A MONTH ago, Alan Richardson said St Kilda was feeding off the energy of its stellar start, but having suffered three consecutive defeats, the Saints coach still believes momentum can be on the side of the battered and bruised team as it aims for a return to finals.

The injury-depleted St Kilda was vastly improved on Saturday night, despite an 18-point loss to reigning premiers West Coast, continuously fighting back from strings of Eagles goals.

According to Richardson, that was a sign the Saints remain on the right track.

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"I saw no dip tonight," Richardson said.

"I saw a group that was committed to a plan. It was all about trying to stop what West Coast does – and for big parts we were able to do that.

"There was enormous energy and enthusiasm in the way we prepared for the game, so I've seen nothing in terms of any sort of drop-off.

"I'd be surprised and disappointed if that was the case. They'll review this game knowing we got a lot right, but needing to work on executing when we get the chance.


"They'll gain some belief from this performance. In those three losses, we've had Adelaide, GWS and West Coast … there's a bit of perspective there.

"We've been competitive in big parts of those games, but we need to get better."

St Kilda now has a 4-4 record after its third straight loss, slipping out of the eight as a result, but the Saints coach believes the club can get back to winning ways in the imminent future, providing it begins to finish on its wayward delivery forward of centre.

"There's a lot that's heading in the right way," Richardson said.

"There's some work that still needs to be done. I won't go into the real detail of that, obviously, but there's some areas where we're inconsistent.

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"Clearly, our ability to finish the work is (inconsistent). Last week it was 62 entries to 42 and we didn't get anywhere near close enough because we weren't able to execute.

"That's an ongoing challenge for us, there's no doubt about that."

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