The Saints were seriously undermanned last time we played Hawthorn.
Despite this, the Hawks played an ultradefensive style of play which forced the Saints to do likewise or be left with an overcrowded forward line.
ST KILDA
B: Gwilt, S.Fisher, L.Fisher
HB: Attard, Blake, Gilbert
C: Milne, Ball, Birss
HF: Harvey, Riewoldt, Fiora
F: Voss, Gehrig, Koschitzke
FOLL: Rix, Montagna, Dal Santo
I/C: B Brooks, D Armitage, J Sweeney, B Howard
EM: Howard, Hudghton, Sweeney
IN: B Brooks, D Armitage, J Sweeney, B Howard
OUT: Goddard (knee), Jones (collar bone), X Clarke (virus), J Gram (virus)
With a better list available, the Saints will be able to play this match much more to their own liking. This is a match where Ross Lyon will be critically evaluated on. He has seen the Hawks game in action. He has been doing plenty of work regarding tactical assessment and devising a gameplan to counter the Hawks new game. If the Saints are unable to counter the Hawks and beat them, it will bode poorly on Lyon - in my and other's assessment of him.
To try and simplify this game into starting matchups would be like placing a great importance on which pawn is moved first in a championship chess match. Sometimes the "development" of the pieces is relational to the ultimate goal without necessarily depending on specific pieces.
So far it is one - love to Clarkson. I expect the slate will be evened out Saturday night, but there may well be many great tussles between our two clubs in the near future.