The epic conclusion that was marked by Luke Ball's snap out of the congestion with only minutes remaining was nothing but a pipe dream only half an hour prior when the Pies trailed by 17-points at three quarter time.
With their backs to the wall, the Magpies dug deep as only they know how.
Chris Dawes goaled only four minutes into the final quarter to cut the margin back to 10 points, giving the team hope that they may be able to produce a miracle.
Read the match report from the Magpie' miracle win.
But from the resultant centre bounce, Leon Davis gathered at half forward, spun out of trouble and wheeled onto his left boot to bang home his first of the night from 55m out.
The celebration from a fired up Leon set the MCG alight. It was clear that the force was with the black and white.
Hawthorn struck back through Luke Hodge, but the Magpies kept coming.
Dane Swan broke from a stoppage deep inside 50 and burst into space to snap a team lifter halfway through the quarter, paving the way for Travis Cloke to take a colossal pack mark at half forward before goaling to give Collingwood the lead.
With only a few grains of sand left in the hourglass, Lance Franklin very nearly broke the hearts of the tens of thousands of Collingwood supporters at the ground with a freak goal from a tight angle as he ran deep into the right forward pocket at the Ponsford Stand in.
But it all came down to Ball's gumption at a ball up with only three minutes remaining in the game. With Collingwood down by four-points, Ball broke through a mass of players to gather, steady and snap on his non-dominant left side. The kick cleared the line as Chris Dawes desperately held his opponent away from the ball.
The goal gave Collingwood a two-point lead. A Travis Cloke behind and a last-gasp tackle from Dale Thomas on Cyril Rioli just as it appeared the Hawks had found an escape put the victory under lock a key. Collingwood was into its 43rd Grand Final in the most thrilling fashion imaginable.
