Led by five goals from Justin Koschitzke, the Saints recovered from a slow start to run out 13.14 (92) to 5.6 (36) winners, remarkably keeping the Tigers scoreless from the 13-minute mark of the opening term to the four-minute mark of the final term, when Mitch Morton kicked Richmond’s first goal since the early stages of the match.
Sunday’s match was billed as little more than the precursor to St Kilda’s clash with the Cats next week, but early on the Saints’ unbeaten run looked a chance of coming to a premature end with a goalless first term.
While the Tigers had a great start, that was all they had. When a Jack Riewoldt shot wobbled through for a behind midway through the first term, the Tigers had a 14-point lead. Morton’s fourth-quarter goal came 72 minutes later, and in between, the Saints piled on 11 goals and had 20 consecutive scoring shots.
The Saints recovered from a sluggish start to employ the attacking, relentless style that the football world has come to expect from Ross Lyon’s team, and finished with 53 inside 50s to just 27.
The only downside for the Saints was an injury to veteran defender Max Hudghton.
Hudghton injured his ankle in a marking contest in the first quarter and was stretchered off. Just when doubt began to grow about his football future, he emerged from the rooms galloping along the boundary line in the second term to rapturous applause from Saints’ fans.
His return was short-lived, however, and he hobbled off in the third term back to the rooms.
While Hudghton’s ankle was being assessed, his teammates continued to go about demolishing the hapless Tigers. Brendon Goddard, winner of the Ian Stewart Medal for best-on-ground, had the confidence to win the ball seemingly any time he went near it, recording 35 damaging possessions.
The second quarter also saw Jason Gram get his run going, while Lenny Hayes showed his usual poise and skill.
The more decorated Riewoldt cousin, Saints captain Nick, grew as the game went on as he ran Luke McGuane ragged. Riewoldt’s constant leads as well as his defensive pressure provided a perfect model of the modern forward.
Not to be outdone, Koschitzke gave debutant Jarrod Silvester a tough initiation to AFL football with five goals, three of them coming in the second quarter when the Saints asserted their dominance.
There were few positives for a lacklustre Richmond side in Jade Rawlings’ second game as caretaker coach. His team’s performance showed everyone why the job was available in the first place. The Tigers were second to the ball, lost contests, kicked poorly and lacked discipline. The only time they seemed to show any fight was when they decided to get in a game of push and shove off the ball.
Ben Cousins was well-held by Saints tagger Clint Jones, while Brett Deledio was shut out of the game by fellow No. 1 draft pick Goddard.
Nathan Foley ran hard as always and Riewoldt looked dangerous early with three shots at goal in the first 10 minutes. Will Thursfield seemed mismatched against Stephen Milne, but did a good job to nullify the St Kilda goalsneak.
Richmond’s only highlight for the day came at the 21-minute mark of the final term when Richard Tambling took a brilliant one-handed mark as he fell backwards, jumping to his feet and curling a kick around his body to find a waiting Tom Hislop 40 metres away.
St Kilda’s final quarter lacked the intensity of the first three, but the Saints had already put the cue in the rack as they gear up for the season’s biggest match next week.
St Kilda 0.3 5.5 11.9 13.14 (92)
Richmond 2.3 2.3 2.3 5.6 (36)
GOALS
St Kilda: Koschitzke 5, Riewoldt 2, Goddard, Dal Santo, Geary, Ball, McQualter, Schneider
Richmond: Morton 2, Cousins, Hislop, Riewoldt
BEST
St Kilda: Goddard, Dal Santo, Gram, Riewoldt, Koschitzke, Geary, Hayes, Ball
Richmond: Foley, Thursfield, Tambling, Cousins, Tuck
INJURIES
St Kilda: Hudghton (ankle)
Richmond: None
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Grun, Kamolins, Avon
Official crowd: 38,196 at Docklands
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
Vote for your best on ground now - Carlton Natural Blonde People’s Champion
