R17
Saints scalped by flying Eagles
The Wes Coast Eagles have inflicted a significant blow to St Kilda’s top four hopes with a surprise 17-point victory at Subiaco Oval.
The shock loss could see the Saints tumble out of the eight depending on other round 17 results.
The West Coast overcame a sluggish start to claw their way back into the game before blowing the Saints away with a six-goal final quarter to win 15.13 (103) to 12.14 (86).
Nick Riewoldt’s five goals were not enough to lift the Saints while the West Coast found multiple goalkickers through Brent LeCras (four), Brad Ebert (three) and Brent Staker (three).
The Saints were quickly out of the blocks with Riewoldt opening his 150th AFL game with an easy major from the goal square courtesy of a 50 metre penalty when the West Coast runner infringed on the mark.
The inexperienced West Coast defence was soon under siege with goals from Stephen Milne, Brendon Goddard and Leigh Montagna.
But the Saints failed to capitalise on their good work with Riewoldt kicking three straight points from set shots.
More Matt Brown/saints.com.au/26Jul08
Saints pay for costly clangers
St Kilda coach Ross Lyon says his team must regroup following a 'bitterly disappointing' loss to West Coast.
Lyon wasn't offering any excuses for a poor performance where the Saints gave up a 26-point lead over the Eagles in the second quarter, eventually falling by 17 points in a result that could have ended the club's chances of making the top four.
"That's the media's agenda, we haven't spoken about the four," Lyon said following the match.
"I think today highlights how difficult this competition is. You need to be on your game otherwise you're not going to get the result you desire."
"We'll recover, we'll drive ourselves again and we'll fight for where we want to be."
"We've got five really big games (and) the season's still well and truly alive ... it's a bitterly disappointing loss but we've got to analyse it and move on really quickly," he said.
Lyon said his team was outplayed by the Eagles but conceded the cause wasn't helped by a match-ending calf injury to key defender Max Hudghton or some poor kicking during the first half when the Eagles were on the ropes.
"We lost Hudghton in the first five minutes, which structurally put us under some pressure and change on what is a big ground," Lyon said,
"It really put us under pressure (with) the ability to manipulate the midfield ... (and) to use (Jason) Gram and Sam Fisher there and they had some talls coming in, but again I'm loathe to make excuses because at the end of the day I thought we had opportunities."
"I thought we slaughtered the footy (with) a lot of clanger kicks. We won the contested ball, we tackled pretty well, as did they (but we) gave them too much rope and they hung us."
More Paul Barbieri /Sportal/27Jul08
Brad Ebert right at home among football's elite
Nick Dal Santo may have wondered who Brad Ebert was when the West Coast teen sidled up to him at the first centre bounce on Saturday. In football terms, Ebert, 18, was a young boy among men, and the challenge to run with one of the AFL's most skilled midfielders was a big one.
But as the clouds parted on Subiaco Oval to herald the Eagles' most spirited performance of the year, it was clear he belonged at this level.
Ebert, the 13th pick in last year's draft, was brilliant, gathering 25 touches to his rival's 19 in West Coast's 17-point victory.
Indeed, there were shades of Geelong gun Joel Selwood in the way the South Australian committed himself to contests.
While Eagle Adam Selwood wasn't quite ready to make the same comparison, he has already noted the similarities between his brother and his teammate.
"I don't want to put the pressure on him but it's fair to say they are two good young players and what Brad was able to do today for us was just great," Selwood said after the game.
"We won't always want him playing a run-with (role) but that's what he's done for the past two weeks and it's shown what he is capable of.
"But he also has good skills and with another pre-season we'll see him add a few more tricks to his game, which is exciting."
This is, however, the same young man that Michael Voss dubbed as a future West Coast captain.
On a stage set for St Kilda to further enhance its top-eight credentials, the team capitulated in all-too-familiar fashion at Subiaco Oval.
The Saints led by 26 points early in the second quarter but went into their shells when the Eagles raised their intensity.
Selwood said the victory, which was the Eagles' third of the season and snapped a seven-match losing streak, was one of the most satisfying of his 91-game career.
More Jay Clark/Superfooty/28Jul08
'Roos at fifth after beating Demons
The reward for North Melbourne's victory over bottom-placed Melbourne at the MCG outweighed their performance, but coach Dean Laidley was happy to accept it.
After the three teams who started the round directly above them - Collingwood, Brisbane and St Kilda - all suffered upset losses, the 14.14 (98) to 10.10 (70) win catapulted the 'Roos to fifth spot.
Laidley admitted the style of the victory, aside from a seven goals to one first quarter, was less than spectacular.
But given his side would have dropped to 10th had they lost, he was content to bank the points.
"Looking at the results over the weekend, no injuries and four points, I think it's probably critical at this stage of the year," Laidley said.
"I thought our first quarter was pretty good, then they wanted to throw a heap of numbers behind the footy.
"We were holding our line, they were holding their line and that's what you get, ugly footy, when those sort of things happen."
The coach said the costly results for other teams around the same mark as the 'Roos reinforced the need for to focus on their opponents, rather than speculate about potential ladder positions.
"Everyone wants to talk about, particularly the media, about what's going to happen (on the ladder) and that's their job," Laidley said.
More AAP/RealFooty/27Jul08
Knee injury fells Dylan Addison
THE Western Bulldogs fear they have lost defender Dylan Addison for the rest of the season.
Addison was helped from the ground in the third term of last night's 28-point upset loss to Carlton at Telstra Dome after injuring a knee.
Initial examination in the rooms after the game were not good for the 20-year-old.
"It's probably a grade three medial we think at this stage. If that's the case, he'll miss the rest of the season," Bulldogs coach Rodney Eade said.
"It's an 8-10 week injury, maybe a bit longer. That's what the surgeon is telling us initially. We'll have it scanned to confirm it. It's not great at this stage."
Eade was at a loss to understand why his side appeared to run out of steam against the Blues after leading by 37 points 11 minutes into the third term.
"Full credit to the opposition, they played very well, but we seemed to get away from some basic things at times," he said.
"Obviously we looked pretty tired in the end, for whatever reason. We made some basic errors but got away from some fundamentals that served us well in the first two and a half quarters.
"It's something we'll need to look at. I'm not too sure of the reason at this stage. But it's certainly an area of concern that we need to address.
"They certainly seemed to be running with heavy legs and the opposition were running on top of the ground.
More Michael Horan/Superfooty/28Jul08
Angry Blight breaks silence
Dual premiership coach-turned commentator Malcolm Blight has broken his silence about his 2001 sacking as coach of St Kilda, blasting then president Rod Butterss for his admitted naivete at the time.
Sacked after only 15 games in the job, Blight told Channel Ten the suggestion that Butterss felt he had a lack of commitment to the Saints showed what he and his assistants - Peter Jonas and Ken Hinkley - were working against.
"All I did was ... try to handle some egos with a very bad football club that had won two games the year before," Blight said.
"I couldn't give a rat's toss bag whether he thought I could coach or if anyone thinks I could coach but ... it's an absolute slur on two other guys who went there with me ... "
"Great blokes, great football people, they left as well, had to. And you know what they have gone on and done. They have been involved in premierships."
On Butterss' comments that the coach was spending too much time out of the office, Blight said: "You know where I was spending it, with Peter Jonas and Ken Hinkley formulating plans to help kids play footy and win games of football. It was a team that had won two games the year before ... had some problems off the ground. Commitment no, might not have liked the way I did it, stiff."
St Kilda settles with Grant Thomas
St Kilda Football Club has today reached a mutually agreeable position with Grant Thomas and will now settle the case out of Court for an undisclosed sum.
Saints CEO, Archie Fraser said, "We respect that this has been a difficult time for Grant, and for the Club, and are glad that we have now reached a resolution."
"Grant is, and always will be, an important part of the history of the St Kilda Football Club. Grant has played a significant role in shaping St Kilda into what it is today and it's important for Grant and the Club that we can both now move on. We look forward to a time when Grant and his family are welcomed back to the St Kilda fold."
In the interests of moving forward, both parties have agreed that this is the end of the matter and that nothing more will be said.
More saints.com.au/18Jul08