Played: 25
Won: 14
Lost: 11
Finished: 4th
Best and fairest: Sam Fisher
2009 IN BRIEF
Coach: Ross Lyon
Captain: Nick Riewoldt
Coaching staff: Tony Elshaug (midfield), Andy Lovell (Sandringham), Stephen Silvagni (backline), Leigh Tudor (forward line), Danny Sexton (development)
ARRIVALS & DEPARTURES
Arrivals
Exchange period – received: Farren Ray (Western Bulldogs)
Rookie elevation: Robert Eddy, Andrew McQualter
Scholarship elevation: Blake McGrath (Pennant Hills) – rookie list
NAB AFL Draft: Colm Begley (Brisbane Lions), Paul Cahill (Sturt), Nick Heyne (Gippsland Power), Tom Lynch (Sandringham Dragons), Alistair Smith (Perth), Rhys Stanley (West Adelaide)
NAB AFL Rookie Draft: Zac Dawson (Hawthorn), Steven Gaertner (Dandenong Stingrays), Brad Howard (St Kilda), Sam McGarry (Sandringham Dragons), Tom Simpkin (Geelong Falcons), Ross Tungatulum (St Marys)
Departures
Retired: Robert Harvey, Fraser Geihrig
Delisted: Shane Birss, Matthew Ferguson, Aaron Fiora, Charlie Gardiner, Michael Rix, Jayden Attard, Glenn Chivers, Luke Van Rheenan
FIXTURE
The Saints will play 15 games at Docklands, and with 11 of their first 14 games to be played at the ground, they can expect to make a strong start to the year.
The team does have six trips interstate, including a home game against Melbourne on the Gold Coast in round 10.
The Saints play Geelong, Hawthorn and Collingwood just once, which should also help position them well this year.
INJURY LIST
Jarryd Allen (torn hip muscle) – indefinite
Sean Dempster (ACL) – indefinite
Robert Eddy (knee) – possibly round two or three
Nick Riewoldt (knee) – available for round one
MATT BURGAN’S PLAYER RATINGS
5 – Luke Ball, Nick Dal Santo, Sam Fisher, Brendon Goddard, Lenny Hayes, Nick Riewoldt (6 players – 30 points)
Recent knee surgery won't affect Riewoldt's status. Fisher and Hayes are elite in their fields, and Goddard will receive the front-line kudos in 2009. Ball has shaken off his injury woes with a huge pre-season and Dal Santo copped his whack last year. He is only 25 and too good not to bounce back.
4 – Steven Baker, Jason Blake, Sam Gilbert, Jason Gram, Justin Koschitzke, Stephen Milne, Leigh Montagna, Farren Ray (8 players – 32 points)
Koschitzke has his critics, but he remains important structurally. Expect Gilbert to step-up, Baker to bounce back from injury and Milne to keep kicking goals. Blake's durability and consistency puts him here. Expect Gilbert and Ray (at his new club) to step-up. Ray's pre-season form has been most encouraging.
3 – David Armitage, Colm Begley, Raphael Clarke, Xavier Clarke, Robert Eddy, Leigh Fisher, Michael Gardiner, Jarryn Geary, James Gwilt, Max Hudghton, Clinton Jones, Tom Lynch, Steven King, Matt Maguire, Ben McEvoy, Andrew McQualter, Adam Schneider, Jack Steven, Zac Dawson (rookie) (19 players – 57 points)
Hudghton is clearly higher, but his calf injury on the eve of the season is a concern. Raph Clarke showed in last year's finals he could go to another level. But he needs a full season first. Ditto brother Xavier. Maguire also needs time. King and Gardiner have some pre-season form, but being veterans brings McEvoy into the mix. Expect Steven and Lynch to debut and be at the forefront of the new wave. Dawson will add depth.
2 – Eljay Connors, Nick Heyne, Brad Howard (rookie), Luke Miles (rookie) (4 players – 8 points)
Connors has made some good strides over the pre-season and should debut. Heyne is an impressive youngster likely to be given an opportunity in 2009. Mature-age rookies Miles and Howard might stop some holes during the season.
1 – Jarryd Allen, Paul Cahill, Sean Dempster, Alistair Smith, Rhys Stanley, Steven Gaertner (rookie), Khan Haretuku (rookie), Sam McGarry (rookie), Blake McGrath (rookie), Tom Simpkin (rookie), Ross Tungatalum (rookie) (11 players -- 11 points)
Unfortunately injuries sustained by Allen (hip) and Dempster (knee) late last season are unlikely to result in returns to the AFL this year, reducing their rankings. Cahill, Smith and Stanley – all drafted last year will be given time to develop via the VFL. With St Kilda having the biggest list of any club in 2009, it will be difficult for the majority of its rookie-list players to play in the AFL this year, but don't be surprised if one does bob up.
Total team rating – 138 points (7 of 16, league-wide)
THE YEAR AHEAD
For a team that finished in the top four, St Kilda has made some sweeping changes to their list. 13 new players have arrived at Moorabbin as the Saints begin their first year of the post-Robert Harvey era.
The Saints sneaked in to the top four last year but still have a fair way to go before they can match it with Hawthorn and Geelong, both of whom inflicted heavy defeats on them in last year’s finals series.
WHAT THE CLUB SAYS
“We understand that we finished in a preliminary final and we played some really good footy in the second half of the year. We need to improve to take on the elite and we understand where we’re at.
"We still feel that we’ve got a list that can be very competitive. Having said that we need our very good players to play well and be out on the park. We also need our players underneath them to also improve.
"That means guys that have been at the club for three to four years.”
– Stephen Silvagni, assistant coach
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
