A SEVEN-goal haul from St Kilda goal-sneak Stephen Milne lifted the Saints to a nail-biting 17.8 (110) to 16.11 (107) victory over Richmond at Telstra Dome on Saturday night, the Saints getting home after a Richmond shot on goal after the final siren fell agonisingly short.

Milne put the Saints up by five points when he kicked his seventh almost 24 minutes into the final term, after outmarking Richmond defender Chris Newman one-handed 30m from goal.

It was his third goal of the final quarter and ensured he finished the game a hero.

Minutes earlier he had sent across the face of goal and out on the full a set shot from the right pocket with the Saints trailing by a single point.

But, after Milne's major, the Tigers went desperately close to pulling off a win, with three shots on goal in the dying minutes.

First a snap from Richmond star forward Nathan Brown rolled into the left goal-post. Then, with about a minute to play, defender Kelvin Moore took a superb pack mark about 30m out before hitting the same post with his set shot.

After winning the ball back, Richmond managed one more forward thrust, with youngster Jack Riewoldt failing to make the distance with a shot from outside 50m after the siren.

Milne's match-winning haul was vital for the Saints, given their tall forwards failed to have much of an impact on the game.

Nick Riewoldt left the ground with a left knee injury early in the third quarter, minutes after kicking his only goal for the night, and did not return.

And full-forward Fraser Gehrig also managed just one, well held by Luke McGuane in the Saint’s return from two weeks out of the side.

At the other end of the ground, Matthew Richardson was superb with five goals, spending most of the match up forward in an entertaining battle with Sam Fisher, who gathered plenty of touches for his side.

Veteran midfielder Robert Harvey was a strong performer throughout the game for the Saints, running hard to gather plenty of touches, while Nick Dal Santo also found plenty of space throughout the night to rack up possessions.

Harvey kicked a vital goal late in the third quarter to give the Saints the lead, breaking a tackle and threading a shot through from the pocket in what was a highlight of a strong performance.

But Richardson goaled at the other end soon after to level the scores, setting the scene for the pulsating final term.

Richardson added another two goals in the final quarter and also set up Brown for a snap which put the Tigers up by five points about 18 minutes into the last term, before Milne's winning goal.

Ruckman Troy Simmonds was outstanding for Richmond, giving them some drive out of the centre with control of the hit-outs, as well as running hard to gather a heap of touches around the ground.

Brown was also excellent for the Tigers, both with some creative work in the midfield and up forward, while Brett Deledio also showed plenty of class through the midfield.

ST KILDA has claimed its fourth win for the season in thrilling circumstances with a three-point triumph – decided by the final kick of the match –  over Richmond at Telstra Dome on Saturday night.

Richmond youngster Jack Riewoldt had a chance to win the game with a set shot after the final siren with the Tigers trailing by three points.

The younger cousin of St Kilda's Nick failed to make the distance from 50m, leaving the Saints with the four points.

The Saints were led by small forward Stephen Milne, who kicked a match-winning seven goals, three of which came in the defining fourth term.

A classic contest evolved as the Tigers simply refused to give in.

While Richmond veteran Matthew Richardson did everything he could to get his side over the line with five goals, the Saints found one per cent extra to grind out the exciting win, 17.8 (110) to 16.11 (107).

Milne was in terrific touch and shrugged off three opponents in Jake King, Chris Newman and Kelvin Moore to snare 7.3 and almost single-handedly claim the win after a cracking start to the fourth term.

Veteran Robert Harvey was also terrific with 26 disposals and two goals, and Nick Dal Santo was good in support with 27 touches. Sam Fisher ran with Matthew Richardson and did well to keep up, while Luke Ball had 21 possessions and Shane Birss strongly tagged Nathan Foley.

A sterling appearance from Richardson, who continued with his blistering form, kept the match close and exhilarating to watch. He was supported by Nathan Brown (2.2, 29 disposals) and Kane Johnson (24 touches), while Chris Hyde annoyed Leigh Montagna almost senseless with a heavy tag.

The final result, which saw the Saints kick their third-biggest score for the season, puts the side at 4-3 heading into the "bye" weekend.

However, the result may have come with a serious cost, with Nick Riewoldt spending the majority of the second half on the bench icing an injured left knee.

The spearhead wrenched the knee in a marking contest at the start of the third, and after shanking his shot on goal, hobbled from the field.

The injury also casts doubt on his availability for next weekend's Hall of Fame Tribute Match.

Both teams made late changes to their starting line ups, with St Kilda losing veteran defender Max Hudghton to a hamstring injury, and the Tigers taking Graham Polak out of their 22. The respective replacements were Raphael Clarke and Daniel Jackson.

The first term was fairly evenly fought, with the Saints getting the better of the contest on the scoreboard. They got out to a 15-point lead following goals to Milne, Dal Santo, David Armitage and Adam Schneider, and looked the stronger outfit.

As the quarter wound down, a goal to Richmond ruckman Troy Simmonds signalled the start of a fight back, and when youngster Shane Edwards cleverly snapped at the 27-minute mark and cut the margin back to three points, the Tigers had the sniff they needed.

The Saints were untidy with possession in the second, but the Tigers were initially unable to capitalise. It took seven minutes for the first goal to come, and it went the way of the yellow and black when Simmonds marked and converted, giving Richmond the lead.

St Kilda was quick to snatch it back when Harvey coolly slotted a major after Riewoldt unselfishly centred the ball in attack, but the Tigers reclaimed it shortly after when Riewoldt booted his 12th career goal.

The lead changed hands again before the Tigers rounded out the half with two quick majors to Matt White and Brown, and the result was a Richmond lead of 11 points at half time.

Early in the third quarter the Saints piled on five unanswered goals to give themselves an 18-point buffer.

Then, with Riewoldt off, the momentum swung dramatically and Richmond replied with four straight to even the score.

Harvey shrugged off a tackle from Newman to boot his second from 45m out to put the Saints a goal up, but Richardson converted a set shot a minute later, and a rushed behind 30 seconds before the siren gave the Tigers a one-point lead with a term to go.

The lead changed three times in the thrilling final stanza after Richmond opened with a goal to Richardson.

ST KILDA  4.4  7.5  13.7  17.8  (110)
RICHMOND  4.1  9.4  13.8  16.11 (107)

Goals: St Kilda: S Milne 7 C Gardiner 2 R Harvey 2 F Gehrig N Riewoldt A Schneider D Armitage S Birss N Dal Santo. Richmond: M Richardson 5 T Simmonds 2 N Brown 2 S Edwards 2 M Morton 2 M White 2 J Riewoldt

Best: St Kilda: S Milne R Harvey L Ball N Dal Santo A Schneider S Fisher. Richmond: T Simmonds N Brown M Richardson B Deledio L McGuane K Johnson

INJURIES: Richmond: Polak replaced in selected side by Jackson. St Kilda: Hudghton (hamstring) replaced in selected side by R. Clarke, Riewoldt (knee), Maguire (ankle), X. Clarke (hamstring)

Reports: Koschitzke (St Kilda) reported for striking Simmonds (Richmond) in the third quarter by emergency umpire Shane Stewart

Umpires: H Kennedy, S Wenn, T Keating

Official crowd: 40,585 at Telstra Dome

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