St Kilda has snapped a three-game losing streak with a 15-point win over Carlton in a performance which renews Saints fans' confidence for a top eight spot.
Coming off their worst month of the season and facing a tough run home, St Kilda had plenty of doubters coming into the clash at Marvel Stadium. However, the win over a Blues side the footy community deemed genuine contenders last week is a huge credit to the men from Moorabbin, with their backs against the wall.
The old saying ‘bad kicking is bad football’ couldn’t have rung more true on Friday night, the Blues finished with 10.18 in what can only be described as a dismal performance in front of goal.
Albeit, there were five rushed behinds. Whether they would have won remains to be seen, but Charlie Curnow (one goal, four behinds), won’t be the only Blue who would want their time again.
The pressure was well and truly on the Saints in the leadup to the clash after the recent losses, including dismal performances against Essendon and Sydney
With their finals chances and potentially Brett Ratten’s chances for a contract extension hanging by a thread, the Saints burst out of the blocks to dominate territory early on.
They made things difficult for themselves with some poor kicking – both around the ground and at goal – but their pressure and brand were back. They torched the Blues on the outside early on, Jack Sinclair and Brad Hill recording dominant opening terms off half back.
“Is this the same team that went to Sydney last week? What a contrast it is,” commentator Dwayne Russell told AFL Nation.
Despite little impact from Max King, there were plenty of eyes on the young gun when he started on the wing at times following calls during the week to get the 21-year-old more involved in the contest.
He had his moments during the Saints victory, highlighted by a big grab in the second term and a classy goal in the third as he finished with a bag of three majors.
Marvel Stadium was packed out with more than 43,000 fans for the sold-out clash, all of whom would have felt the intensity lift in the second term.
The Blues haven’t lost by more than 15 points in any of their last seven games and Michael Voss’ men put themselves back into the Saints clash in quick fashion.
The first three goals of the quarter saw Blues fans almost blow the roof off Marvel as their side snatched the lead back, but the Saints exploded back to action with the next four majors.
Ratten’s troops had led at every change, yet that was looking in danger at stages in the third term. Crucial misses in front of goals for the Blues ensured the momentum was there to grasp, and in the final minute it was St Kilda who took the advantage.
Goals to King and skipper Jack Steele were quickly followed by the three-quarter-time siren, and all of a sudden the Saints had a 12-point lead.
That was despite being paid just three free kicks in the past two quarters of footy.
Despite losing the contested possession count for most of the night, Ratten and his side had ensured the Blues weren’t able to translate midfield dominance into field position.
At the final break, Sam Walsh, George Hewett and Patrick Cripps had been restricted 19 kicks between them. Despite having fewer touches, Steele, Brad Crouch and Seb Ross had a combined 29 disposals by foot, controlling uncontested possessions and surging the ball forward.
Just as quickly as the Saints stole the momentum at the end of the second term, the Blues took it back with two goals inside the first three and a half minutes of playing time of the final quarter.
Harry McKay was the man who gave Carlton back the lead, the 24-year-old breaking the shackles when Saints defender Dougal Howard was subbed out in the third quarter with a knee injury.
The territory battle flipped in the final term, Carlton getting it forward and locking it in. They had 47 per cent of possession in the final term with just eight minutes to play, well clear of the Saints' 37 per cent as Ratten’s men defended for their lives.
Dan Butler’s second goal had the Saints on the right side of the sixth lead change of the game, and Tim Membrey kicked truly from just inside 50 to put the pressure on the Blues to do the final bit of chasing.
Their hopes were boosted when Hunter Clark was ruled out of the game following a sickening incident with teammate Butler, the delay in play as the stretcher came out seeing the final messages come out from the bench with five minutes to play.
A miracle goal to Membrey gave them a three-goal lead, with Max King putting the final nail in the coffin.
The result only brings what is already an extraordinarily close top eight even closer, just four points now separating the sides.
FULL SCORE
Carlton: 2.4, 6.7, 7.13, 10.18. (78)
St Kilda: 3.6, 7.6, 10.7, 14.9. (93)
GOALS
Carlton: Motlop 3, Kennedy 2 McKay 2, Curnow, Fisher, Cottrell
St Kilda: Membrey 4, King 3, Butler 2, Ryder 2, Higgins 2, Steele
BEST
Carlton: Saad, Walsh, Kennedy, De Koning, Docherty
St Kilda: Sinclair, Ryder, Steele, Marshall, Crouch
INJURIES
Carlton: N/A
St Kilda: Howard (Knee), Clark (Conussion)