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FREMANTLE: 6.4, 9.5, 14.10, 17.12 (114)
ST KILDA: 2.1, 2.4, 5.8, 7.14 (56)
GOALS - Fremantle: Farmer 4, Pavlich 3, McManus 3, Longmuir 2, Headland 2, Schammer 2, M Carr
St Kilda: Gehrig 2, Koschitzke, Riewoldt, Harvey, Dal Santo, Goddard
BEST - Fremantle: McManus, McPharlin, Bell, Sandilands, Farmer, Mundy, Black
St Kilda: Harvey, Riewoldt, S.Fisher, Goddard, Gram
INJURIES - Fremantle: Hayden (left hamstring), Farmer (right hamstring)
St Kilda: Thompson (quad)
CHANGES - Fremantle: Murphy replaced in selected side by Webster
St Kilda: Ackland replaced in selected side by Blake
REPORTS - Nil
UMPIRES - Woodcock, McInerney, Goldspink
CROWD - 39,069 at Subiaco Oval, Perth
FREE KICKS: For: St Kilda 21, Against: 15
HITOUTS: Fremantle 42, St Kilda 15,
50m PENALTIES: Fremantle 1, St Kilda 1
GOALS: Fremantle Free 0; Play 10; Mark 7, St Kilda Free 4; Play 0; Mark 3
DISTANCE OF GOALS: Fremantle 0-15m 3; 15-30m 4; 30-40m 4; 40+m 6 St Kilda 0-15m 1; 15-30m 3; 30-40m 0; 40+m 3

Saints need miracle after being hit for six again
The book of Genesis 2:2 tells us that on the seventh day, having finished his task, God rested from all of his work. The AFL tells us that on the sixth day, having travelled back from Perth, St Kilda must play the Western Bulldogs. For the aptly named Saints, it will require a minor miracle to win. When St Kilda officials received this season's fixture list, they mused how Ben Buckley, the AFL's lord of the draw, worked in mysterious ways. Teams have, on average, six short weeks this season. St Kilda has been handed 11. More to the point, it has been asked to negotiate one triple six-day break - the devil's number as far as conditioning coaches are concerned - and three doubles. This week, St Kilda is confronting what training services manager Craig Starcevich terms "an absolute classic clanger"; a six-day break, followed by a cross-continental flight, followed by another six-day break.
The Article Chip Le Grand/TheAustralian/22Aug06
Possible Ladder Positions/Finishes to the Season Oh When the Saints/saintsational.com

Thomas explains the Harvey tongue-twister
St Kilda yesterday wanted to make one thing perfectly clear - Robert Harvey is not being pressured to retire. Asked about Harvey's plans for next year, St Kilda coach Grant Thomas said on Sunday that "there's no doubt that I'll be trying to exit him out rather than exit him in". Yesterday, Thomas clarified his clumsily worded answer: he meant he would play Devil's advocate in negotiations with his champion veteran midfielder, but ultimately would leave the decision to Harvey.
The Article Michael Gleeson/TheAge/22Aug06

Thomas not pushing club great out door
. . . Thomas has since explained that he made a mess of what he was trying to say. Regardless, what makes it such an interesting statement is that it is so contrary to the campaign that was launched by the Bombers, Kangaroos and Blues in ensuring that they squeeze one more year out of their super veterans. They effectively said to their potential retirees we have you "inked" in as playing on next year and it is up to you to convince us otherwise. What Thomas alluded to is that the Saints have Harvey pencilled in as retired and it is up to the player to convince them that he wants to go around again . . . From a pure football point of view, there is no question in my mind that Harvey should go around again. He has had a better year than Hird, Archer and Koutoufides. But can he get up mentally again, nearing 36 years of age? Grant Thomas, by virtue of his comments on the weekend, has ensured that if he does, he will again be a very valuable member of the club.
The Article Garry Lyon/HeraldSun/22Aug06

Thomas can go on
Grant Thomas admits he got it wrong. Stuffed up, in fact. The sensitive subject of Robert Harvey's future had the St Kilda coach wishing he could have his time over again. "Really, I've made a classic blunder," he said yesterday. "I've put my big foot in my mouth. Hopefully, everyone understands what I meant to say; the words I used, unfortunately, were the wrong words." Not everyone, though, did understand, with supporters expressing their dismay to the club via the telephone and e-mail yesterday.
The Article Mike Sheahan/HeraldSun/22Aug06

Saints' quick getaway foiled by traffic
So keen was Grant Thomas to draw a veil over St Kilda's woeful loss to Fremantle on Saturday night, the Saints' coach ordered his players to forego their usual post-game shower and get straight on the bus. But in keeping with a night Thomas described as a miserable failure, the Saints got stuck in traffic as they attempted a quick getaway from the 58-point defeat - giving all on board ample time to reassess their faltering finals chances . . . Thomas admitted his side could not cope with the fleet-footed style which has taken Freo to a club-record seven successive wins. "It just seems against the elite running sides that are on top of the ground, and are really prepared to gut run, we have struggled," Thomas said. The Saints face a six-day turnaround before Friday's showdown with the Bulldogs at Telstra Dome.
The Article BorderMail/21Aug06

Thomas may push Harvey to the exit
St Kilda coach Grant Thomas has cast strong doubt on whether champion Robert Harvey will pull the boots on for a 20th season at the top level in 2007. Just a day before Harvey's 35th birthday, Thomas indicated he was likely to encourage the two-time Brownlow medallist to retire at the end of the season. In the past week, AFL veterans James Hird, Glenn Archer and Anthony Koutoufides - who all turn 34 early next year - announced they would play in 2007. While emphasising that any decision would be made at the end of the season, Thomas said Harvey, the league's oldest player, was best placed to decide on his future. "There's no doubt that I'll be trying to exit him out rather than exit him in," Thomas told Triple M radio yesterday.
The Article Scott Spits/TheAge/21Aug06
Round 20 medical room Dr Peter Larkins/HeraldSun/21Aug06

Saints tumble
. . . The Saints had left Subiaco Oval as fast as they could after the debacle with the players hardly having time to remove their boots before being whisked on to the bus and taken back to their hotel . . . Renowned for his people management skills, Thomas knew he couldn't let his players dwell on such a performance, with only six days to prepare for the Western Bulldogs. "Tonight was a plane crash," he tells the group. "But we all survived and we now have to move on." For the next 20 minutes the Saints coach works his magic. He urges the players to take responsibility for their own performance and to do their own self-analysis. He wants them to understand why it happened and learn from it. There will be no review of the tape or singling out of individual players, the focus must be the Bulldogs on Friday night. He says he doesn't want to see heads hanging low in the morning, even if the shocking performance warranted it. The players have to be upbeat and positive because the challenge to beat the Bulldogs starts now.
The Article Scott Gullan/HeraldSun/21Aug06

Fremantle, this is more than a derby
When the siren sounds on the biggest derby in WA sporting history next Sunday night, either West Coast or Fremantle will be favourite to win the 2006 AFL flag. As implausible as it sounds, that's fact. The club born in such messy circumstances in 1994 and christened Dockers and so often put down as Frockers and Shockers, finally has grown up. Even Chris Connolly has acknowledged Freo will play finals this year and who would dare say it won't play a major part in September action?
The Article Mike Sheaghan/HeraldSun/21Aug06

Saints pay price for short turnaround
St Kilda's flagging premiership hopes rest on its ability to turn around a shocking record when backing up within a week, coach Grant Thomas says. The Saints, who have had only six days to recover and prepare for their next game 10 times this season, face the rejuvenated Bulldogs on Friday night at Telstra Dome in a match crucial to their top-four hopes. But their record suggests they face a massive task to defeat the Bulldogs, who beat Adelaide on Saturday at the MCG, particularly given the extra burden of an interstate trip from Perth. The Saints have won only half of their contests after a six-day break this season, with their scoring potency greatly reduced.
The Article Courtney Walsh/TheAustralian/21Aug06

Harvey's future in 2007 unclear
St Kilda coach Grant Thomas has cast strong doubt on whether champion Robert Harvey will pull the boots on for a 20th season at the top level in 2007. Just a day before Harvey's 35th birthday, Thomas indicated he was likely to encourage the two-time Brownlow Medallist to retire at the end of the season. In the past week, AFL veterans James Hird, Glenn Archer and Anthony Koutoufides - who all turn 34 early next year - announced they would play on in 2007. While stressing that any decision would be made at the end of the season, Thomas said Harvey - the oldest player in the league - was best placed to make a decision on his playing future.
The Article Scott Spits/TheAge/19Aug06
Freo smashes sorry Saints 114-56 AAP/TheAge/19Aug06

Saints hit by a runaway 'truck'
Grant Thomas was left looking for answers last night as the Fremantle truck steamrolled his St Kilda team before almost 40,000 fans at Subiaco Oval. The Saints kicked the game's opening two goals, but were then poleaxed by a more committed and efficient Dockers outfit and will slide to seventh today if Melbourne defeats the Kangaroos. "We just got hit by a truck, I suppose," Thomas said. "I'm not going to defend our position in any shape or form. Fremantle was sensational, just terrific and worked far too hard. It was just like West Coast when they came over and played us a few weeks ago. It seems against the elite running sides on top of the ground who are prepared to gut-run, we struggle. They were too good, too tough, too hard and won the hard footy. We just got smashed in every area."
The Article Digby Beacham/HeraldSun/20Aug06

Saints put on canvas
It was Fremantle coach Chris Connolly who, a couple of years back, compared future clashes between the Dockers and St Kilda as potential football versions of the legendary heavyweight boxing bouts between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier. It seemed to be drawing a long bow then, and for all the thrills and controversy these two teams have generated in their past three meetings, it turned out to be drawing a long bow again last night. Battles between Ali and Frazier were never less than epics, fought to the bitter end. This was more like a KO in the first couple of rounds. In fact, for most of the first half, these two top-four aspirants didn't even appear to be from the same weight division. St Kilda came out with a flurry of punches, and landed a couple of handy blows with the first two goals of the game. Like Ali would have, the Dockers soaked up that early pressure, then poured on their own. And some more. And then some.
The Article Rohan Connolly/HeraldSun/19Aug06

No excuses from Thomas
. . . "We failed miserably as a club tonight," Grant Thomas said. "We didn't have any real team ethic and we didn't work for one another. We were very undisciplined. We just had too many passengers and too many guys who just put their hand up too early, which is just disappointing at this stage of the year in such an important game. If we're going to accept the credits for our good performances, we've got to accept the criticism for when we don't perform well, and that includes me and the coaching staff and everyone."
The Article Joseph Sapienza/AFL/saints.com.au/19Aug06

Thomas doubts Saints
St Kilda coach Grant Thomas has questioned his team's capacity to match the AFL's top teams for run after his team was completely disassembled by Fremantle at Subiaco Oval last night. The shattered Saints mentor delivered a searing critique of his team's effort in Perth, which has placed their ability to make the top four and remain in genuine premiership contention at serious risk. While the Dockers recorded their seventh win on the trot - the best stretch in the club's 12-year history, and went to bed last night in third position on the AFL ladder - the Saints have fallen back into the pack at the bottom end of the eight. Thomas was full of praise for the Dockers, who he claimed had improved as much as 50 per cent in the critical areas of hard run, toughness and willingness to work for each other.
The Article Rohan Connolly/TheAge/19Aug06

Fremantle smashes St Kilda
Fremantle's surge towards September continued in impressive style tonight, the Dockers beating St Kilda 17.12 (114) to 7.14 (56) to burst into the AFL's top four and genuine premiership contention. A four-goal, first-quarter burst by Jeff Farmer set Fremantle on its way and, despite slippery conditions at Subiaco, Chris Connolly's emerging side simply ran the Saints off their feet. The club record winning streak of seven has the Dockers sitting third on the ladder with plans to go deep into the finals. Although Farmer caught most eyes until he was withdrawn with a worrying hamstring injury, the Dockers outpointed Grant Thomas's men wherever it mattered . . . For the Saints, only Robert Harvey and Sam Fisher stood out while Fraser Gehrig had yet another Perth run he would rather forget, finishing with just two goals from free kicks. The build up to the match had been dominated by clashes which had gone before, the last three meetings being decided by less than a kick.
The Article Tim Clarke/AAP/HeraldSun/19Aug06

Fremantle leap into top four
Fremantle jumped into third place on the AFL ladder following a 58-point victory over St Kilda in their round 20 AFL clash at Subiaco Oval on Saturday night . . . St Kilda's defeat sees them drop to sixth place ahead of the conclusion of round 20 and they did not help their cause with a meek performance on goals against the Dockers. They kicked only two majors in the opening term before going goalless in the second while their third-term effort, in which they managed three goals, was as much of a fight-back as they could muster. Fraser Gehrig was St Kilda's only multiple goal kicker with a double. Justin Koschitske, playing just his second match since returning from a fractured skull sustained in round six, was one of five players to kick single majors for the visitors. The Saints will look to reclaim a spot in the top four when they meet the Western Bulldogs at Docklands next Friday night.
The Article ABCSport/19Aug06

Freo in seventh heaven
. . . Fierce tackling, slick ball movement and a play-on-at-all-cost mindset was the catalyst behind Fremantle's win. The Saints' normally-potent forward line was suffocated all night while in contrast the Dockers' enjoyed plenty of room to manoeuvre in attack. It was Fremantle's seventh consecutive win - a new club record - and lifts it to third spot on the ladder and guarantees a finals berth for just the second time in its 12-year history. The only blow to come out of the match was a hamstring injury to defender Roger Hayden and forward Jeff Farmer, while Saints midfielder Andrew Thompson suffered a quad injury.
The Article AFL/saints.com.au/19Aug06

Dockers answer the siren call
. . . As Fremantle prepares to play St Kilda tonight, the Dockers are the talk of the AFL. They have won six games in a row. A club ridiculed for much of its history is being taken very seriously indeed. Win against the Saints and a top-four spot is theirs for the taking. Only four weeks ago, coach Chris Connolly's mention of such a thing was greeted with guffaws. A national competition that once disparaged Fremantle as the village idiot is craning its neck to understand the secrets of its success. There are reports of player pacts being made and game plans being simplified; of a new resolve and newfound maturity. All these things may well be true, but to understand the moment Fremantle arrived as a fully-fledged competition power, you need only look back to that day in Launceston when the siren sounded but a game didn't stop.
The Article Chip Le Grand/TheAustralian/19Aug06

Riewoldt needs to go back for Saints to go forward
Grant Thomas has said his St Kilda players should win two premierships in 10 years. He is in his fifth full season. There needs to be some furious football over the next five if the coach is to deliver on his early estimation. First he must get the club into a grand final. He has gone mighty close, losing two preliminary finals to the eventual premier - a six-point loss to Port Adelaide in 2004 and 31-point loss to Sydney last year. If the Saints are even to match those performances this season then a place in the top four is imperative. Which makes victory against Fremantle at Subiaco tonight essential. The task has been made more complicated by the loss of Matt Maguire, his centre half-back who remains in hospital after badly breaking his leg in the round 18 loss to West Coast. Thomas simply doesn't have enough quality big defenders to lose one so close to the finals. Sam Fisher and Max Hudghton now fill the key defensive roles and Thomas has been forced to send 200cm rookie ruckman Michael Rix to help cover. Tonight will be just the eighth game for Rix. Cain Ackland has been named as the No.1 ruckman with Jason Blake demoted.
The Article Patrick Smith/TheAustralian/19Aug06

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