BEFORE he makes a call on next year, Nick Riewoldt craves what has been missing from his football life for the last five.

As speculation continues about his playing future, the 34-year-old says his focus is helping St Kilda return to the finals for the first time since 2011.

The Saints legend successfully returned from a knee injury last Friday night in the crucial win over North Melbourne and said post-match he wanted to continue next year.

Former coaches Mick Malthouse and Grant Thomas are among those who have weighed into the ongoing debate about whether it is time for Riewoldt to retire.

"The narrative externally has been going on for six or seven weeks now and it's becoming a little bit boring," Riewoldt said.

"But our season is so precariously placed, that's where my focus is.

"I want to play finals again this year.

"Those discussions will evolve ... all the noise that happens on the outside is sort of irrelevant to the decision anyway."

Riewoldt is renowned for his football passion and he said he would make sure the decision, whenever it happened, was right.

"I love the game – I have a great respect for the game at the same time,' he said.

"So I know at some stage you have to (retire)."

Riewoldt said his couple of weeks off had the desired effect and he could take another break before the end of the season.

"That's not to say I will play every game between now and the end of the year, but certainly the break has freshened me up – I needed it," he said.

"Last week I felt really good, back on top of the ground."

The Saints are 10th, with only percentage keeping them out of eighth, and play Gold Coast this Sunday at Etihad Stadium in Gary Ablett's 300th game.

"I've never experienced a season like it," Riewoldt said of the tight competition.

"I think we're a game off fourth and a game off 15th."

Meanwhile, Riewoldt was modelling purple on Thursday to promote the charity created in his sister's memory.

The Saints will replace the red panel of their guernsey with purple for the July 8 game against Richmond, the second annual Maddie's Vision charity game.

It is more than two years since Riewoldt's younger sister died of a rare bone marrow condition, aged just 26.

"The ability to do something really positive with your grief and channel it, hopefully help other people, is a great thing to be able to do," he said.