ALAN Richardson still thinks it was a free kick – kind of – and Phil Davis admits he might have got away with one.

The controversial finish to St Kilda's draw with Greater Western Sydney on Saturday continued to be hotly debated in the aftermath.

In the frantic dying seconds at Etihad Stadium, Giants co-captain Davis spoiled Jake Carlisle, who felt he should have taken the mark, about 40m from goal.

Front-on vision of the incident shows Davis caught Carlisle across the neck with his left arm, but the umpire was blindsided.

The siren sounded immediately after their contest for the first draw of the season, with the Saints kicking 10.13 (73) to the Giants' 9.19 (73).

"It doesn't look ideal ... but I think stuff like that happens," Davis said when shown a still photo of his contentious spoil on Channel Seven on Sunday.

"If I got a free kick for every still shot that looks like a free kick, I would have a fair bit.

"I'm not too concerned about it. I think that's just footy, isn't it? I got away with one."

GWS were hot favourites going into the clash and Davis admitted the frustrating result felt more like a loss.

On the flip side, the Saints had lost their past three matches by an average margin of 49 points before taking on the Giants.

Richardson felt it was a clear free kick to Carlisle when he spoke to reporters immediately after the match, but the St Kilda coach tempered his view after looking at replays.

"When you analyse the last few moments, I reckon it really depends on the angle of the umpires," Richardson said on Channel Nine.

"There are some angles where it's clearly a free kick.

"But given where he (the umpire) is you don't see the left arm come down, so I can understand that that was called play on.

"I reckon Jake probably answered the best ... he should have taken the mark."