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2007 Round 10 Post-game Articles - Geelong Cats versus St Kilda
St Kilda has softened its position on leaving its traditional training base; club president Rod Butterss expressing hope the Saints could end their long-running dispute with the local council. The Saints last week claimed they were determined to leave Moorabbin after 42 years of playing and training there because of a fall-out with the Kingston council over the club's planned redevelopment of the facility. The spat, which has been brewing for years, erupted over how many poker machines the council would allow the Saints at the new social club. St Kilda last week said it was determined to leave and would be at a new base, possibly in Port Melbourne or in Cranbourne, by the end of 2008. However, Butterss said on Sunday it would be a "great shame" for the Saints to leave Moorabbin and said the club was prepared to renew talks with Kingston officials over the redevelopment of the facility and surrounding area, which will be partly funded by the Victorian government. Butterss invited the council back into more negotiations in an attempt to resolve the dispute and keep the Saints at their current home. "I hope on this occasion that common sense prevails and that both parties can sit down and work out a deal which is good for all parties concerned," Butterss told the St Kilda function before the twilight game against Geelong." The Article Adam Cooper/AAP/saints.com.au/03Jun07 Jump to More Articles Saints fall to Cats An umdermanned St Kilda has dropped its third consecutive match, going down to a near full-strength Geelong by 60 points at Telstra Dome. The Saints 9.11 (65) were defeated by the Cats 19.11 (125), giving Geelong its fifth win in a row. For injury-hit St Kilda, it was the first time since 2005 it had lost three in succession. Although St Kilda trailed by just 17 points at half time, a nine-goal-to-two second half from Geelong blew the Saints away. It resulted in St Kilda's heaviest defeat for the season so far. Geelong's red-hot players - Jimmy Bartel, Joel Corey and David Wojcinski - were instrumental in the finish, while Cameron Ling nullified the influence of key Saint Nick Dal Santo. Steve Johnson was also dangerous up forward. But with Xavier Clarke a late withdrawal and no Robert Harvey, Brendon Goddard, Aaron Hamill, Matt Maguire, Matthew Clarke or Michael Gardiner to call on, St Kilda was always going to be up against it. Conversely, Geelong had the luxury of young guns Tom Hawkins and Joel Selwood as its emergencies, with Josh Hunt, who was unlucky to be omitted, as another reserve. St Kilda co-captain Nick Riewoldt worked tirelessly. He was excellent in the first half with 14 touches, seven marks (including four contested) and two goals, and finished with 20 disposals. The Article Matt Burgan/saints.com.au/04Jun07 Saints sign two more scholarship players St Kilda Football Club's Recruiting Advisor, John Beveridge gives some background information on the two new young players that the Saints have signed, under the AFL NSW Scholarship program. Craig Lowe - 16 years old and Kane Murphy - 14 and a half years old See saints.com.au for details Dal Santo: Watching the finals from the wrong side of the fence . . . The Saints have had three straight losses and on recent form, looked anything but finals aspirants. "If it goes on much longer, then we're going to find ourselves watching during September and that hasn't happened for a while and that would be really disappointing. So we need to address it really quickly," Dal Santo said. "There's been a lot of talk . . . even us as players, we've said a lot and it's just time for action now. It's pretty similar to last year, really, for us. We don't want to look back into the past but we know we're capable of clawing our way back." The road for the Saints is not an easy one, with the team facing five top-eight teams in the next six weeks. The Article Lyall Johnson/RealFooty/05Jun07 Riewoldt admits Saints are struggling St Kilda co-captain Nick Riewoldt says the club's prospects of making the finals are slowly diminishing as a result of their poor start to the AFL season. The Saints, under new coach Ross Lyon, are 4-6 after 10 rounds and sit in 13th place on the ladder although they are only two wins outside the top eight. Their 60-point loss to Geelong at Docklands last night was their third-straight defeat and Riewoldt said this Sunday's clash with the Kangaroos at Docklands had fast become a must-win proposition. "I don't think it's (finals) out of reach, but I think if it goes on much longer it could be out of reach," he said. "We've got to make a stand and it starts next week against the Kangaroos. We've got to win next week." Riewoldt said the responsibility of arresting the losing streak was solely that of the players. "I think the situation we find ourselves in, if it goes on much longer we're going to find ourselves watching during September and that hasn't happened for a while," he said. "That would be really disappointing, so we need to address it really quickly." The Article ABCSport/04Jun07 Rampant Cats outpace sluggish Saints Under the old best-team-on-the-park theory, St Kilda should have been ready to challenge Geelong at Telstra Dome last night, the Saints popping four prominent players back into their line-up. But a rider should be added to the theory popularised in these times of the salary cap and the inability of clubs to stockpile their depth of high-quality players. What you need is your best team on the park, up and running. The hidden cost of injuries is the time spent regaining touch, form and full fitness, as Ross Lyon's team found out last night in a 10-goal defeat by the rampant Geelong. On paper, Max Hudghton, Jason Gram, Leigh Montagna and Raphael Clarke, all inclusions from the week before, should have helped St Kilda. But while Gram was brilliant running out of defence and Montagna workmanlike through the midfield, Hudghton and Clarke struggled to make an impact, and St Kilda had others - notably Lenny Hayes - who need more game time. Second-placed Geelong is not in the mood to allow anyone the luxury of a gentle return to competition. It just does not work like that. The Article Martin Blake/RealFooty/04Jun07 Loss provokes soul searching St Kilda coach Ross Lyon has revealed a "heart-to-heart" open forum was conducted immediately after his side's comprehensive 60-point loss to Geelong at Telstra Dome on Sunday night. Lyon indicated several issues were addressed in-house in the wake of St Kilda's worst loss of the 2007 season. "We had an open heart-to-heart with the player group afterwards and put a lot of things on the table, so we're not going to give up," Lyon said. "It's about our supporters. We've got full responsibility. We want to come and put on a show and compete. [The margin] was 17 points at half-time and it's ended up being 60 points, which is not what we're about and not what I want to stand for, the club wants to stand for or the players want to stand for. We need to turn around – and we need to turn around quick. What are we four (wins), six (losses)? It's not about finals at the minute. It's about restoring some respect." Lyon was adamant he didn't want to make excuses for the defeat. The Article Matt Burgan/saints.com.au/03Jun07 Cats clobber Saints Geelong continued their superb AFL form with an impressive 60-point thrashing of St Kilda at Telstra Dome tonight to complete round 10. In what was meant to be an even clash between two well-credentialled sides, the Cats flexed their collective muscle and easily blew the Saints away. The 19.11 (125) to 9.11 (65) victory was Geelong's fifth in a row and put St Kilda right in the mire, as the Saints have now dropped their past three games and languish in 13th position, well off the pace of the leading pack. The Saints were in the game late in the second quarter as they crept within six points, only for Geelong to break clear again through a good snap by Brad Ottens and a set shot by Cameron Mooney. Geelong then turned it on in the third quarter and party time brought five goals, most of them demoralising ones for their opposition. The Article AAP/RealFooty/03Jun07 Cats hot, coach cool Samantha Lane/RealFooty/04Jun07 Thompson plays it cool after mauling Grantley Bernard/HeraldSun/04Jun07 Sublime Cats lead resurgence . . . Geelong is the most audacious talent of this trio, as starkly evident in its 10-goal mauling of an outclassed St Kilda last night at Telstra Dome, 19.11(125) to 9.11(65). Despite the lopsided final score, this was a tight, defensive contest for the first half. A bloated St Kilda injury list was made to look even worse when defender Leigh Fisher strained a hamstring in the first quarter and sat out the rest of the night on the bench. Sceptics are entitled to wonder whether the great Geelong run of 2007 will amount to something meaningful come September, or merely a fun ride while it lasts. "We've been in this situation before and we've collapsed and crashed," coach Mark Thompson said. "As quick as you go up, you can go down, we don't want that." St Kilda coach Ross Lyon is certainly a true believer after witnessing first-hand the power of Geelong's midfield run and precise ball use. " They are an incredibly good team, aren't they?" Lyon said. " They work together, they cover, they drop off, they block, they sacrifice space. All those little things add up. We know that." The Article Chip Le Grand/TheAustralian/04Jun07 Riewoldt an 'out and out champion': Lyon Coach Ross Lyon has labeled co-captain Nick Riewoldt an "out and out champion" and will take on any challenger who suggests otherwise. Although Geelong thrashed St Kilda by 60 points at Telstra Dome on Sunday, Riewoldt worked tirelessly all match, finishing with 20 disposals, 10 marks (including five contested) and two goals. He was locked in an enthralling encounter with Cats defender Matthew Egan, who stood him for most of the match, while gaining 22 touches himself. Riewoldt's brilliance is immeasurable either up the ground or deep in front of goal – yet many wonder where he is best suited. Lyon was asked this question during his post-match media conference. "The days of going down the ground and lobbing yourself in one spot are dead in the water – no one's going to kick 100 goals again. Do you reckon?" Lyon said. "He runs and works himself to death. He has shots on goal. I couldn't tell you his stats, but I'm tipping they were reasonably high." The Article saints.com.au/03Jun07 Rule requires four umpires The AFL's most experienced umpire Hayden Kennedy has described the contentious hands-in-the-back rule as a work in progress that could lead to four field umpires. However Kennedy admitted umpires were still trying to work out the best way of applying it. "If you have a full-forward and full-back jostling for position, you need to be down there to judge hands on the back," he said. "They're saying that we miss hands-on-the-back because we haven't been able to get side-on to the contest. More umpires seems to be the way they want to go." The Article Steve Perkin/HeraldSun/06Jun07 Seven wants to mike players Players would be miked during AFL games, if Channel 7 has its way. And Channel 10 introduced surround sound to its footy mix on Saturday night for those with high-definition receivers on their digital set-top boxes. The search for AFL TV supremacy is on in earnest, with Seven keen to make its mark after wresting the footy rights back from Nine. Seven's AFL co-ordinating producer Nick Barrow wants players and coach's boxes miked up during games. He has already miked a runner and broadcast Essendon coach Kevin Sheedy's three-quarter time address -- albeit on a slight delay. Barrow said the Bombers were happy with the result and he was keen to do it again. "I would love to mike up a lot of players on the ground," Barrow said. "(But) we're a long way from doing that." The Article Cheryl Critchley and Sam Edmund/HeraldSun/06Jun07 League monitors ad-break blowouts The AFL is hot on the heels of TV's time bandits, concerned that some advertisement breaks between goals are blowing out to almost 50 seconds. With replays squeezed in on top of advertisements, umpires are being forced to wait several seconds in the centre of the ground before restarting play. The league wants the time between goals close to 30 seconds, but a Herald Sun investigation found breaks averaged 45 seconds last weekend. AFL chief broadcasting and commercial officer Gillon McLachlan confirmed last night he had raised the issue with broadcasters. The Article Mark Stevens/HeraldSun/06Jun07 Ling shreds Lyon's plans A week of planning - and hoping - by Ross Lyon was in chaos by quarter-time and obliterated by halftime. The St Kilda coach sent Steven Baker to Gary Ablett, as expected, and Cameron Ling went to Nick Dal Santo, as he would have expected. In a game made up of 22 contests, Lyon lost those two badly. In essence, his best matchwinning midfielder was smashed and the opposition's best matchwinning midfielder smashed the Saints. Dal Santo is a good player, but at 23 and after 108 games, he still remains only a potentially great player. Unfortunately for the stylish left-footer with tipped hair, an unstylish left footer with red hair put him out of business. The Article Mark Robinson/HeraldSun/04Jun07 Saints want to win respect back St Kilda coach Ross Lyon conceded his side was 'a long way off the pace' after turning in an inexcusable second half to lose by 10 goals to Geelong at Telstra Dome on Sunday night. Lyon revealed the coaching staff and the players had an open 'heart to heart' discussion after the Saints managed just two goals in the second half against Geelong to slump to its sixth loss of the season. "You can't make excuses for the second half. It's not what we stand for. It's not what the club stands for. I'm accountable and the players are accountable. I'm not hiding from that," Lyon said. "We need to turn around and we need to turn it quick." After 10 rounds, the Saints are 13th, two games out of the eight, and above only struggling trio Carlton, Melbourne and Richmond. "It's not about finals at the moment, it's about restoring some respect," Lyon said. Frustrated with his team's inconsistency this year, Lyon, who took over from Grant Thomas at the end of the 2006 season, held his players behind locked doors in a bid to work out how his side can arrest a three-game losing streak. The Article Andrew Wu/Sportal/04Jun07 AFL respect comes first at Saints: Lyon St Kilda coach Ross Lyon says his struggling AFL side must win back respect - and quickly - before they even contemplate playing in the finals. The Saints were condemned to a third straight defeat by a rampant Geelong at Telstra Dome on Sunday, and Lyon admitted the 10-goal hammering showed the Saints were well off the pace. After entering the season as good things to reach a fourth straight finals series, St Kilda languish in 13th place nearing the halfway point, two wins outside the eight, with several key players still injured and a tough game against the Kangaroos to come. The Saints crept to within six points of Geelong late in the second quarter, yet ended up on the wrong side of a 19.11 (125) to 9.11 (65) drubbing. Lyon said the second-half performance showed St Kilda's first ambition had to be regaining respect before they could even consider playing more finals in 2007. "It was 17 points (at half-time) and it's ended up 60 points, which is not what we're about, not what I want to stand for, not what the club wants to stand for and not what the players want to stand for," he said. "We need to turn it around and we need to turn it around quick. We're 4-6 (wins-losses), so it's not about finals at the moment, it's about finding respect." The Article AAP/RealFooty/04Jun07 Ross Lyon wants respect "What are we, 4-6? It's not about finals at the minute, its about restoring some respect." Lyon's candid view of his own side and its performance was contrasted by giving credit where it was due to a superior opponent. "They're an incredibly good team, aren't they?" he said. "Their midfield run was a bit too much for ours. They share the workload. It's pretty impressive. They've got tall forwards, good backs. They're good." The Saints had their fair share of the ball in a four-goals-to-seven first term and won the second, and save for two shots that hit the post and another touched on the line, may even have been in front at halftime. But from there they were simply worn down by a better side. "Turnovers hurt us and class teams make you pay and I think they did that every time," Lyon said. The Article Michael Horan/HeraldSun/04Jun07 Riewoldt an 'out and out champion': Lyon Coach Ross Lyon has labeled co-captain Nick Riewoldt an "out and out champion" and will take on any challenger who suggests otherwise. Although Geelong thrashed St Kilda by 60 points at Telstra Dome on Sunday, Riewoldt worked tirelessly all match, finishing with 20 disposals, 10 marks (including five contested) and two goals. He was locked in an enthralling encounter with Cats defender Matthew Egan, who stood him for most of the match, while gaining 22 touches himself. Riewoldt's brilliance is immeasurable either up the ground or deep in front of goal - yet many wonder where he is best suited. Lyon was asked this question during his post-match media conference. "The days of going down the ground and lobbing yourself in one spot are dead in the water - no one's going to kick 100 goals again. Do you reckon?" Lyon said. "He runs and works himself to death. He has shots on goal. I couldn't tell you his stats, but I'm tipping they were reasonably high." The Article saints.com.au/03Jun07 Saints want to win respect back St Kilda coach Ross Lyon conceded his side was 'a long way off the pace' after turning in an inexcusable second half to lose by 10 goals to Geelong at Telstra Dome on Sunday night. Lyon revealed the coaching staff and the players had an open 'heart to heart' discussion after the Saints managed just two goals in the second half against Geelong to slump to its sixth loss of the season. "You can't make excuses for the second half. It's not what we stand for. It's not what the club stands for. I'm accountable and the players are accountable. I'm not hiding from that," Lyon said. "We need to turn around and we need to turn it quick." After 10 rounds, the Saints are 13th, two games out of the eight, and above only struggling trio Carlton, Melbourne and Richmond. "It's not about finals at the moment, it's about restoring some respect," Lyon said. Frustrated with his team's inconsistency this year, Lyon, who took over from Grant Thomas at the end of the 2006 season, held his players behind locked doors in a bid to work out how his side can arrest a three-game losing streak. The Article Andrew Wu/Sportal/04Jun07 A connoisseur of pain And so another defeat emerges out of the gloaming of a Sunday afternoon at the Dome and we are left with that dull aching feeling. You know the sensation, very much like the one yet get after watching a week's worth of Big Brother. You've surrendered hours of your life for this? Somehow you come out of the experience spiritually and psychologically diminished and have had your faith in the ability of the human race to rise above the indignity of it all battered like it's been hit by a Steven Baker shirtfront. And that's just by watching the umpires. So let's not dwell on last night. A 10-goal mauling like the eight-goal hiding the week before exposes issues for our team that the glib ramblings in this column could never address. In fact, a week with Dr Phil might be in order for our boys come the mid-season break. We Sainters haven't tasted much glory but we are connoisseurs of pain. Not by choice mind you (though the fact that we keep coming back for more suggests we have acquired a taste for it). These last few weeks have been inglorious, but in the cavalcade of calamities we've endured, these losses have been perfunctory and rather dull. We're so inured to this caper now it takes a lot more than a 10-goal whack by a bunch of cocky Cats to hurt us. The Article Francis Leach/saints.com.au/04Jun07 Sword put to hapless Saints The past four weeks have been compelling but when it's the Cats there is always a need to see more evidence - last night they delivered that, and some. Thanks to their history, particularly last year's meltdown, the football world keeps waiting for them to slip and show they are pretenders, not contenders. Well, the time has come to embrace the Cats as the real deal. While they were always expected to take care of an injury-riddled St Kilda last night, it's more about the way they're doing things which suggests great things ahead. The hardness, the consistency and the efficiency of the way they are executing resembles the way West Coast and Sydney have worked in recent years. A seven-goal first quarter set the tone last night before the Saints, thanks mainly to the extraordinary work ethic of co-captain Nick Riewoldt, rallied in the second. The Article Scott Gullan/HeraldSun/04Jun07 Goddard hopeful of making dream comeback . . . Mick McGuane, who was an assistant coach under Grant Thomas last year, has welcomed the announcement of a review into the club's medical and fitness programs. "Certain individuals are the culprits," McGuane said. "The Raph Clarkes and the X. (Xavier) Clarkes, and there's a lot of talk about Robert Harvey, but let's face facts, he is 35 and in the twilight of his career. There's certainly going to be muscles strains and tears in an ageing body, but he's a pro and will certainly get back on track. But it's the younger ones who are falling to these persistent nagging injuries. There might be a core reason, but how do you find that out? They've probably got to go back through the history of the last four or five years in terms of what weight training they're doing with their legs. There have been a lot of soft-tissue injuries. So is it enough? Is it too much? Are they strong enough? Are they not strong enough? Is it a by-product of playing on a concrete-based ground regularly at Telstra Dome? Does that hinder preparation or recovery for the next week? You just need a little bit of luck in footy. Everyone talks about the footy gods and I don't know what they've done, but they haven't had the footy gods over them. They've had the devils looking over them." This year it was Goddard's turn to feel the wrath. And it only took him two matches on the sidelines to realise he was a hopeless supporter. After watching the loss against Fremantle last week he made a vow for the remainder of the season. "We were at Aaron Hamill's house last week when they were in Subiaco and it was so frustrating .. I just can't deal with it," Goddard said. "As every person with a long-term injury would say, you just feel helpless and you can't do anything. I haven't had a long-term injury before, but a few of the other boys, Aaron, Thommo (Andrew Thompson) and Goose (Maguire) said `you'll get used to it'." The Article Jackie Epstein/HeraldSun/03Jun07 St Kilda's flag window far from shut The injury curse has robbed the Saints of a genuine tilt at a flag, but Brendon Goddard believes the window is still wide open. In a personnel sense, Goddard is adamant the club will be spared further pain. Rumours abound about out-of-contract co-captain Nick Riewoldt wanting out after the sacking of coach Grant Thomas and a return to Queensland. "The first day I walked in the door I didn't want to leave," Goddard said. "I think all guys have that mentality. There are a few boys coming out of contract, but I'm pretty confident they'll stay. Nick, we're really close and he's my mentor and I've said it before, he's like my big brother and he'll be fine. I'm confident in his own personal choices and he'll put that aside and do anything for the team like he always does." Goddard, 22, has another year left to run on his own contract. He was told by coach Ross Lyon that he had his full support regardless. The aim for next season and beyond is for Goddard to carve a niche in defence. "I want to be known as a backman," Goddard said. The Article Jackie Epstein/HeraldSun/03Jun07 Saints co-skipper backs Origin and Moorabbin as "Spiritual Home" St Kilda co-captain Luke Ball has thrown his support behind State of Origin football. Speaking exclusively to saints.com.au, Ball said he was "100 per cent" behind the idea of the Origin series being reinstated. "I had a taste of state representation as a junior, playing for Vic Metro, which was a fantastic experience. I played with some of the best - and against the best players - in the country," Ball said. "The pre-season has been mentioned as an option and this is a viable alternative to a pre-season competition. The State of Origin series could also be played as a round-robin competition. I believe the pre-season is the most logical time. The logistics of the series is a tough one, but I'd love to play in a State of Origin series, given the opportunity, and I'm sure most supporters would love to come and see it played." Meanwhile, Ball hoped the Saints would be able to remain at their "spiritual home" of Moorabbin, after chief executive Archie Fraser this week revealed it was likely to have to find an alternative venue, due to a breakdown in negotiations with its local council. "At this stage, the preference is probably Port Melbourne, given the closeness of Telstra Dome, and on face value it sounds the best option. It's a pretty central area and a few of our guys live close by, although the move could still be several years off," Ball said. The Article Matt Burgan/AFL/saints.com.au/02Jun07 Day footy humour all went to water . . . In the last minute of Sunday's twilight match at Telstra Dome when Geelong's Cameron Mooney, never renowned for doing things by the book, squirted his St Kilda opponent Michael Rix with water from a team water bottle, but then looked on in horror as the ump blew his whistle and paid a free paid against him. "No need to throw water in his face," said umpire Martin Ellis, and even though the incident wasn't captured by the cameras, the comments were quite audible on his umpire's microphone and picked up beautifully during Fox Footy's coverage of the game. And while AFL rule 15.9.1 (d) says a free kick should be paid as a result of insulting gestures, nobody whom we spoke to yesterday could recall it ever happening before as a result of a water squirt. Certainly not former Saint Danny Frawley, seen here in this classic Channel Seven shot from the 1980s when he copped a face full of water from his ever-playful Carlton opponent, Justin Madden. "Justin sometimes wore a helmet and from memory on this particular day, I just had a go at him by asking him where it was and that's how he responded," Frawley said. "It was a bit of fun. Purely that. I'm not aware of what happened on Sunday night, but if Martin Ellis paid a free for that, well, all I can say is Martin obviously didn't have a water pistol when he was young." The Article Geoff McClure TheAge/05Jun07 Loss provokes soul searching St Kilda coach Ross Lyon has revealed a "heart-to-heart" open forum was conducted immediately after his side's comprehensive 60-point loss to Geelong at Telstra Dome on Sunday night. Lyon indicated several issues were addressed in-house in the wake of St Kilda's worst loss of the 2007 season. "We had an open heart-to-heart with the player group afterwards and put a lot of things on the table, so we're not going to give up," Lyon said. "It's about our supporters. We've got full responsibility. We want to come and put on a show and compete. [The margin] was 17 points at half-time and it's ended up being 60 points, which is not what we're about and not what I want to stand for, the club wants to stand for or the players want to stand for. We need to turn around - and we need to turn around quick. What are we four (wins), six (losses)? It's not about finals at the minute. It's about restoring some respect." Lyon was adamant he didn't want to make excuses for the defeat. The Article Matt Burgan/saints.com.au/03Jun07 AFL's remedy for angry fans Growing disillusionment with the controversial hands-in-the-back rule will not force any immediate change, with AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou declaring his satisfaction with the new interpretation and the way it has been umpired. "I think the hands-in-the-back discussion is bordering on hysteria," Demetriou said yesterday. "It is disproportionate to what the rule is doing. It is actually a pretty clear rule, and I think it is being umpired particularly well." Swans coach Paul Roos repeated his condemnation of the rule at the weekend, saying it was creating "an enormous amount of frustration". But Demetriou said there was no plan to review the rule and that some judgements had been premature. "I think people should just take a Bex and wait until the end of the year and look at the results over the course of the year, like we do," he said. The Article Richard Hinds/RealFooty/05Jun07 Hands-in-back not working: Roos Rebecca Williams with Jim Wilson/HeraldSun/05Jun07 Gloves off for Swans and AFL Malcolm Conn/TheAustralian/05Jun07 Matthews defends push-in-back rule Greg Denham/TheAustralian/05Jun07 GO BACK TO PREVIOUS PAGE
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