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Saints go down by 38 points

04 April 2008

ST KILDA's winning run has come to an end with a 38-point loss to the Western Bulldogs. The Bulldogs kicked 19.11 (125) to St Kilda's 13.9 (87) after the Saints at one stage led by 37 points early in the second term.

But just six goals to the Bulldogs' 18 after quarter time saw the Saints surrender a golden opportunity to remain undefeated three weeks into the season.

The Saints dominated from the start with two early goals to Justin Koschitzke.

Koschitzke and fellow tall forwards Nick Riewoldt and Fraser Gehrig were strong early, giving headaches to Rodney Eade's men.

Ruckman Steven King was forced to work extra hard after Michael Gardiner was a late withdrawal, but he didn't seem flustered, setting up plenty of centre clearances for the Saints' runners.

While the job got tougher and tougher for King as the game wore on, he continued to battle hard with support from Koschitzke and Jason Blake.

The Saints booted seven goals to one in the first term and looked set to continue their winning ways but the Bulldogs slammed on 16 of the next 20 goals to snatch the win that looked so unlikely early in the game.

In the middle, Lenny Hayes was getting the better of Scott West early on, while Leigh Fisher ran hard against Jason Akermanis in his third successive week minding a Brownlow medallist.

But when Fisher hobbled off early in the third quarter, the Bulldogs midfielders breathed a sigh of relief.

The St Kilda defence was not bothered too much in the early stages but when the ball did come their way they were determined to get it out as quick as possible.

Sam Fisher wore Brad Johnson like a glove, while also getting 21 possessions of his own. Fisher was one of St Kilda's few winners for the four quarters, keeping Johnson from having any impact on the game.

The Saints gave up the ascendancy during the second quarter as the Dogs booted five goals to two however Brendon Goddard, returning from a long layoff following a knee reconstruction, was a shining light as he collected eight valuable touches for the term. He finished with 20 for the match.

The Saints stepped up their defensive work at the stoppages in the face of the Bulldogs' challenge as Leigh Fisher, Lenny Hayes and Luke Ball tightened up on their opponents as the quarter wore on. Small forwards Stephen Milne and Adam Schneider were St Kilda's only goal scorers for the term.

Jarryn Geary was one Saint to put his hand up, tackling hard in the middle as the Bulldogs runners swept through.

The Bulldogs continued their relentless running and pressure football after the main break, ensuring that St Kilda's players couldn't find time and space. It wasn't until the 21-minute mark of the third quarter that the Saints finally kicked their first goal after the long break when Luke Ball scored from a free kick in the goal square.

But it was all the Bulldogs' way after that as they notched up their third win in a row.

The game was all over half way through the final term but the Saints had some small consolation with late goals to Jason Gram and Justin Koschitzke, the latter of whom finished with three goals for the match.

WESTERN BULLDOGS 1.2, 6.6, 11.9, 19.11 (125)

ST KILDA 7.3, 9.6, 10.8, 13.9 (87)

Goals

Western Bulldogs: M Hahn 3, R Griffen 3, J Akermanis 3, A Cooney 2, J Hill 2, J Harbrow 2, R Murphy, W Minson, S Welsh, C Wight. St Kilda: J Koschitzke 3, N Riewoldt 2, L Ball 2, S Milne 2, J Gram, F Gehrig, L Montagna, A Schneider.

Best

Western Bulldogs: A Cooney, R Griffen, J Hill, D Cross, D Morris, R Murphy. St Kilda: S Fisher, A Schneider, J Gram, N Dal Santo, L Ball, R Harvey.

Injuries

Western Bulldogs: N Eagleton (ankle) replaced in selected side by J Harbrow. St Kilda: M Gardiner (calf) replaced in selected side by R Clarke.

Reports: Nil.

Umpires: C Donlon, H Kennedy, B Rosebury.

Crowd: 38,667 at Telstra Dome.

The Bulldogs and the Saints go head to head

More Information

Official AFL Website of the
St Kilda Football Club