St Kilda vs Adelaide

Where and when:
Sunday April 13, 3.20pm
Etihad Stadium

Overview:
St Kilda’s clash against the winless Crows this Sunday afternoon presents an opportunity for the Saints to go 3-1 and consign Adelaide to four straight losses.

Alan Richardson has returned from Perth with no points but plenty of respect. The Saints fought hard against their highly fancied opponents in the west, with Luke Dunstan and Farren Ray outstanding in the 25-point defeat.

RELATED: Monday recap

Adelaide has endured a tough three rounds of football. Its forward-line has functioned intermittently, and Patrick Dangerfield has been heavily tagged. The Crows opponents have admittedly been of a high quality, compounding the issues that confront Brenton Sanderson heading into this weekend.

Last Saturday, they struggled to contain Lance Franklin up forward, while Luke Parker was influential in the midfield.

Daniel Talia will have his hands full trying to curb the substantial marking ability of Nick Riewoldt, while Eddie Betts will likely be Adelaide’s primary go-to man inside forward 50 along with James Podsiadly. Who picks up Betts is an interesting question in isolation, though Jarryn Geary looks to be the most suitable defensive option for Alan Richardson.

St Kilda’s brand of football has been highly physical thus far and the Saints will be intent on shutting this contest down early in order to eliminate the host of smooth moving Crows, who are ranked highly for uncontested possessions this year.

Adelaide has leaked goals late in every game and will be committed to producing a far more consistent four-quarter effort this weekend.

Stat focus:
- Adelaide hasn’t defeated St Kilda at Etihad Stadium since round 12, 2006
- Adelaide is the number one corridor team in the AFL
- Both teams are ranked equal 10th for marks inside 50 this year
- Clint Jones has more goal assists than any other player in the competition after the first three rounds of footy
- Adelaide is ranked fifth in the AFL for goals from marks
- St Kilda has kicked accurately this year, ranked 17th for total behinds.
- The Crows are ranked third last for contested possessions
- Farren Ray has amassed 20 or more touches in each of his last 11 AFL games.

Injury list:
St Kilda:
Sam Fisher (hamstring) – 1 week
Lewis Pierce (back) – 5 weeks
Jack Steven (foot) – test
Adam Schneider (back) – test
Sam Gilbert (ankle) – 4-6 weeks

Adelaide:
Scott Thompson (corked thigh) – test
Mitch Grigg (adductor) – test
Sam Kerridge (eye) – test
Jason Porplyzia (corked glute) – test
Tom Lynch (shoulder) – available
Andy Otten (knee) – 1-2 weeks
Brad Crouch (leg) – 4-5 weeks
Ricky Henderson (ankle) – TBA
Taylor Walker (knee) – TBA
Nathan van Berlo (Achilles) - TBA

RELATED: Scouting report: Injured Crows quartet touch and go

Last week:
St Kilda 8.10 (58) defeated by West Coast 12.10 (88)
Adelaide 9.17 (71) defeated by Sydney 21.8 (134)

What they say: (Adelaide coach Brenton Sanderson)
We need to be brave, we need to be bold, we need to take the game on, take some risks, because without risk there’s no reward.
We need more from every player, not just relying on six or seven guys contributing; once we get a team effort for four quarters we feel like we’re not far away.

What we say (St Kilda coach Alan Richardson):
The boys have been pretty good with their commitment to defend as a team.
Physically we have been good and we’ve been able to put pressure on. As a young group, at times we’ve been a little bit inconsistent, but on the whole we’ve been reasonably pleased.
Running hot:
St Kilda: Luke Dunstan
29 disposals last weekend further entrenched Dunstan’s position in the Saints’ engine room, and his rapidly growing reputation.
Not only does the left-footer win his own ball on the inside, but he looks increasingly comfortable on the outside too. He booted two goals against West Coast and looms as a significant player once again in round four.

Adelaide: Matthew Jaensch
No Adelaide player has collected more disposals this season than the underrated Jaensch. He took 14 marks and had 27 touches against Port Adelaide, then followed this up with a further 23 possessions and a goal versus Sydney last weekend.

After struggling to hold down a place in 2013, the 24-year-old looks to have taken his game to the next level this year as an evasive midfielder and wingman.

Watch out for:
St Kilda: Jack Newnes
Newnes collected 25 disposals the last time these two teams met and is averaging 22 touches per game this year. But his primary improvement is evident with his tackling pressure. In previous years, the 21-year-old ball-winner has largely been ineffective in the clinches.

Last week he laid five tackles, and he’s become a significant link-man across half-back and through the midfield.

Adelaide: Patrick Dangerfield
Beware the wounded Crow.

Dangerfield has been heavily tagged this year. While he looks dangerous every time he gets the ball, he has struggled to find enough space to really hurt the opposition.

Last time they met:
Round 8, 2013 at AAMI Stadium
St Kilda 6.11 (47) defeated by Adelaide 12.15 (87)
Disposals: Montagna (34), Douglas (26)
Goals: Milne, Saad, Lynch, Jenkins (2)