ST KILDA 4.2 8.6 12.8 14.9 (93)
GEELONG 1.4 4.6 10.9 13.12 (90)
GOALS - St Kilda: Minchington 3, Newnes 2, Weller 2, Wright 2, Bruce, Gresham, Steven, McCartin, Membrey. Geelong: McCarthy 3, Hawkins 3, Menzel, Murdoch, Blicavs, Dangerfield, Kersten, Motlop, Lonergan.
BEST - St Kilda: Ross, Steven, Riewoldt, Montagna, Weller, Hickey, Newnes. Geelong: Henderson, Selwood, Dangerfield, Enright, Guthrie, McCarthy.
UMPIRES Findlay, Farmer, Mitchell, Fleer.
CROWD 28,745 at Etihad Stadium.
As a team building steadily towards a brighter future, St Kilda will hopefully have bigger moments over the next few years than Saturday night.
But when that success does arrive, the Saints' three-point win over Geelong on a cold mid-winter's evening in late June 2016 should nonetheless be remembered as one of the more significant milestones along the way.
St Kilda have had other impressive wins in the past three seasons under Alan Richardson, but this was one which underlined not only talent and toughness, but greater maturity and resilience, not to mention their first win over the Cats since the 2010 qualifying final.
The Saints didn't just get the jump on a surprised opponent, but withstood everything their more-fancied rival had to return fire with, not just once but three times in the second half, the last two goals of the game pegging back a nine-point deficit with under six minutes left.
The first of those was a tremendous individual effort from the impressive Jade Gresham, who stepped around Tom Lonergan on the boundary line and threaded one from the tightest of angles.
Then, with just under four minutes left on the clock, Jack Steven threw his boot on the spills of a ball-up on the point of the goalsquare to put the Saints back in front.
Even then, St Kilda still had to hang on for another agonising few minutes of desperate Geelong attack. Yet still they hung tough, the symbolism powerful as the Cats zipped the ball from end to end with a chain of handballs yet always under fierce heat, Zac Smith's hurried kick inside 50 eventually landing safely in the arms of Saints' skipper Nick Riewoldt.
In a way, while they were outscored nine goals to six in the second half, the climax was just as, if not more, impressive stuff from the Saints than a first half that had seen them build a 31-point lead.
That was a lead founded on the tremendous efforts of on-baller Seb Ross, playing his 50th game, his veteran teammates Leigh Montagna and Riewoldt, and hard-working ruckman Tom Hickey.
That St Kilda was switched on for this game was apparent pretty early, not only on the scoreboard, but in the intent with which the Saints hunted the Cats' key playmakers every time they looked like getting a touch.
"Dangerwood" weren't curbed for quantity, mind you, the pair with 18 disposals between them at quarter-time, but both Paddy Dangerfield and Joel Selwood found it more difficult finding any room in which to work once they got their hands on the pill.
And then there was a real surprise packet in Darren Minchington. The small forward was playing only his seventh game of the season and 17th overall, but his second term was as big an impact as he's yet had – three goals helping extend the Saints lead to more than five goals.
The first was due to the largesse of Cat defender Tom Ruggles, the second thanks to a Hickey handball, and the third after getting on the end of a beautiful pass from Maverick Weller. But the young Saint got himself in the right place at the right time, and deserved the rewards.
Geelong was suitably stung. But the regroup was pretty impressive, twice the Cats slamming on bursts of three goals in three minutes to take the lead for the first time midway through a terrific third quarter.
There was certainly no brakes on "Dangerwood" now as the pair not only got the touches, but now the impact their numbers suggested they'd had, particularly at the centre bounces, from which they scored a couple of their third-term goals directly, two more coming from costly St Kilda turnovers.
Lincoln McCarthy did a Minchington with three third-term goals. Lachie Henderson was giving Saints' key forward Josh Bruce a torrid time, Cam Guthrie busy midfield and Corey Enright was just Corey Enright.
But the Saints steadied. Weller, important all night, bobbed up with two late goals shortly before the siren for three-quarter time. And again once the Cats hit the front by a goal-and-a-bit with only a few minutes left. As a learning tool for Richardson's side, this was invaluable. And the four match points were good, too.
