Nathan Buckley’s perfect text after Magpies upset win over West Coast in Perth

The Collingwood Magpies’ one-point win over the West Coast Eagles has the side settling all kinds of scores for those who wrote them off.

The Magpies fans were a bit happy.

The Collingwood Magpies are revelling in the club’s one-point victory in the elimination final against the West Coast Eagles, settling scores with those who wrote them off.

The Magpies defied the odds with a stellar performance, hanging on for a one-point win in a stunning 12.4 (76) to 11.9 (75) victory at Optus Stadium.

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The Eagles were unbeaten at the ground before the game and in seven matches this season but the eighth placed Magpies edged out their highly fancied rivals.

But post game, the team have been settling some scores.

Magpies fans piled on former Port Adelaide 300-gamer Kane Cornes, who said Collingwood were there “to make up the numbers”.

Even Collingwood president Eddie McGuire messaged Cornes about it. Cornes then kind of apologised, calling the Magpies fans “cocky” for their reaction as well.

The players also didn’t forget it.

Momma always said.

“If ya ain’t got anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.”

🤫#dirtypies #makingupnumbers pic.twitter.com/S2qqGwncnP

— Mason Cox (@masonsixtencox) October 4, 2020

But that wasn’t it with former Magpies recruiter Matt Rendell revealing on SEN that coach Nathan Buckley had the perfect response to his criticism last week.

Last week, Rendell, who joined Collingwood in 2012 said “every one of their forward line players has gone backwards” since the club’s 2018 Grand Final appearance.

“Geez, this is their problem because they spent 100 per cent of their time on defence,” Rendell told SEN’s Dwayne’s World.

“I was there seven years, I used to watch training all the time, it used to annoy the hell out of me – it was all defence, defence, defence and they wonder why they couldn’t score.

“Like, at the start of last year I thought ‘that’s good, they’re attacking again’ and then they went back to defence.

“This year has been all defence and it’s no secret that every one of their forward line players has gone backwards. There’s not one of them that has improved. People keep talking about Jordan De Goey – De Goey has had two good games this year. He hasn’t improved at all.”

Nathan Buckley was pleased with himself.

But on Monday afternoon, Rendell revealed Buckley hadn’t forgotten the criticism, flicking on a text message after the win.

“I’m sitting there (on Saturday) and had a few wines by the end of the game watching two games of footy in a row and I got a text message from (Nathan) Buckley at half-past-11 saying, ‘that was for you mate’ with a thumbs up,” he said.

“So, I said, ‘thanks for that’ and then gave him some more advice for this week’s game against Geelong.

“It was the first time I had heard from anyone at the club since I left to be truthful, I think he’s had that text ready to go. He must have walked out of the press conference and sent it straight away.

“It was hilarious when I got that, and I had a laugh.”

The Magpies are still alive in 2020.

Rendell praised a more attacking Magpies in the final and said it may have been playing “rope-a-dope” all season.

“Those (forwards) who had gone backwards all looked like they were back to their 2018 best even though (Jordan) De Goey was well held, but he even kicked two crucial goals,” Rendell conceded.

The Magpies play the Geelong Cats at the Gabba on Saturday night in a sudden death semi-final.