ST KILDA midfielder Leigh Montagna says the Saints have addressed the unique opportunities presented by the grand final replay, with a host of players seeking immediate redemption for below-par performances last Saturday.
Nick Dal Santo has expressed disappointment in his 18-possession game, while Saints Brett Peake, Andrew McQualter, Robert Eddy and Jason Gram were noticeably quiet.
“A few guys were disappointed with their performance and a lot of players have to wait 12 months to redeem themselves; some players never get the chance again,” Montagna said from Linen House Oval on Tuesday.
“The players that played poorly are very lucky to get the chance to redeem themselves in one week and all those guys are going to be doing everything they can to make sure they play to the best of their ability.”
Montagna said a stronger start was crucial to the Saints’ chances in the replay after the notoriously fast-starting Magpies raced to a 24-point lead at half-time last Saturday.
“We can’t afford to give Collingwood a four-goal start again,” he said. “They’re a terrific team and we know they start really well.
“Obviously we’re going to want to try and start a lot better, sometimes [that’s] easier said than done, but that’s going to be the plan. We’ll fight to the death.”
The Saints had a light session on Tuesday afternoon, and Montagna said recovery would be the focus of the week, as he suspected would be the case at Collingwood.
The Saints regrouped over lunch on Sunday and Montagna said since that point the players had come to terms with the reality of playing two grand finals in seven days.
“Mentally it was probably hard straight after the game and maybe Sunday,” he said.
“[But] we’ve regrouped, it’s another week, we’re going to play again and it’s just our normal preparation - go through our routine with our team meetings and our recovery.
“We moved on pretty quickly, which is testament to the strength of the group.”
From a team aspect, Montagna said there was little momentum to be gained from the Saints’ strong second half against the Magpies and Saturday’s game would be a fresh slate for both teams.
Individually, however, he said he wouldn’t be surprised if teammate Lenny Hayes builds on his first grand final performance and collects a second Norm Smith Medal.
“Lenny’s made for grand finals and the way he’s been playing, not just on the weekend, but for pretty much the whole season, has been huge for us,” he said.
“There’s no reason why he won’t do it again. But as Len knows it’s not solely about his performance. I’m sure he’s happy to take a back seat if we can get the win.”
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