Green's Giants fought off an incredible late St Kilda comeback attempt to defeat Steele's Saints 11.14 (80) to 12.7 (79), with the ACT products locking horns in the middle throughout the game in front of a near sell-out crowd of 12,448.

Green finished with 24 disposals and a goal, while former Giant now St Kilda skipper Steele had one major and 29 disposals as the Saints kicked six-straight to make GWS sweat to the final siren.

"We were under the pump hard," Giants star Lachie Whitfield (34 disposals) said after the nailbiter.

"We'll take the win. They moved the ball hard and ran hard in the last quarter and came right back."

However, injuries marred the round-five thriller, with Giants defender Sam Taylor stretchered off and seen bleeding after a nasty collision. GWS veteran Stephen Coniglio was also forced out with a worrying knee issue, while St Kilda key forward Max King limped off.

There were concerns Coniglio's injury may be season-ending with his left leg twisting awkwardly at the knee as he was tackled in the final quarter. He required assistance to hop off the ground, but was later cleared of a "serious" injury.

Giants coach Adam Kingsley said in his press conference the narrow win was a good learning moment for the team as they licked their wounds on the injury front.

"I'm really relieved we were able to scrape over the line in the end," Kingsley said.

"[Taylor's] fine. He's in hospital, being monitored, but it would appear everything is okay.

"[Coniglio] is also fine. No serious damage. We'll wait for scans. It's not minor but it's not serious.

"Josh Kelly had a rib complaint but he's fine too."

Manuka Oval was silenced just 12 minutes into the game when Taylor was left motionless following a shocking collision.

The 24-year-old All-Australian defender was leaping to spoil a mark on the wing against Steele when Taylor came off second best.

It appeared the Giants star copped a heavy head knock in the contest, as his head whipped back before flinging into the turf. Teammates and St Kilda players instantly signalled for medical assistance after the incident.

After a 10-minute delay Taylor's neck and body was stabilised before he was stretchered from the field to an ambulance headed to hospital. Steele was able to return to the game without complications.

"You never want to see those scenes," commentator Jack Riewoldt said on Fox Footy. "You can see it was high-impact. It's pretty raw, these sort of moments."

At the quarter-time break Giants general manager of football Jason McCartney gave a positive update on Taylor's condition, but wasn't certain if the defender would return to Sydney with the team after the game.

"He's gone to Canberra Hospital for further assessment," McCartney said.

"He was speaking and he was conscious in the ambulance.

"Obviously, it didn't look great but he's a courageous kid and he's in the very best hands now. He'll be fine."

The one-point victory marked the first time in GWS history the team has won its first five games of the season, and cemented the Giants' status as AFL premiership favourites, keeping them atop the ladder.

It was also the first back-to-back win in Canberra for GWS since 2018.

"We want to put on a great show everytime we come down here and re-establish this place as being a fortress, because that is ultimately the only way we can repay the Canberra support," Kingsley said.

"We were able to do that [on Saturday], albeit keeping the game close and exciting for Canberra people."

The Giants next face Carlton on Saturday at Docklands.

GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY 4.4. 7.6 10.10 11.14 (80)

ST KILDA 1.3 4.5 6.5 12.7 (79)

GOALS

Greater Western Sydney: Hogan 2, Greene 2, Thomas, Riccardi, Kelly, Green, Daniels, Coniglio, Cadman

St Kilda: Owens 2, Membrey 2, Higgins 2, Wilson, Steele, Sinclair, Hill, Caminiti

BEST

Greater Western Sydney: Whitfield, Green, Ash, Greene, Bedford

St Kilda: Hill, Marshall, Steele, Owens, Garcia

INJURIES

Greater Western Sydney: Taylor (concussion), Coniglio (knee), Briggs (shoulder), Kelly (ribs)

St Kilda: King (knee)