The Magpies trailed by nine at half time but reduced the Blues' advances to a whimper, keeping them goalless in the second half for a 10.12 (72) to 7.6 (48) victory that propelled them to sixth.

Sunday's victory was extra sweet for Buckley in his 200th as an AFL coach.

"There was plenty of spark around ... I was hearing from mates of mine who I didn't even know barracked for Carlton over the last couple of days," he said.

"They thought they were going to go well, so I'll be getting back to them."

After two months of scrutiny, Buckley said they had delivered their best performance yet.

"We want to be dynamic and express ourselves (and tonight we did) ... but pretty footy will get you so far," he said.

"It's really that consistency to stay in shape, win contested ball and defend well that's going to keep you in games."

And he took the opportunity to hit back at a media column that this week suggested Buckley would feel empty until he caps a long playing and coaching career with a flag.

"I want to put on record that my life is very far from empty; I don't have a flag, I'll be working towards it, but it won't define me," he said.

"My life is very full."

While the Magpies and Blues kept things tight, the early stages of the round were all about incredible comebacks.

Essendon and Geelong wiped out deficits of greater than five goals - which are huge margins in 2020 terms - to secure wins over Hawthorn and the Western Bulldogs respectively.

The significant results could have a huge say in the Bombers' finals hopes and the Cats' bid for a top-four spot as the home-and-away season draws to a close.

Joe Daniher's return for Essendon was a highlight as he kicked three of his side's 11 goals during a second-half avalanche at Adelaide Oval.

The injury-ravaged key forward even hinted during a post-match interview on Fox Footy that he might stick with the Bombers, despite ongoing uncertainty around his playing future.

Charlie Dixon faced similar speculation during the week and responded in fine style, kicking four goals in a 26-point win over Sydney to ensure Port Adelaide remained on top of the ladder.

The Richmond-West Coast clash was billed as a possible grand final preview and the Tigers prevailed by 27 points, but the win came at a cost as star defender Dylan Grimes succumbed to a hamstring injury.

Melbourne and GWS both gave their finals hopes major shots in the arm as they knocked off St Kilda and Fremantle respectively.

Australian Associated Press