St Kilda have kept their undefeated streak alive with a spirited victory over Richmond in the Victorian Wheelchair Football League on Sunday.

In their first game back since the lockdown, the Saints came into the clash as red-hot favourites, following wins against Hawthorn and Essendon to start the year off the back of their 2020 premiership.

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It was a tight start to the match, but a goal on the siren to Ryan Smith gave St Kilda the momentum heading into the first break with a slender seven-point lead.

They managed to stretch that out to a 31-point buffer heading into half-time, but the Tigers swung the momentum back their way in the third quarter with some physical footy, cutting the deficit to three goals.

Ryan Smith gets a handball away against Richmond. Photo: Corey Scicluna.

An early Richmond major in the final term made for some nervous viewing, but cool heads prevailed as the Saints steadied and came home with a 30-point win.

“It was great to be back at RSEA Park for the first time this year,” St Kilda’s Lenny Redrose said post-match.

“Unfortunately, we couldn’t have any spectators with the restrictions, but it was awesome to get a win at our home-ground."

St Kilda will now look to their next challenge against the undefeated Collingwood, after the clash was forced to be rescheduled due to the COVID-19 lockdown.

Wheelchair footy at a glance:

  • Played between two teams of five (5), plus interchange players.
  • The field is an indoor basketball/netball court and is divided into three zones: a centre zone and two scoring zones.
  • Players are restricted to which zone they can enter and are required to wear a coloured item to differentiate themselves as either a forward, centre or back. 
  • Teams score by handballing or passing the football into their attacking scoring zone to the designated scorer, who can score a goal or behind by handballing the ball between the goal posts.
  • A mark is awarded when the ball has travelled three or more metres.
  • A handball is equivalent to a kick and a thrown ball equivalent to a pass. The ball may not be thrown overarm.
  • The game consists of four 10-minute quarters with no time-on. 

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