Steven Baker - 3
Appeared sluggish, which could have been a three-month stint on the sidelines catching up with him. Fumbled under the pressure of the Collingwood forwards.

Jason Blake - 5
Took his time to peel off to find some space in the backline and finished on Leigh Brown. An honest performance.

Nick Dal Santo - 6
One of the Saints' better players. Showed good composure under the Pies' relentless pressure and finished with 29 disposals.

Zac Dawson - 4
Rotated on Travis Cloke and Chris Dawes. Wasn't strong enough to compete with Cloke one-on-one and looked shaky under pressure.

Sean Dempster - 4
Has now played in five grand finals for one premiership - as a Swan in 2005. Had a range of opponents, but worked in tandem with Clinton Jones in the first half in an attempt to negate Dane Swan and Alan Didak.

Robert Eddy - 2
Went down into the rooms at quarter time with a suspected broken forearm. Returned just before half time with a guard but never looked dangerous up forward.

Sam Fisher - 4
Started well with five first-quarter possessions, but wasn't as influential as last week. Came from the ground clutching his hamstring in the third term and didn't return.

Sam Gilbert - 6
Started in defence, but was shifted forward after the Saints failed to kick a goal in the first quarter. Missed three crucial shots at goal in the second term when the game was there to be won. Found one in the third quarter, but it was little consolation.

Brendon Goddard - 7
Picked up where he left off last weekend, gathering 19 disposals in the first half and kicking St Kilda's only goal. Battled hard in the hope of shaking Nick Maxwell and didn't have too many friends.

Jason Gram - 2
Concussed in the first quarter after his head hit the turf in a marking contest. Returned late in the second term, but had no influence on the game.

James Gwilt - 6
Backed up a good game last weekend with another solid performance on Chris Dawes. Showed great courage and desperation in the first half, but had a couple of goals kicked on him in the second half when the floodgates opened.

Lenny Hayes - 5
Soundly beaten by Sharrod Wellingham. Was limited to just two possessions in the first term and his frustration boiled over when he took a swing at Alan Didak in the second quarter. Lifted in the second half, but was well down on his Norm Smith Medal-winning performance of last weekend.

Clinton Jones - 6
Resumed his battle with Dane Swan and kept him to a mere seven possessions in the first half. One of St Kilda's better players.

Justin Koschitzke - 4
Split his time between full-forward and the ruck and failed to have a real influence in either position. Sharked some good clearances, but not one of his better days.

Ben McEvoy - 2
Replaced the injured Michael Gardiner, but looked out of his depth against Darren Jolly, who was one of the most influential players on the ground.

Andrew McQualter - 2
Hardly sighted. Finished with nine possessions and three marks.

Stephen Milne - 2
Was given the task of trying to keep the brakes on Harry O'Brien. Kicked two late goals but O'Brien hit the scoreboard first.

Leigh Montagna - 4
Disappointed when the Saints needed their better players to fire against the Collingwood midfield. Had a variety of opponents and was beaten by most of them, notching up just 13 possessions.

Brett Peake - 2
Spent some time at half-forward on Heath Shaw, but like too many other St Kilda players had little impact.

Farren Ray - 3
Started better than last week, but faded out of the game like most of his teammates.

Nick Riewoldt - 4
Made a goose of himself when he was run down ambling into an open goal in the first term. The skipper failed to kick a goal, but can blame his teammates and their woeful delivery into the forward 50 for that unflattering statistic.

Adam Schneider - 5
Provided a spark in the midfield when St Kilda needed one, but missed crucial shots at goal either side of the half-time break.

The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.

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