WESTERN BULLDOGS: 4.2 6.4 9.6 9.6 (60)
ST KILDA: 3.3 7.4 10.5 11.9 (75)
Goals: Western Bulldogs: M Bontempelli 3 T Dickson 2 C Smith J Redpath L Jong M Suckling. St Kilda: N Riewoldt 4 T Membrey 2 D Armitage J Gresham J Steven M Weller N Wright.
Best: Western Bulldogs: M. Bontempelli, J. Macrae, L. Hunter, J. Dunkley, M. Boyd, L. Jong. St Kilda: J. Steven, N. Riewoldt, M. Weller, T. Hickey, S. Dempster, S. Savage, J. Newnes
Umpires: Jacob Mollison, Ray Chamberlain, David Harris.
Official Crowd: 26,583 at Etihad Stadium.
Brent Harvey's record-breaking 427th AFL game could play a crucial role in shaping the composition of the top eight after St Kilda upset the Western Bulldogs on a horror Saturday night for the losers at Etihad Stadium.
The Saints will enter the clash against North Melbourne at the same venue next Saturday night two games adrift of the Roos, with Alan Richardson's side's unlikely finals tilt still alive.
The 15-point loss for the Dogs came at a heavy cost. They have lost their place in the top four, but that's not the worst of it. Mitch Wallis was carted off in the final term having broken both his tibia and fibula, Jack Redpath tore his ACL, and Dale Morris is in doubt to face Geelong next week after hurting his hamstring.
Saints dasher Nathan Wright kicked the lone goal of the final term, as the Dogs – down to just one on the bench – went scoreless.
St Kilda captain Nick Riewoldt showed he might still be a pretty decent forward option, kicking four goals to again prove the bane of the Dogs' existence.
But it was Jack Steven who set the game up for the Saints. The midfield star had 39 disposals, 26 of which came before half-time. His pace and tenacity were instrumental in the result. Marcus Bontempelli was sublime for the Dogs – kicking 3.3 to go with 25 disposals. But this was a bad night for Luke Beveridge's men.
St Kilda made the early running, dominating possession in the opening minutes. The Dogs hadn't brought the ball inside 50 before Clay Smith marked and sent it through from the arc – a poignant moment given his last outing against the Saints ended in a third knee reconstruction. From there though the Dogs had the better of the term.
The Saints were ill-disciplined, conceding 10 free kicks to six before quarter-time. The most egregious lapse came from veteran Leigh Montagna who didn't give the ball back quickly enough to Matt Suckling. The former Hawk might have made the distance from 60 metres anyway, but the ensuing 50-metre penalty effectively guaranteed a goal.
Despite trailing 14-9 for inside 50s, the Saints were still just five points down at the first break, with Mav Weller kicking one of their three goals for the quarter only moments after returning to the field after having his chin cleaned up after nasty accidental collision with Jack Macrae.
Riewoldt crumbed and snapped like a man 15 centimetres shorter to grab the first goal of the second term. But the Dogs had answers – or least an answer: Bontempelli.
With Redpath and Tom Boyd largely ineffective as tall targets, Bontempelli stood up, kicking two goals in quick succession, the latter of which came after Weller gave away a pair of free kicks.
But it was around then the Saints started to gain control again. Weller and Steven upped their already impressive output, with the latter taking advantage of a Suckling shank to goal.
Meanwhile, Riewoldt was leading the Dogs' back line on a merry dance, kicking two more for the quarter. St Kilda headed to the long break six points ahead, and had tellingly won contested possessions for the quarter 42-26.
The third quarter started just like the first: with Membrey marking and goaling. Riewoldt added his fourth not long after, making it five in a row for St Kilda. The Dogs were on the back foot, with Dale Morris' night ended with a back injury, and Redpath temporarily sidelined. Membrey had a set shot moments later. Had he converted the margin would have been 24 points. He didn't. Suckling banged it straight down the middle, and Tory Dickson goaled.
Within three minutes the margin had been trimmed to one point after Bontempelli – who was running amok – struck the ball beautifully on the run. Jade Gresham floated one through from the pocket, and the game tensed up.
The Saints led by five points at the final change, and their contested ball lead had been trimmed from 14 to one. But the more important number was the number of players on each bench. It would soon be four to one.
WESTERN BULLDOGS v ST KILDA
Votes
J. Steven (StK) 9
N. Riewoldt (StK) 8
M. Bontempelli (WB) 8
M. Weller (StK) 7
T. Hickey (StK) 7
