TonyK
CibbuanoSaints sink Dogs
May 3rd 2009 10:04
ST KILDA has celebrated Nick Dal Santo’s 150th AFL game with a 28-point win over the Western Bulldogs at Etihad Stadium on Sunday night.
The Saints led at every change and eventually prevailed 14.20 (104) to 11.10 (76).
The final margin flattered the Bulldogs as St Kilda was the better side all night. They applied relentless pressure, were cleaner with their use of the football and had the marking options in attack the Dogs were so badly lacking.
St Kilda remains at the top of the ladder ahead of Geelong thanks to their superior percentage while the Bulldogs have now lost their past three to slip to sixth place with a 3-3 win-loss record.
Brendon Goddard was damaging with a game-high 33 possessions and one goal while Farren Ray generated plenty of run with 31 disposals against his former side.
Saints skipper Nick Riewoldt was influential up forward but failed to make the most of his chances in front of goal, booting a wasteful 4.5 while Adam Schneider chimed in with three goals.
For the Dogs, Ryan Hargrave tried hard all night and finished with a team-high 24 possessions. Jarrod Harbrow kept the dangerous Stephen Milne quiet while Josh Hill booted three majors.
But too many of their stars failed to have an impact - skipper Brad Johnson and playmaker Lindsay Gilbee are down on form while classy forward Robert Murphy and 2008 Brownlow medallist Adam Cooney look underdone.
St Kilda was incredibly wasteful in the opening stanza - they went inside their forward 50 seven more times and had five more scoring shots than the Dogs but only led by 15 points at quarter-time.
Riewoldt was the chief culprit in the first term - he failed to convert on any of his first four shots on goal.
The Bulldogs closed to within four points in the second term thanks to goals from Jason Akermanis and Hill and looked set to make the Saints pay for their wastefulness in front of goal.
But Riewoldt finally found his range, kicking his first from 35 metres out in the dying stages of the first half before converting from deep inside the forward pocket after the siren to blow the margin out to 27 points at the main break.
The Dogs booted the first two goals of the second half through Hill and Higgins to get themselves back into the contest but the Saints had all the answers, slamming on five of the last six goals of the quarter to open up a match-winning 40-point lead at three-quarter-time.
With the result well and truly beyond doubt, the Saints took their foot off the pedal as the Bulldogs booted four goals to two in the final stanza to add some respectability to the scoreboard.
WESTERN BULLDOGS: 1.4, 4.5, 7.8, 11.10 (76)
ST KILDA: 3.7, 7.14, 12.18, 14.20 (104)
GOALS: Bulldogs: Hill 3, Minson 2, Akermanis 2, Griffen, Higgins, Eagleton, Gilbee
St Kilda: Riewoldt 4, Schneider 3, Gram, Gardiner, Goddard, Koschitzke, Dal Santo, McQualter, Gwilt
BEST: Bulldogs: Boyd, Harbrow, Hill, Hargrave
St Kilda: Goddard, Ray, Gilbert, Dal Santo, Riewoldt, Gram, Baker, Schneider
INJURIES: Bulldogs: Nil
St Kilda: Nil
UMPIRES: Donlon, McBurney, Pannell
REPORTS: Bulldogs: Nil
CHANGES: Bulldogs: Tom Williams (flu) replaced in selected side by Everitt
CROWD: 36,302 at Etihad Stadium
The Saints led at every change and eventually prevailed 14.20 (104) to 11.10 (76).
The final margin flattered the Bulldogs as St Kilda was the better side all night. They applied relentless pressure, were cleaner with their use of the football and had the marking options in attack the Dogs were so badly lacking.
St Kilda remains at the top of the ladder ahead of Geelong thanks to their superior percentage while the Bulldogs have now lost their past three to slip to sixth place with a 3-3 win-loss record.
Brendon Goddard was damaging with a game-high 33 possessions and one goal while Farren Ray generated plenty of run with 31 disposals against his former side.
Saints skipper Nick Riewoldt was influential up forward but failed to make the most of his chances in front of goal, booting a wasteful 4.5 while Adam Schneider chimed in with three goals.
For the Dogs, Ryan Hargrave tried hard all night and finished with a team-high 24 possessions. Jarrod Harbrow kept the dangerous Stephen Milne quiet while Josh Hill booted three majors.
But too many of their stars failed to have an impact - skipper Brad Johnson and playmaker Lindsay Gilbee are down on form while classy forward Robert Murphy and 2008 Brownlow medallist Adam Cooney look underdone.
St Kilda was incredibly wasteful in the opening stanza - they went inside their forward 50 seven more times and had five more scoring shots than the Dogs but only led by 15 points at quarter-time.
Riewoldt was the chief culprit in the first term - he failed to convert on any of his first four shots on goal.
The Bulldogs closed to within four points in the second term thanks to goals from Jason Akermanis and Hill and looked set to make the Saints pay for their wastefulness in front of goal.
But Riewoldt finally found his range, kicking his first from 35 metres out in the dying stages of the first half before converting from deep inside the forward pocket after the siren to blow the margin out to 27 points at the main break.
The Dogs booted the first two goals of the second half through Hill and Higgins to get themselves back into the contest but the Saints had all the answers, slamming on five of the last six goals of the quarter to open up a match-winning 40-point lead at three-quarter-time.
With the result well and truly beyond doubt, the Saints took their foot off the pedal as the Bulldogs booted four goals to two in the final stanza to add some respectability to the scoreboard.
WESTERN BULLDOGS: 1.4, 4.5, 7.8, 11.10 (76)
ST KILDA: 3.7, 7.14, 12.18, 14.20 (104)
GOALS: Bulldogs: Hill 3, Minson 2, Akermanis 2, Griffen, Higgins, Eagleton, Gilbee
St Kilda: Riewoldt 4, Schneider 3, Gram, Gardiner, Goddard, Koschitzke, Dal Santo, McQualter, Gwilt
BEST: Bulldogs: Boyd, Harbrow, Hill, Hargrave
St Kilda: Goddard, Ray, Gilbert, Dal Santo, Riewoldt, Gram, Baker, Schneider
INJURIES: Bulldogs: Nil
St Kilda: Nil
UMPIRES: Donlon, McBurney, Pannell
REPORTS: Bulldogs: Nil
CHANGES: Bulldogs: Tom Williams (flu) replaced in selected side by Everitt
CROWD: 36,302 at Etihad Stadium
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