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2005 - AFL Home and Away Season

Round 15 - Pregame Articles

All 2005 Articles

Round 15
St Kilda vs Carlton
Dome - Sunday 10 July 2005, 2:10pm AEST
TV: NINE NETWORK (Delayed)
RADIO: ABC (Plus others in some states)
Training Report saintsational.com

Two changes for Sunday
The St Kilda selectors have made two changes only for Sunday's match at Telstra Dome against Carlton. Xavier Clarke and Troy Schwarze replace the injured Robert Harvey and Nick Riewoldt. Raph Clarke, Austinn Jones and Jason Blake are the Saints emergencies.
The Article Sportal/saints.com.au/08Jul05
Blues add to new Bloods Jordan Chong/HeraldSun/08Jul05

Koschitzke a surprise skipper
A chat with St Kilda's leadership group and the urgings of Nick Riewoldt convinced a hesitant Justin Koschitzke that he could be acting captain for the coming weeks. Koschitzke was announced yesterday as the surprise choice to skipper the Saints in the absence of Riewoldt, whose broken collarbone has forced the club to find a fill-in captain for six or more weeks. Koschitzke, who has played only six of 14 games in another injury-interrupted season, was approached by St Kilda's leadership group on Tuesday and told he was the group's preferred choice as captain while Riewoldt was injured. He then spoke with close friend Riewoldt, who urged him to take on the captaincy while the latter recovers from his collarbone injury. Luke Ball, the obvious fill-in candidate, had been acting captain earlier in the season and the leadership group was keen for Koschitzke to take his turn, believing he had the right stuff to skipper the team in the injury-racked club's testing final eight games. Under St Kilda's novel system, the leadership group has a say in the appointment of the rotating captains, in concert with coach Grant Thomas.
The Article Jake Niall and Lyall Johnson/TheAge/08Jul05

Clarkes in the mix for Blues clash
The Clarke brothers are among five inclusions to an expanded St Kilda squad of 25 for Sunday's match against Carlton at Telstra Dome. Xavier has been named on a wing, while Raphael is one of seven interchange options along with the Saints' other inclusions, Jason Blake, Austinn Jones and Troy Schwarze. Robert Harvey (hamstring) and skipper Nick Riewoldt (collarbone) are the pair to make way. Carlton's first choice at last year's AFL National Draft, 18 year-old Jordan Russell, is in line to make his senior debut for the Blues. Russell - a midfielder/forward picked up at No.9 overall from West Adelaide - has been named on interchange along with Brad Fisher and Kade Simpson.
The Article saints.com.au/07Jul05

Gehrig on track for Sunday
St Kilda coach Grant Thomas is confident a protective glove will allow Fraser Gehrig to continue playing despite the full-forward rupturing a ligament in his thumb during the Saints' 18-point win against the Dogs last Sunday. Faced with the choice of having it operated on immediately or waiting until the end of the season, Thomas said the Saints' medical staff had given the all clear for the spearhead to continue. However, the final decision would be made after training on Thursday and Thomas was pretty clear on what he wanted to see from Gehrig during the session. "Just to get through training and just be confident enough to be able to use his hand in all the different pursuits of the game whether it be marking or tackling, (all) that sort of stuff," Thomas said from Moorabin on Thursday.
The Article Jason Phelan/Sportal/saints.com.au/07Jul05
Gehrig ignores thumbs down Lyall Johnson/TheAge/08Jul05

Koschitzke to lead Saints
Grant Thomas has anointed versatile big man Justin Koschitzke as the stand-in St Kilda skipper in place of the injured Nick Riewoldt who faces up to six weeks on the sidelines with a fractured collarbone. Koschitzke has battled injury himself this season, with a persistent hamstring complaint limiting him to just six games, but Thomas was confident the extra responsibility wouldn't prove to be a burden. "He's very proud and honoured to have the title of captain, but he's in the leadership group and it's all about leadership," Thomas said before training at Moorabin on Thursday. "He's a very competitive person. He instills a lot of confidence and determination in his teammates and it will be a great learning curve for him."
The Article Jason Phelan/Sportal/saints.com.au/07Jul05

Thumbs up for Gehrig
St Kilda full-forward Fraser Gehrig will play against Carlton on Sunday despite a ruptured ligament in his left thumb. The injury requires surgery, but the Saints will defer an operation until the end of the season, after Gehrig yesterday passed a test using a plastic guard. Despite the successful tryout, Gehrig remains a week-to-week proposition.
The Article Greg Denham/TheAustralian/07Jul05

Saints sign up new corporate partner
St Kilda yesterday announced that NEC Business Solutions had become its latest corporate partner in a deal that both parties say will be worth millions of dollars over three years. The deal will involve St Kilda using its network of corporate supporters to promote the sale of services offered by the company. The managing director of NEC Business Solutions, Riaki Tanaka, said the deal would involve St Kilda becoming a true business partner.
The Article Stephen Dabkowski/saints.com.au/08Jul05

Thumb up for Fraser Gehrig glove
Fraser Gehrig, complete with Michael Jackson-style glove, has beat it. The 'G-Train' completed St Kilda's training session yesterday without any obvious discomfort from his damaged left thumb. Gehrig will wear the protective glove in the clash with Carlton on Sunday and surgery on his ruptured ulnar ligament is on hold - for now.
The Article Mark Stevens/HeraldSun/08Jul05

Game solid despite speed wobbles
Most things about the AFL are bubbling. Crowds and membership are up, pushing towards record levels. The TV ratings are a little soft but it is hard to quibble. So level is the competition that today teams ranked 13th and 14th are involved in matches with credible chances to help shape the final eight. The AFL is deep into negotiations with broadcasters for the TV rights from 2007 onwards. They will bring a pretty penny. Such is the financial strength of the league as it is anyway, the players were awarded an unscheduled 3 per cent pay rise for next season. A new commissioner is on board. Sam Mostyn brings more to the table than perfume. Head-hunted as the first woman to join the game's governing body, Mostyn's credentials indicate she will freshen the thinking of a solid, but plodding group of men. Football has spread all around the nation and it has stuck. West Coast is on top of the ladder, clear by four games. Port Adelaide is the defending champion, an honour it claimed by beating Brisbane in last year's grand final. The Lions were chasing four premierships in a row. Sydney plays Geelong tonight, a win will keep it in the mix for a top-four finish.
The Article Patrick Smith/TheAustralian/09Jul05
AFL to relax drugs stance Mike Sheahan and Jim Wilson/HeraldSun/09Jul05

Thumbs up for Gehrig
St Kilda full-forward Fraser Gehrig will play against Carlton on Sunday despite a ruptured ligament in his left thumb. The injury requires surgery, but the Saints will defer an operation until the end of the season, after Gehrig yesterday passed a test using a plastic guard. Despite the successful tryout, Gehrig remains a week-to-week proposition.
The Article Greg Denham/TheAustralian/07Jul05

Can Koschitzke arrive Just-in time?
When I sat down with SportsAustralia's newly assigned Chief Football writer Brett Collett at the start of the year to thrash out the AFL's top 50 players, the name Justin Koschitzke was thrown up - and duly rejected. Collett asserted that the list would lack credibility if Koschitzke - a "one season wonder" - was included among the elites of the game. Despite my protests about the versatility, strength and ability of 'Kosi', he was right. Potential has become a dirty word in football circles, and Koschitzke is surely the biggest case in point. A stellar debut season in 2001 has been proceeded by years of injury-plagued cameos, yet some of us still have a burning belief that he is ready to break out and claim the mantle of the league's most effective big man. Against the Western Bulldogs on Sunday, the boy from Brocklesby delivered all that potential in a paralysing display of key position power after six weeks on the sidelines. Not only did he stand up to be counted as a key component in the Saints' 18-point win, he turned the game on its head.
The Article Sebastian Hassett/SportsAustralia/07Jul05

Undermanned Saints sweat on Gehrig
Fraser Gehrig has cleared the first hurdle in his bid to avoid immediate surgery on his injured thumb and be passed fit enough to play the remainder of the year with a protective guard. Today, the St Kilda full-forward will undergo a more rigorous test with competitive marking and handballing work in the team's full training session to determine whether he will be fit to play Carlton at Telstra Dome on Sunday. Yesterday the bulky forward ran in an individual session at Moorabbin, familiarising himself with his protective glove and thumb guard and seeing what mobility he had with some ball handling and marking. Having satisfied himself with that, he will now test it at full pace and intensity.
The Article Michael Gleeson/TheAge/07Jul05

Gehrig sweats on thumb test
Training session tomorrow should determine if the G-Train is derailed or can keep St Kilda on track for finals. Having suffered a ruptured ligament in his left thumb last weekend, Fraser Gehrig faces the possibility of immediate surgery if he doesn't get through training relatively pain-free tomorrow. While early indications from Moorabbin yesterday was Gehrig would play through the injury with the help of a specially-made protective cast, the situation is not cut and dried. Coach Grant Thomas was cautious about Gehrig's situation, preferring to wait and see what happens when the powerful full-forward tests the thumb at training.
The Article Grantley Bernard/HeraldSun/06Jul05

Wait on Gehrig's thumb
St Kilda will assess full-forward Fraser Gehrig's thumb injury over the next 48 hours to determine whether the Coleman Medal fancy requires surgery now or at the end of the season. The G-Train damaged a ligament in his hand during St Kilda's gutsy victory over the Western Bulldogs on Sunday. The injury came on the same day skipper Nick Riewoldt suffered a broken collarbone for the second time this season, meaning the emerging champion will be sidelined for up to eight weeks. Veteran midfielder Robert Harvey again damaged his hamstring against the Bulldogs while former captain Aaron Hamill's injury woes continue after he missed the game with an ongoing calf problem.
The Article Scott Spits/Sportal/saints.com.au/05Jul05
Fraser will play saintsational.com
Injured G-Train not pressured to play: Thomas ABC Sport/05Jul05

Riewoldt hoping for finals
St Kilda captain Nick Riewoldt will not require surgery despite sustaining a second crack to his right collarbone, and was yesterday confident he would lead his team into the finals. The injury will sideline the star forward for six to eight weeks, wiping out the remainder of the home-and-away season, and he is now relying on his team to make the September action in his absence. But St Kilda has a significant challenge to cement a place in the top eight, ravaged not only by Riewoldt's shoulder injury but with Brownlow medallist Robert Harvey out for up to a month with his third hamstring strain for the year, and forward Aaron Hamill, who has not played since round six, facing up to another fortnight on the sidelines with a recurring calf problem.
The Article Melissa Ryan/TheAge/05Jul05

Thomas minds his own business
There has been a lot of eyebrow-raising over Grant Thomas' coaching duties extending into the area of player contract negotiation. The widely held view is that he is taking his eye off the ball by involving himself in the negotiations and that it compromises his coaching in some way. I think that is a narrow view to take. Thomas - and every other coach, for that matter - brings to the position different skills. The most common pathway to the top is by inserting yourself into the system after your playing days are over and completing coaching courses while gaining practical experience on the job. It's a tried and true method. Thomas was involved in the business world for an extended period of time before he entered AFL coaching ranks. He was required to do, among other things, the negotiation of employee packages and to review and evaluate staff. It provided him with skills in an area perhaps no other current coach has.
The Article Tim Watson/TheAge/06Jul05

Break-even Thomas won't catch a break
. . . That 10-match winning streak has, in a manner, haunted him. The run included victories over four final eight sides and the next best four teams that didn't made September. Everything has been placed beside it and tough conclusions drawn. Since then, finals excluded, St Kilda has played in 26 matches for 13 wins and 13 losses - a strike rate of 50 per cent. It is a dramatic drop in the success rate and Thomas only levelled out the win-loss ratio on Sunday . . . That 10-match winning streak has, in a manner, haunted him. The run included victories over four final eight sides and the next best four teams that didn't made September. Everything has been placed beside it and tough conclusions drawn. Since then, finals excluded, St Kilda has played in 26 matches for 13 wins and 13 losses - a strike rate of 50 per cent. It is a dramatic drop in the success rate and Thomas only levelled out the win-loss ratio on Sunday.
The Article Patrick Smith/TheAustralian/05Jul05

September or bust for Saint Nick
St Kilda's finals hopes were in tatters last night after surgeons confirmed that captain Nick Riewoldt may not play again before September. And the Saints injury woes worsened when former captain Aaron Hamill was ruled out for another three weeks following a setback. He will be joined on the sidelines by dual Brownlow medallist Robert Harvey. Riewoldt is set to miss up to eight weeks after scans on Sunday night revealed a small crack in the right collarbone he fractured in the opening round of the season against Brisbane at the Gabba. The 22-year-old centre half-forward had a second medical opinion yesterday, but it only confirmed St Kilda's initial fears. However, the plate and eight screws inserted during surgery in late March remain intact and he does not require another operation.
The Article Greg Denham/TheAustralian/05Jul05

Courage under fire
Brendon Goddard's season has been much like a lyric from an old 70s hit, "I'm just a soul whose intentions are good; Oh Lord please don't let me be misunderstood." In recent weeks, St Kilda has been scrutinised in the media for being 'soft' and not have the 'ticker' to match it up with the league's elite. Goddard is one who has been criticised. Many believe he has an array of talent and despite his efforts, is not living up to the tag of the '#1 pick' but according to the young star it comes with the territory, "We as a group have just brushed it off and focused on training all week. However, we aren't hiding from the fact that we have been playing poor footy and been inconsistent in recent weeks. We realised that we need to stick to our guns and back ourselves."
The Article ABC Sport/03Jul05