Saints go down different paths with rucks
For players with fragile recent pasts, it is a markedly different approach: one rested, the other worked. But should it get this right, St Kilda's speculative ruck punt could contrive a profitable result. Steven King and Michael Gardiner working in tandem, with Gardiner last week moving with a fluidity believed to have abandoned him five years ago, presented an intriguing insight into what could be the shape of things for the Saints. If they can both stay fit and play. Which is the big "if". Gardiner has played 36 games in the past five years, and half of those were played in one season five years ago in 2003. King has played 69 in the same period, but only six last year. King's injury troubles last year coupled with his age mean a process was put in place at the start of the six-week practice match and pre-season cup series that he would play the first couple of games and rest. So irrespective of the interest in an earlier-than-expected rematch with the club he captained and returned to play in a premiership with only months ago, he was never going to play against the Cats today.
King to sit out match against Cats
The much-anticipated duel between ruckmen Steven King and Mark Blake will have to wait at least until round four of the AFL season. The Saints will rest King for Saturday's NAB Cup match against the Cats at Manuka Stadium in Canberra ... King is among several big names who will sit out the match - team-mate Robert Harvey and star Geelong quartet Gary Ablett, Jimmy Bartel, Steve Johnson and Brad Ottens also will come out of their side. "We've just rested him, it was always the plan, to rest him and Rob Harvey," said Saints football manager Matthew Drain. "We looked at this as a six-week schedule of practice matches, including our intra-club game before the NAB Cup, and Steven was always going to be rested for the third game. We didn't look at the opponent or anything like that." New Saint Charlie Gardiner will play against his old club for the first time, while premiership players Max Rooke and Corey Enright will return for the Cats.
Reiwoldt in top nick
... The Saints' move to air training footage on the internet was a calculated bid to kill off rumours dogging the superstar. Riewoldt and St Kilda officials have become increasingly frustrated by speculation they are hiding an anterior cruciate ligament injury ... St Kilda football manager Matthew Drain confirmed last night Riewoldt would miss tomorrow's NAB Cup clash with Geelong in Canberra, but resume the week after. "He did the full session today," Drain said. "There was only a few minutes on the website, but he's part of the group doing what he needs to do. If he had an ACL, he wouldn't be doing that." Asked if Riewoldt would play tomorrow if it was the home-and-away season, Drain said: "No doubt" ... Despite the latest batch of rumours, St Kilda is sticking by its decision to have blanket closed sessions during the summer. Coach Ross Lyon sees it as an invaluable way of tinkering with game style away from prying eyes. If St Kilda fans were allowed in yesterday, they would have been pleased on several fronts. Lenny Hayes, Adam Schneider and Luke Ball are a strong chance of joining Riewoldt in the Saints team next week. Brendon Goddard, returning from a knee reconstruction, could also be back. If not, he will make a long-awaited comeback the week after. Matt Maguire, struck down by a foot stress fracture, is further behind. Maguire is unlikely to play before Round 1, and that will be for VFL affiliate Casey Scorpions.
Riewoldt worry not so drastic
... The club says Riewoldt has tendonitis of the knee and nothing more. It says that while he will not play this week, he should play the weekend after. There is some suggestion that he has a minor strain of his anterior cruciate ligament but this is significantly different to a tear of the ligament and can be managed. He is able to train fully and pain only appears when he attempts long kicks. The pain is not expected to unduly affect his season. A different scare went through Moorabbin on Friday night when youngster Raphael Clarke collapsed after the win over Richmond. He was taken to Epworth Hospital for precautionary scans which cleared him of serious damage and while he will not play this week he has been cleared to play afterwards. It seemed that Clarke, who has been plagued by injury in his short career, suffered dehydration in the heat before suffering a knock to his ribs.
Free agency structure may see Riewoldt vulberable
The northern expansion of the AFL will intensify pressure on the league to introduce a form of free agency into its highly regulated player market, clearing the path for the likes of St Kilda's Nick Riewoldt to return home to the Gold Coast as the face of the game's newest franchise. The AFL Players Association and AFL are locked in protracted negotiations over whether to permit a limited form of free agency as early as next year's trade period, with a joint working party of league and association representatives due to make their recommendations to the AFL commission before its March 13 meeting. But if, as expected, the AFLPA does not sway the AFL this time round, association demands on player movement will form the centre piece of its next collective bargaining agreement negotiations with the league. Those negotiations must be completed by 2010 and the new Gold Coast team will play its debut season in an expanded national competition in 2011. Riewoldt by that time will have given 10 years' service to his club, a scenario under which only the most bloody-minded St Kilda supporter would begrudge his return home. The AFL remains philosophically opposed to allowing players to shift clubs other than by trade or through the draft, a position strongly backed by the clubs. But the league's aggressive time frame for the establishment of new clubs on the Gold Coast and western Sydney will alter the dynamics of the debate. In the meantime, the clamour for a form of free agency is expected to grow among players and their agents, with chief executive Brendon Gale vowing to continue the AFLPA campaign for a more liberal player market. Coincidentally, Riewoldt's manager Ricky Nixon is one of the most outspoken advocates for reform.
It was either me or Charlie: Mackie
Andrew Mackie can see the similarities between himself and Charlie Gardiner just two years ago. Both were half-forwards battling to assert themselves in Geelong's senior team. In and out of the seniors, desperate for some consistency. Mackie knew he had to do something. Change or be damned ... During trade week, he was effectively given away in a deal with former captain Steven King to St Kilda for a pick the Cats would never use. "That's true, it's exactly the same as Charlie. It's hard for blokes who are on that fringe area at half-forward," Mackie said. "Charlie didn't go too bad, we lost a game and he was out of the team, and when you start winning it's hard to get in. These days if you're not that genuine great player, you've got to have other strings to your bow and I'm lucky enough that I was able to play down back. I hope Charlie goes well and all that, but it shows that in footy you've got to be very adaptable." There's the sliding doors. Mackie made the change and is now a premiership player. Gardiner didn't and is now a Saint. Mackie knows how close he came to being on the other end of it. "I wouldn't like to think what I'd be doing now if we didn't do that (make the change)," he said ... This week, Mackie might well find himself facing off against Gardiner when the Cats and Saints meet in the quarter-finals of the NAB Cup. The two worlds of sliding doors might finally come crashing together.
Archie Fraser forecasts non-Swans matches in Sydney
St Kilda chief executive Archie Fraser has foreshadowed AFL clubs other than the Swans playing each other in western Sydney while the league pushes ahead with a stand-alone team for the region ... Fraser said yesterday the league should aim for AFL football to be played every week in Sydney to pave the way for the new team, which would have an administrative base in the western suburb of Blacktown, but would play most of its home games at ANZ Stadium (formerly Telstra Stadium). "You'd certainly want to be playing games there by 2010, I think, to whet the appetite of the locals and ensure there's footy out there every week," Fraser said. "(But) you obviously can't do that just with the Swans playing there, so it might well mean that teams from all around the country have got to play games at (ANZ) Stadium. Potentially that means a modification of the existing fixture, it doesn't necessarily mean teams will lose their 11 home fixtures." Fraser stressed that the Saints would be unlikely to play any home games in Sydney in the lead-up to the establishment of the new team. "If there were additional games created to play up there and there was an opportunity to play up there, we'd definitely consider it, but I wouldn't be volunteering home games to play in Sydney," he said
Moorabbin likely to be Victorian Crickets' new home
... A $10 million injection has been earmarked for the building of facilities to house Victorian cricket's elite squads - from the Bushrangers and the Vic Spirit representative teams down ... Moorabbin's impeccable surface and the opportunity to build an enlarged wicket square has irresistible appeal for many on Cricket Victoria's executive ... Almost as compelling is the opportunity to work solely with the City of Kingston, which owns and controls the main ground and the adjoining northern field that would be employed as a cricket nursery. City of Kingston mayor Bill Nixon said: "We want to have major sport in the area. While were sorry to see St Kilda (Football Club) go, it opens up other opportunities for major sport which the city is keen to embrace, whatever it takes." Nixon said the Kingston was in negotiations with the football club to demolish the old grandstands, which stretch almost 200m along Linton St. New buildings would be built and rented to help cricket meet its financial commitments.
King and Gardiner together - a tall story
... In terms of performance, King was solid and Gardiner promising, which is not altogether surprising given that King has just come off a season in which he rucked in two premiership sides - one in the VFL and then in the AFL a week later - while the injury-riddled Gardiner has played one game in two years. King finished with the better stats, winning 16 hit-outs and gathering 11 possessions, while Gardiner won 14 taps and five possessions - one a handy link-up with Koschitzke late in the third quarter that resulted in a goal. King could not have imagined that after his premiership success in September, he'd be playing for St Kilda in mid-February, but would be counting his blessings the Saints threw him a lifeline and looked fit and committed to repaying the favour. "At the moment I'm just rapt to just be getting a game and just trying to fit in," he said after Friday night's 40-point win over the Tigers. King said he was feeling more confident about drawing on his own leadership history to contribute more. "I think actions speak louder than words when you first come to a club, so you just try and knuckle down and do the hard work through the pre-season," he said. "Now that games are coming around I'm slowly getting out of my shell a bit more. There's a hell of a lot of experience at this club, as well, but if I can share my experience that I've learnt over my time at Geelong, then hopefully that just adds something to the group."
Steven King vs Mark Blake in Canberra
Our next NAB game is against the Cats. A bit of extra interest will be M Blake vs King in the ruck. King was given the heave-ho ... and he knows it. A recent interview with King had him stating that the Cats had offered him a one year deal for next year, but within a week it disappeared. And of course from Blake's point of view Blake missed being in a winning GF because of King. So one cost the other a GF medallion. The other cost him his club ...So this could make for an interesting ruck contest when they face off
It's summer, and footy's back
... It was the first official match in the heartland and it had some familiar themes. Darren Goldspink umpired his final match, looking like he was running in quicksand but forthright and decisive, as ever. Matthew Richardson tried hard all night, but it took just two minutes of football in a new season before a teammate smashed a short pass straight over his head and into the hands of his opponent, Sam Fisher. This would be a metaphor for a night when Richmond's ball use was substandard. Familiar, too, was St Kilda's emergence at the start in traditional guernsey, at a time of year when experimentation is a byword. By contrast, Richmond had a predominantly yellow guernsey with a few strategic black stripes and butchered the football. No, it was the Saints who looked the more serious, right down to the presence of 36-year-old Robert Harvey, Old Man River himself. Harvey surely has earned the right to sit out a NAB Cupper in summer, but that is not the way he operates. Beginning his 21st season at this level, he rollicked into space like he always has; he hunched over and grabbed his shorts and looked spent at the stoppages, as he always has. St Kilda, with half its best team in absentia, gave a passable imitation of the finals chance it is expected to be. Even without Lenny Hayes and Nick Riewoldt, the captains, without Luke Ball, who was one of the skippers last year, and without Matthew Maguire, Leigh Fisher, Jason Gram, Steven Baker, Brendon Goddard and recruit Adam Schneider, the Saints began with a slickness that you would not have expected so early in the season. Xavier Clarke instigated much of this ... and his lethal left leg was used to dynamic effect. Last night, Clarke started in an on-ball position, ran harder than he has in the past and looked like a potential superstar of the competition. St Kilda was impressive, playing with thin stocks and against a team that was close to full-strength.
X-man set to deliver
... "I'm 25 at the end of the year and you get to that stage where you think it's time to stop promising and start delivering," Clarke said ... he could get used to rotating through the middle, after spending much of his career on the flanks. "I've got the fitness right now and I have the engine like the Dal Santos, Montagnas and these guys," he said. "I'd like to slip in the middle and do my bit as well. It's good having guys like Michael Gardiner and Steven King in there, too. It makes the world of difference to the guys in the middle" ...on injuries ... "My injuries are in the past and I think I've learnt how to read my body a little bit more and know when to take a step back and get a bit more physio or a massage," Clarke said. "It's a matter of training smart and doing the right things off the field. I've never really had a full pre-season before so it's good to get a full one in and hopefully stamp my spot, get the fitness up and get the injuries right" ... and on his brother "Raph was walking laps this time last year so it's good to see him out there and having a run around. He's a bit stronger and can get around the ground a bit easier."
Lyon takes no chances with big names
St Kilda coach Ross Lyon says he will refuse to play his star players in the NAB Cup if they are not fully fit. Luke Ball, Lenny Hayes, Nick Riewoldt, Sam Gilbert and Jason Gram all stood aside as the Saints defeated Richmond in round one of the NAB Cup at Telstra Dome on Friday night ... "I can tell you bona fide there is no ACL injury [to Riewoldt]," Lyon said. "He has got a slight impingement and we have had it investigated because he is a very important player" ... Lyon said the hit out provided his young side with some much needed experience on the big stage. "It's great to be on a great surface and a great stadium in front of a big crowd but we are not going to take unnecessary risks to players who aren't ready to play," he said. But as the big St Kilda names sat out the NAB Cup opener, some of the lesser lights stepped up, notably Clint Jones, who had 21 disposals. Lyon said Jones had shown signs he would improve in his second year at AFL level after being drafted from Western Australia. "It's a big step from the WAFL to AFL footy," Lyon said. "In the WAFL you run around chase the ball and you don't worry about your opponent too much and he did that very well. But in the AFL, most systems ask you to play both sides of the ball and he struggled with that but we feel he is coming to grips with it"
Hope springs eternal for Saints
Even amid the abject silliness of pre-season football, when some goals count for six, others nine and neither the players nor umpires seem sure how long a kick has to travel and in what direction for a mark to be paid, there is a certain, comfortable familiarity about the start of another year. Like the sight of Robert Harvey, in this his 21st season, running out in mid-February to chase his first of hundreds of kicks. Or of Matthew Richardson, as grey-haired as Gandalf on the cover of the AFL Record, huffing and heaving his way around the forward line as his younger Tiger team-mates delight in kicking the ball just above his outstretched arms and beneath his flailing feet. There is the way a perfectly weighted pass from the left foot of Nick Dal Santo still hugs the boundary, floating into space and plopping on to the chest of Fraser Gehrig, who thought he'd retire then thought again. The way Nathan Brown, having regained his feet a beat quicker than his opponent, runs to just the right spot and lays the ball sideways across his boot like there is no simpler way of kicking a goal. Or the eye-averting moment when another young footballer - in this instance Richmond's Travis Casserly, commits himself to a ball in flight knowing that in that moment, his entire season may come to a bone-shattering end depending on who is coming from his blind side. Fortunately for Casserly, a 19-year-old midfielder still searching for his first game, the moment passed with nothing worse than Justin Koschitzke bearing down with menacing intent. Up in the stands, Terry Wallace would have nodded with approval. Coaches love nothing more than to see emerging players risk so much for such trivial stakes. But this time of year, it is not the familiar that we come to the football to see. Nor is it the result. Although St Kilda coach Ross Lyon will be pleasantly surprised to win by 40 points after leaving 10 of his best players out of last night's team including last year's captaincy triumvirate of Nick Riewoldt, Luke Ball and Lenny Hayes only the most puritanical supporter reads anything into a Nab Cup win or loss. St Kilda's only reward is a practice match in Canberra next week instead of a long flight to Cairns.
Saints Sign 208cm Basketballer - Blake McGrath
St Kilda Football Club is pleased to add 208cm, 17 year old Blake McGrath as their latest NSW Scholarship program signing. Blake is new to Australian Rules football and has been playing basketball at an elite level for the past three years. He has been involved in the NSW Institute of Sport basketball program and attends Westfield Sports High School in Sydney. Prior to basketball Blake played soccer as a goalkeeper, which no doubt contributed to the development of his excellent reflexes. He has a talented younger brother who plays professional soccer in Europe and recently spent time with Liverpool Football Club. Blake recently competed in the NSW/ACT State Under 18 AFL zone trials in Coffs Harbour as a member of the undefeated "Starz" team and will participate further in NSW/ACT Talented Player Pathway activities. He will play Club football at Pennant Hills (Lenny Hayes' original Club) with his school mate who introduced him to Aussie Rules and who recommended him to Danny Ryan (St Kilda's Sydney recruiting man), Danny subsequently recommended him to John Beverage (St Kilda Recruiting Advisor). Also playing at Pennant Hills is fellow Saints Scholarship holder -16 year old Josh Duncan.
Saints prove a worthy bet
First, it was revealed yesterday that the AFL had hit St Kilda in the pocket to the tune of $10,000 for an administration error which broke player payment rules. But the Saints last night hit back at the pockets of Richmond supporters with a 40-point victory over the Tigers at Telstra Dome. In a pre-match surprise, TAB Sportsbet punters had plunged into Richmond to win its opening NAB Cup match, backing the Tigers in from $2.30 on Thursday into runaway $1.50 favourites before the bounce. But aside from the odd burst - and an absolute screamer of a third-quarter mark by defender Kelvin Moore - they never really looked on the money. St Kilda revealed on Thursday they would be without star forward Nick Riewoldt, who was to rest knee tendonitis for a fortnight, and gritty tagger Steven Baker with an ankle injury. But discarded Geelong forward Charlie Gardiner provided a sound lead-up replacement for Riewoldt and any Saints team which is afforded space in the attacking 50-metre zone for twin towers Fraser Gehrig and Justin Koschitzke, with Steven Milne snapping at their feet, is going to be a good one. For good measure, versatile 20-year-old Jarryd Allen often provided another strong target. Just a day after the football world was again reminded of former West Coast ruckman Michael Gardiner's off-field exploits in a report from an Eagles internal investigation into player behaviour, the past All-Australian ruckman was able to do what he hasn't been able to do for the best part of the past five years ... play. Although he clearly lacked his old touch, timing and influence, some of his tap-work, which once put him in contention for a Brownlow Medal , was still promising. He started the match in something akin to an old western derby, opposed to former Fremantle big man Troy Simmonds.
Saints surge without stars
St Kilda made light of the absence of a host of stars to upset a near full-strength and pumped-up Richmond in their Round 1 NAB Cup clash at Telstra Dome on Friday night. Coming off a low-key pre-season but primed for a winning start to 2008, the Tigers were no match for the Saints who were harder, cleaner and more efficient, leading throughout before prevailing by 40 points - 1.15.12 (111) to 2.7.11 (71). Stephen Milne and Fraser Gehrig were the Saints' major goal-scorers with three apiece, while Brett Deledio and Nathan Brown bagged two each for the Tigers. Former Geelong forward Charlie Gardiner showed he could be a handy acquisition for the Saints as a mobile, leading forward. Given the kind of brief that Nick Riewoldt would normally fill roaming wide and upfield, the 24-year-old collected a team-high 21 possessions and 10 marks for one goal, and his work off the ball was every bit as effective. Riewoldt was St Kilda's highest-profile absentee but the champion forward was in good company with Brendon Goddard, Jason Gram, Lenny Hayes, Luke Ball, Matt Maguire, Sam Gilbert and former Sydney forward, Adam Schneider all among the missing on the night. Given a run in their stead, the likes of defenders Jarryn Geary (17 disposals and three marks), Luke Miles (11-6), midfielder Robert Eddy (13-2) and forward Jarryd Allen (two goals), did little wrong. The ruck battles were hardly decisive, but the Saints will be pleased that former Eagle Michael Gardiner made it safely through in his first competitive start for the club, while Steven King, after a quiet start, finished the match in similar style to his last outing, last year's grand final, on top.
Saints fined by AFL for payment breach
St Kilda were today fined $10,000 by the AFL for breaking the player payment rules. The league said the Saints informed them of the breach as soon as it was discovered. AFL investigations manager Ken Wood found that the breach resulted from an "administrative error". The club's cooperation and their voluntary provision of all required information was taken into account by the AFL in determining the penalty. The Saints said the error occurred in their accounts department, when an electronic payment was mistakenly made twice.
Poor skills the root cause of Tigers demise
... Richmond showed glimpses of promise. Mitch Morton, the boy from West Coast, has tricks; Kelvin Moore looks to have fitted in at the back, but again it was the senior players who led the way. Nathan Foley was tagged and had a game-high 23 touches. The Saints were more accomplished with the ball and and Kosi and Gehrig (three goals each) were rewarded although Frase showed he could still lose his head with a couple of brain fades. It was good to have him back. Clinton Jones, youngsters Robert Eddy, Jarryn Geary and Geelong discard Charlie Gardiner playing high forward/midfield impressed. Rucks Steven King and Michael Gardiner survived their first games without injury, and Lyon might alert Gardiner critics to a couple of tap-outs in the first quarter. If fit, the man can ruck.
Under-strength Saints beat Tigers
... Midfielders Nick Dal Santo and Leigh Montagna were impressive and Justin Koschitzke (two goals) dangerous as a marking target in attack, but coach Ross Lyon would have also been pleased with the improvement in his side's depth of talent. Ex-Eagle Michael Gardiner provided strength in the ruck, ex-Cat Charlie Gardiner (no relation) was useful around the ground, forward Clinton Jones set up a couple of goals and youngsters Luke Miles and David Armitage showed some spark. Their showing will be vital in St Kilda's campaign in 2008 given stars Nick Riewoldt, Lenny Hayes, Luke Ball and Matt Maguire were among a long list of absentees ... St Kilda will now play the winner of Saturday's Geelong-Melbourne game in a pre-season quarter-final in Canberra next weekend ... For St Kilda, Fraser Gehrig and Stephen Milne each booted three goals while Montagna dobbed a nine-pointer.
Convincing win spurs NAB Cup campaign
... The highlight of the first half came late in the second quarter when speedster Leigh Montagna intercepted a handball and ran on to boot a sensational goal from outside 50m. It was initially paid as a six-pointer but was deemed a supergoal on review at the half-time break. The Saints were relentless in their attack on the ball and pressure on the man in possession. Dal Santo was one who chased and tackled all day. Sam Fisher was providing his usual run out of the defensive 50, while rookie list player Luke Miles started at fullback on Brett Deledio and did a good negating job as well as providing plenty of drive. Charlie Gardiner was prominent in his first game since being traded from Geelong, pushing up from half forward. St Kilda led by 25 points at half-time and despite a Richmond flurry early in the third term, never looked like letting it slip.
Fisher forecasts improvement
St Kilda defender Sam Fisher has no doubt the Saints will improve this season in their second year under coach Ross Lyon as the players become more accustomed to their new game plan. The Saints missed the finals last year for the first time since 2003 but despite finishing ninth they still only conceded 32 points more over the entire home and away season than they did in 2004 when they came perilously close to winning the flag under former coach Grant Thomas. Lyon insisted on a far more defensive game plan last year than used previously by the ultra-attacking Thomas and this was reflected in the fact they scored just 1874 points last season - nearly 600 less than that 2004 season. Fisher, one of the key players of the Saints defence in the past three years, says the players now have a better idea of what is expected of them under the uncompromising Lyon. "Definitely early on last year we obviously struggled in the first part of the year while Ross was getting to know our playing group and we were getting to know Ross' structures and so on," Fisher said on Thursday, on the eve of Friday's first round NAB Cup clash against Richmond. "But now we have got another pre-season under our belt we have got to know his game-plan and structures a lot better so we are definitely a lot more confident going into this year."
Footy's back and David's jumping
The footy is back, and a lean and fit David Armitage is jumping out of his skin in anticipation. The former Mackay player will suit up for the start of his second season with St Kilda in the opening round of AFL's pre-season NAB Cup at Melbourne's Telstra Dome tonight. "I'm in the squad and I'll start off the bench in the midfield," he said yesterday. I've had a really good pre-season, I'm the fittest I've ever been and the leanest I've ever been." He's been in training, mostly weights and running, since October 20 and has fined down to 82kg from 85kg at the start of pre-season and is looking forward to the NAB Cup as his chance to make an impression and build on his three games from last season ... "I know a lot more than I did last year and I'm a lot fitter so I hope I get some more runs this season," he said. "We've got some top players come into the team so I'll just have to do my best and see what happens" ... "It could be tough to get a run this season but the pre-season gives a lot of opportunity to prove myself." Armitage's contract is up for negotiation at the end of this season, and he knows the importance of getting more AFL games under his belt. "It depends how I go this year," he said.
Saints look forward to twin talls
St Kilda is eagerly awaiting the competitive debut of new ruck partnership Michael Gardiner and Steven King when it launches its NAB Cup challenge against Richmond on Friday night at the Telstra Dome. King was recruited just weeks after winning a premiership with the Cats last season, while a foot injury has prevented Michael Gardiner from playing his first game for the Saints since he was traded from West Coast in 2006. "We had a glimpse of Kingy and Gardy last weekend in our intra-club game," defender Sam Fisher said. "They both put on really good performances, so we’re really looking forward to seeing how they go tomorrow. They’ll be a great asset to our side, not only on the field, but Kingy’s come to our club and shown great leadership around the club as well. Being an ex-captain at Geelong, he’s brought a lot of good things to the club." The 25-year-old defender says the most encouraging thing about the Saints’ pre-season is the amount of players in full training. "Everyone’s up and going at this time of year. I was watching the rehab group train yesterday and there’s only five people in that so it’s a really positive sign for us… we’re a long way from where we were in previous years."
Squads for Week One of the NAB Cup
St Kilda (List updated 14Feb08 pm): Steven King , Xavier Clarke, Max Hudghton, Fraser Gehrig, Leigh Montagna , Michael Gardiner, Raphael Clarke, Aaron Fiora, David Armitage, Shane Birss , Justin Koschitzke, Sam Fisher, Nick Dal Santo, Jason Blake, Charlie Gardiner, Michael Rix, Brad Howard, Jack Steven, Robert Harvey, Jarryd Allen, Clint Jones, Luke Van Rheenen, Robert Eddy, Glenn Chivers, Jarryn Geary, Stephen Milne, Luke Miles. (Bold= inclusions replacing: Baker, Gwilt, McQualter, Dempster, Riewoldt from previously advertised list)
Richmond: Chris Newman, Brett Deledio, Andrew Raines, Troy Simmonds, Graham Polak, Nathan Brown, Jack Riewoldt, Shane Edwards, Joel Bowden, Matthew Richardson, Jordan McMahon, Kayne Pettifer, Kane Johnson, Mitch Morton, Shane Tuck, Daniel Jackson, Jay Schulz, Adam Pattison, Jarrad Oakley-Nicholls, Richard Tambling, Chris Hyde, Greg Tivendale, Jarrod Silvester, Travis Casserly, Tristan Cartledge, Kelvin Moore, Nathan Foley, Jake King.

Riewoldt out for St Kilda
Co-captain Nick Riewoldt is among five withdrawals from St Kilda's squad for Friday night's AFL NAB Cup match against Richmond at Telstra Dome. Steven Baker, Sean Dempster, Andrew McQualter and James Gwilt are also out, all because of injury. According to a Saints media release, Riewoldt's corked thigh has resulted in knee tendonitis and he will be out of action for a fortnight. Dempster has needed knee surgery and will miss three to four weeks, while Baker (ankle), McQualter (thigh) and Gwilt are all expected to miss only one match. Meanwhile, the main focus will be on the big men on Friday night when the Saints and Tigers open their AFL pre-season campaigns. Troy Simmonds will make a much-anticipated senior return for the Tigers at Telstra Dome, while Steven King and Michael Gardiner will play their first senior games for the Saints. Richmond sorely missed Simmonds last year as he was restricted to only 10 senior games, with a pre-season ankle injury delaying his start and a blood clot on his lung before round 19 ending his season prematurely.