon as he's available, of course, but the emerging Chris Dawes and journeyman Leigh Brown were terrific.

The Saints have been too good for too long for there to be major concerns for Ross Lyon, but there are issues to be addressed this week. We've discussed the midfield, and yes, the usually-prolific Nick Dal Santo was missing, but the Saints just didn't get their hands on enough clean footy.

Nick Riewoldt battled, but he appeared to hurt his knee and reportedly might struggle to come up in just six days for Friday night's clash with Hawthorn. Justin Koschitzke also struggled and might just about be a lost cause. A second round pick from Gold Coast for Kosi? The Saints might want to at least consider the proposition.

Steven Milne again let the Saints down in a big game. Mark Maclure was scathing on the ABC's post-game show, and the point needs to be made that Milne is far more comfortable against middleweight teams in the climate-controlled conditions at Etihad than out in the open at the MCG. Worryingly for Milne and the Saints, they don't play many finals at Etihad.

Sam Fisher defended well for the Saints but Jason Blake and Zac Dawson didn't do enough. Next week they have to contend with Lance Franklin and Jarryd Roughead.

But the footy world moves quickly. The Saints and the Cats will be spared much of the Monday morning quarterbacking by the events at Etihad Stadium on Saturday night. Twelve goals to West Coast's Mark LeCras and another spineless performance by the Bombers will dominate the headlines, but once we're done skewering the Bombers we'd still like to know why Gary Ablett looks so unhappy and whether Geelong is in a real slump or just in the middle of one those solid training blocks designed to freshen them up for their run home to the finals.