Saints secure 36-point win to square season ledger and climb to ninth
Updated ,first published
St Kilda will set themselves up for a crucial three-game series against the teams above them after moving up to ninth with a 36-point win over injury-hit Richmond at Marvel Stadium.
The win equals their season record, with manager Ross Lyon saying they get the chance to see how much they have improved as they “go through the grades” when they face Fremantle next Friday night.
The Saints, who are fighting for a place in the top 10, will face Fremantle in Perth, Hawthorn at Marvel Stadium and Sydney in the port city in the next three rounds after five wins and five losses in their first 10 matches.
Lyon asked, “Can we keep looking at the notes?” he said. “I believe in us and there is growth within us.”
Although star midfielder Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera will not feature again next week, a win in any of these three matches will greatly increase their chances of finals. Liam Ryan and Mitch Owens have some doubts.
The Tigers have greater injury concerns after Campbell Gray added another name to their long injury list with a hamstring injury, but they are confident of having fit enough players to select a 26-man squad for Friday night’s Dreamtime game against Essendon.
Richmond coach Adem Yze said the situation was under control. They kept Samson Ryan and Caleb Smith out of Saturday’s VFL game to ensure they are available for selection on Friday night and Mykelti Lefau would be available after being managed, as would Jasper Alger.
He rejected any suggestion that injuries had forced him to coach with one hand behind his back and said there were still plenty of opportunities for growth in players, whether on the field or off.
“There are players who individually have opportunities that they may not have right now, so there will be growth in that,” Yze said. “And we can still learn by attending meetings as a team and understanding what good looks like.”
But on Sunday, the Tigers’ lessons came mostly from a poor first quarter as they sought a four-quarter performance. The Saints came out of the blocks to open a four-goal lead before the match was stopped, and Richmond made the most of their limited opportunities to stay within five goals over the next two quarters.
The Saints broke the world record in 50 seconds and went on the rise, but could not reflect this lead on the scoreboard; Although the Saints led 36-14, the lead was only 26 points at halftime.
St Kilda’s Tom De Koning gave the ball players his silver serve several times in the second quarter with through ball shots that Max Hall and Hugo Garcia capitalized on. Saints burst from the center square on more than one occasion, but only one of those moments resulted in a goal when Mattaes Phillipou fired a long goal from a step over.
Garcia collected 15 disposals, eight contested possessions, four clearances, six point tackles and a goal in the first half. Hall, one of the Saints’ best this season, kept the pace with 14 disposals, six clearances, six clearances and a goal.
Despite this, Richmond had managed to score nine goals from 14 in the 50s on his AFL debut, with Noah Roberts-Thomson scoring twice in his first two kicks. It was an impressive start to the career of the cousin of Sydney first-year player Lewis Roberts-Thomson.
The Saints continued to push in the third quarter but still couldn’t make Richmond – either through mistakes or dropped points – actually make them pay.
The margin gradually increased, but the Saints were not comfortable enough to consider batting a non-bowler over, as cricketers sometimes do for a laugh when the result is known.
Charlie Banfield, the son of first baseman and West Coast first baseman Drew Banfield, caused a stir when he scored on his debut.
After arriving in Victoria, Banfield took up residence at the home of former AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan, appearing as comfortable living in the Marvel Stadium wing as he would in one of the wings of the McLachlan mansion.
In the end the Saints’ territorial dominance was enough for them to score 100 points for the fifth time this season; It’s a sign that their offensive game is improving, considering they’ve only scored that number seven times in the previous three seasons.
Lyon said that although Jack Higgins was proppy, there were no concerns about him despite Richmond’s Sam Cumming suffering from fungus.
They were not crafty or intimidating at any stage, but they were better than the Tigers in winning by 36 points in a game that never reached great heights, with St Kilda scoring 50 points inside to win 63-37.
