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Collingwood defender Brayden Maynard claimed a big scalp when he shut out Geelong AFL star Gary Ablett in the Magpies' 10-point qualifying final win.

Gary Ablett agrees wholeheartedly with Nathan Buckley that Brayden Maynard is annoying.

The big difference is the Collingwood AFL coach smiles broadly when he says that about his hard-working defender.

Maynard's shut-down job on Ablett was critical on Friday night in the Magpies' 10-point qualifying final win over Geelong.

Given that only 16 goals were kicked in the game, the fact that Ablett went scoreless is a big feather in Maynard's cap.

"Annoying is the word for Brayden. I just can't help but smile when his name comes up," Buckley told Triple M the day after the win.

"He's a bit of a unit - he calls himself 'The Weapon'.

"He's got a very rude head and even rarer hairdo, but we just love the way he goes about it."

Maynard is a key part of the Collingwood defence, which enjoyed a solid night out against the Cats.

"He's legitimately tough, he's underrated for his skill and one you don't see from this side of the fence ... his communication, his leadership and his ownership of what we're doing is just going from strength to strength," Buckley said.

"He's a really solid young fella ... meat-and-potatoes, but that works for him and it works for us."

As soon as Maynard knew early last week he would be going to Ablett, he went to work studying video of the all-time great, nicknamed the Little Master.

Maynard was excited, rather than apprehensive, and even a bit starstruck when he lined up on the two-time Brownlow medallist.

It was the first time Maynard had played on Ablett for a whole game.

"He's one of the best players ever, so I had to really knuckle down and what he's good at - he's bloody good at everything, so it was hard," Maynard said.

"But to play on Gary Ablett, I was standing there thinking 'this is amazing'.

"I just love having the opportunity."

Every great line-up boasts a tight-knit defence and Maynard loves being part of their team within the team.

"We have a big six or seven with John Noble coming in and we're playing some really good footy," he said.

"It's a bloody fortress back there and I'm looking forward to seeing what us backs can do in the next few weeks.

"We're hard to stop when we're on."