Saints take scalp in the West

After fading late against West Coast in Round 2, St Kilda didn’t make the same mistake twice. Instead, the Saints ended a six-game losing streak at Domain Stadium, a streak that dated back to 2011 when current Fremantle coach Ross Lyon parked his car at Linen House Centre. And while it was ugly at times, it was crucial in the context of this season. Now, on the back of three consecutive wins, Alan Richardson’s men sit a game inside the eight and a game outside the top four. Yes, it is still that tight. As he alluded to in post-mortem, Richardson and the Saints won’t look further ahead than next weekend’s game against Richmond. But beyond that sits an unfavourable draw. If the Saints are going to qualify for their first finals berth since 2011, they won’t be limping to the finish line.

Steele responds in emphatic fashion

In his post-match press conference on Sunday night, Alan Richardson likened his tackling hunger to one of the best midfielders to ever wear red, white and black: Lenny Hayes. And when you look closer at Jack Steele’s pressure numbers this season, the correlation isn’t hard to see. After being dropped a fortnight ago, the former Giants midfielder responded in emphatic fashion in Perth, equalling David Armitage’s club record of 17 tackles. While he didn’t have a massive impact offensively, Steele registered a phenomenal 100.3 pressure points – 14.8 more than any other player in Round 15. St Kilda’s other midfield recruit last October, Koby Stevens, also stood out against the Dockers, collecting 28 possessions, seven tackles in five clearances, as well as limiting the influence of Michael Walters in the last quarter, who had dominated the game up until that point.

Special Gresham continues to build

He’s shown it before and again he showed why the Saints used their first-round pick on him in 2015. Jade Gresham is going to be something special. While he has spent the bulk of his first 32 games plying his trade as a small forward, there is little doubt he will end up in the midfield in the future. But on Sunday, with frenetic pressure that created implied pressure further away, Gresham made the most of his chances in front of goal, kicking three goals to help lead the Saints to victory. He registered nine score involvements – the second most for St Kilda – as well as 17 possessions and five inside 50s in eye-catching display. His anticipation, closing speed and class to finish was there for all to see in the second quarter when he intercepted a Lachie Weller switch before gathering the ball and snapping truly from 30 metres out.

Bruce seals season-defining victory

A month ago, Josh Bruce was out of form and out of the team. On Sunday, he was the hero, kicking two goals in the dying minutes to snatch a season-defining victory at Domain Stadium. In the four games since returning, the former Greater Western Sydney defender has kicked 10.3 and averaged 13.3 touches and 6.5 marks. Alan Richardson has got the effect he wanted. A damaging Bruce has helped resurrect the Saints’ forward half, who have now kicked three winning scores in a row. Despite missing those three games, Bruce is the lead goal kicker at Linen House Centre with 23.12 to his name, ahead of Tim Membrey (21.12) and Nick Riewoldt (20.10).

Emerging stars make an impact again

While Fremantle livewire-forward-turned-midfield-weapon Michael Walters was clearly the most dominant player on the ground, St Kilda emerging stars Seb Ross and Jack Billings got the job done again over in the west. Walters strengthened his claims for a maiden All-Australian guernsey by kicking six goals from 32 possessions (18 contested) in a brilliant performance. Ross continued his stunning season, amassing 34 disposals – his 10^th haul of 30 or more in the last 11 weeks – six clearances and 539 metres gained. While Billings was impressive again, this time finding the ball 27 times, with nine marks, seven inside 50s, seven score involvements and two goal assists highlighting his influence in the forward half.