Jarryn Geary and Jack Steele after the round five loss to Richmond at Marvel Stadium on April 15, 2021. Picture: Michael Willson

ST KILDA spiritual leader Jarryn Geary seems unlikely to play again this season after having surgery to repair his injured right shoulder on Monday.

The 32-year-old left the field late in the heartbreaking round 12 loss to Sydney with a serious dislocation. After a short trip to hospital to set the joint back in place, the club later realised surgery was the clear option.

"Following consultation with our medical team and specialists it became obvious this was the most appropriate course of action," COO Simon Lethlean said.

"While it's never good to have Jarryn on the sidelines, we know this won't limit his influence on the group, and that he'll provide a great example of how to tackle recovery, as he has shown time and time again."

BRUTAL REVIEW Player effort called into question

St Kilda had a bye on the weekend after its shattering loss to Adelaide in round 13. In that game the Saints lost young gun Hunter Clark after a huge collision with David Mackay (watch the incident in the player below) that left Clark with a broken jaw.

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Bone-crunching hit forces Clark from the field

A bone-crunching bump from David Mackay has seen Hunter Clark come off second best as he was eventually subbed out

Clark has also had surgery to repair the multiple fractures in his jaw. He is expected to miss 6-8 weeks. 

In better news for the Saints, Zak Jones is pushing for an early return after a serious quad injury, and Seb Ross and Tim Membrey should be available to play in Friday night's huge clash with Richmond after missing the Adelaide game to spend time with their partners. 

In the wake of the club's horror form slump and dramatic losses, St Kilda players recently drove an internal review to address their lack of effort.

"There's an acknowledgement of what effort looks like and what effort above that threshold can be achieved," Lethlean said during the one-hour members' session.

"It's pretty important understanding when you become a professional in the AFL there's a higher threshold to get to and our players I think acknowledge that and we've got to work with them to see it more often."

Brett Ratten said the players' effort would be closely scrutinised for the remaining nine rounds of the season.