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ST KILDA will claim two of the better sliding doors moments in draft history if Paddy McCartin and Hugh Goddard fulfil their undoubted potential.
The Saints were rapt to secure McCartin with the No.1 pick in Thursday night's NAB AFL Draft at the Gold Coast.
He is a natural key forward and the Saints now have a ready-made succession plan for when captain Nick Riewoldt retires.
Goddard, the cousin of former Saint Brendon, is another highly-rated key-position player who they grabbed at pick 21.
The Saints, who are in a massive rebuilding phase on and off the field, rounded out their draft night with defender Daniel McKenzie and small forward Jack Lonie.
Like many high-profile draft picks, there are back stories to McCartin and Goddard going to the Saints.
St Kilda received a tempting offer from Greater Western Sydney for the No.1 and 21 picks - the Giants floated a trade where they would give picks four and seven for the Saints' one and 21.
The Saints raised a few eyebrows when they quickly knocked it back.
"Our guys always felt the top three in the draft were worth hanging onto," Saints chief executive Matt Finnis said.
"We don't believe we have been able to get Paddy into the club had we made that trade.
"You look at those (offers) - you absolutely have a responsibility.
"If you have that No.1 pick, you make the most of it."
Saying no to the Giants’ offer also had the unforeseen benefit of being able to use selection 21 on Goddard, who is rated as a bonus pick for the Saints.
AFL talent guru Kevin Sheehan has compared McCartin and Goddard to when Hawthorn recruited Jarryd Roughead and Lance Franklin a decade ago.
The other feature of Goddard joining the Saints is, they had gained that No.21 selection by trading ruckman Rhys Stanley to the Cats.
Goddard played this year at the Geelong Falcons, where McCartin was one of his team-mates.
"We're bringing him in to have a long and successful career," Finnis said of the inevitable comparisons between Stanley and Goddard.
"It will be judged down the track, won't it?"
It has been a big week for the Saints, who re-signed Riewoldt and then announced a massive $2.4 million financial loss.
But membership is also ahead by 2000 compared to the same time last year - the first sign of growth in that area since they made the 2010 Grand Final.
"Momentum builds momentum - there's a lot of optimism," Finnis said.
"We've had a poor year financially ... but there are real plans in place to stop some of the decline and move then into a growth phase.
"What we're doing now is re-setting the foundations and the players are a big part of that."
