St Kilda has secured a 53-point win over North Melbourne at Marvel Stadium, heading into the bye rounds sitting fourth on the ladder halfway through the year.

Saints coach Brett Ratten saw this as a danger game, but they led throughout on Sunday for a regulation 16.7 (103) to 7.8 (50) win.

Midfielders Jack Sinclair and Seb Ross starred for the Saints, while Bradley Hill had a game-high 33 possessions and Max King kicked three goals.

Small forward Jade Gresham, who kicked two goals, and defender Callum Wilkie also impressed.

SAINTS v KANGAROOS Full match coverage and stats

The much-improved Saints go into their mid-season break with an 8-3 record.

North captain Jack Ziebell kicked a goal in his 250th game, but after a competitive start the Roos were no match for the Saints.

Mitch Owens, recalled for this game, kicked his first two goals in the space of a minute.

Not bad for two old ruckmen
Two of the League’s most esteemed ruckmen in Paddy Ryder and Todd Goldstein faced off on Sunday afternoon. 33-year-old Goldstein’s output has been slightly reduced in his 15th season, but he gave the Saints’ ruck combination of Ryder and Rowan Marshall a run for their money, managing 30 hitouts and two goals. Ryder has been a revelation at St Kilda and is in exceptional form in his 17th AFL season. The 34-year-old is eyeing off going around again next year, and given his crucial contribution to the Saints, they’ll surely be doing everything in their power to keep him on the park.

A second debut for Saints youngster
After underwhelming debut game in round one, Mitch Owens has spent the past nine weeks in the VFL developing his skills. A string of excellent games for Sandringham gave Brett Ratten no choice but to bring him back into the senior side for round 11 - at the expense of the highly rated Jack Billings no less. And boy did he look like a different player. Owens made an immediate impact, booting two goals in 30 seconds in the third quarter, finishing with 10 tackles, 14 touches and two goals.

ST KILDA                           5.2     6.5   12.7    16.7 (103)
NORTH MELBOURNE        2.2    2.3    4.4      7.8 (50)

GOALS  
St Kilda: King 3, Owens 2, Membrey 2, Gresham 2, McKenzie, Ross, Ryder, Sharman, Windhager, Hill, Marshall
North Melbourne: Goldstein 2, Zurhaar, Ziebell, Anderson, Curtis, Simpkin

BEST  
St Kilda: Sinclair, Ross, Hill, Gresham, Wilkie
North Melbourne: Anderson, Simpkin, McDonald, Goldstein, Ziebell

INJURIES  
St Kilda: None
North Melbourne: None

SUBSTITUTES  
St Kilda: Ryan Byrnes (unused)
North Melbourne: Josh Mahony (unused)