George
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Reimagine Moorabbin
- Aug 17, 2015
- 45,306
- 127,285
- AFL Club
- St Kilda
- Other Teams
- Phi Eagles & Phillies, Liverpool, PAO FC
Previous Meetings:
Round 15, 2017 - Fremantle (12.8.80) lost to St.Kilda (12.17.89)
Round 10, 2016 - St.Kilda (15.11.101) defeated Fremantle (10.7.67)
Round 19, 2015 - St.Kilda (8.11.59) lost to Fremantle (15.6.96)
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Preview
Fremantle v St.Kilda
St.Kilda's season from hell continues as the Saints slumped to 1-5-1 on Sunday at the hands of Melbourne who defeated them by 39 points. In what is becoming an obvious trend, the Saints inefficiency around the ground and in front of goal is nearing all-time record lows, with the club not having kicked as inaccurately in a season since 1955. Compounding the loss is the injuries to two promising youngsters in Ben Long and Paddy McCartin - the former missing the next 8-10 weeks with a foot injury.
Fremantle have been much better than most predicted this year, and traveling to Melbourne to face the reigning premiers would always be a tough task as the visiting Dockers went down by 77 points. There's plenty of positives to consider for Fremantle fans however, most notably former Brownlow medalist Nat Fyfe who seems to be back to his best.
Let’s have a look at possible best 22s:
St.Kilda Best 22
B: Jarryn Geary, Nathan J Brown, Dylan Roberton
HB: Jimmy Webster, Jake Carlisle, Shane Savage
C: Ben Long, Koby Stevens, Jack Newnes
HF: Blake Acres, Paddy McCartin, Jack Billings
F: Jade Gresham, Josh Bruce, Tim Membrey
FOLL: Billy Longer, Sebastian Ross, Jack Steven
INT: Jack Steele, Hunter Clark, David Armitage, Jack Sinclair
Fremantle Best 22
B: Griffin Logue, Joel Hamling, Lee Spurr
HB: Nathan Wilson, Michael Johnson, Luke Ryan
C: Stephen Hill, Connor Blakely, Bradley Hill
HF: Michael Walters, Brennan Cox, Harley Bennell
F: Hayden Ballantyne, Cam McCarthy, Brandon Matera
FOLL: Aaron Sandilands, Nat Fyfe, Lachie Neale
INT: David Mundy, Sean Darcy, Ed Langdon, Ethan Hughes
Medical Room
St.Kilda will make the trip to Perth without full-forward Paddy McCartin after the 22 year old suffered whiplash on Sunday, whilst live-wire small forward Ben Long fractured a metatarsal in his right foot and will spend 8-10 weeks on the sidelines.
Fremantle came out of Sunday's game against Richmond unscathed, and will wait on fitness tests during the week for Michael Walters, Harley Bennell, Brad Hill and Griffin Logue before declaring them fit to play.
Preview
Alan Richardson conceded in the aftermath of the Saints 39 point loss to the Demons that his side was "in a hole" and many Saints supporters can't argue with him as St.Kilda remained in 16th spot over the weekend as their horror run of form continues. Again it was the same issues on Sunday that has plagued the club throughout the first half of the year. Whilst commitment to the contest and effort can't be questioned and subsequently have considerably improved, the lack of skill to hit a target and apply scoreboard pressure is damning.
St.Kilda has used the most players of any club this year as it tries to find a way to arrest their recent form slump and get themselves back on the winners list.
In a disappointing afternoon for the club, star midfielders Seb Ross & Jack Steven led the way for St.Kilda once again with 35 and 29 possessions respectively, however it was the efforts of courageous defender Jimmy Webster who was named as the Saints best on ground for his 24 touches, 7 marks and 3 tackles. Jimmy's courage and commitment to the team was never as evident as this play against Melbourne's Jesse Hogan;
Inaccuracy in front of goal continues to plague the Saints, who kicked another inaccurate score of 9.13 against the Demons, making it the sixth straight game the Saints haven't kicked upwards of 10 goals.
Earlier in the day and a few K's away from Etihad it was the Dockers who were kicking inaccurately against reigning premiers Richmond. On a sunny afternoon at the MCG the Dockers had only 1 goal to half time and finished the game with 4. Lachie Neale and Nat Fyfe were superb for the visiting side however, amassing 35 and 33 disposals respectively in a losing effort, with Nat Fyfe named best on ground for the Dockers for his incredible work on Dustin Martin. Fyfe kept the reigning Brownlow medalist to a "quiet" 26 touches, and finished the game with 33 possessions, 8 marks, 4 tackles and 7 hit-outs for good measure.
Fremantle has been a bit up and down in 2018, sitting 3-4 after 7 Rounds. They've had good wins against Essendon, Gold Coast and the Western Bulldogs, but lost against teams above them in Port Adelaide, GWS, West Coast and Richmond. For the Dockers to sit in 12th spot and a game outside the eight is probably a good indication of where they are at.
Potential changes
With the whiplash injury to Paddy McCartin headlining news at Moorabbin, it seems an obvious choice to bring in young forward Josh Battle for his 2nd AFL game. Battle has been performing well for Sandringham and the club has high expectations for Josh internally. St.Kilda may look to have a more mobile forward set-up on Saturday night, with all of Battle, Membrey, Marshall and Hickey playing in the same side.
Ben Long's injury is a big blow to a side lacking speed and aggression around the contest. Long was named the Round 5 NAB Rising Star and has been a shining light for the Saints in a down year. His replacement will be difficult to pick as there are a few options here, but youngster Ed Phillips has impressed all year in the VFL, consistently racking up touches and had another 37 against Box Hill on the weekend, although I think the club plays the safe option and brings in an already tried and tested player in Jack Sinclair who finished with 33 touches and a goal for Sandringham.
Nathan Freeman is another to keep a close eye on, and whilst he may not be up for selection for another couple of weeks, his return through the VFL after a hamstring injury gives some hope to a side desperately lacking explosiveness. Freezer finished the game with 28 touches, 7 marks and 6 tackles.
Key Match-Ups
Fyfe v Steven
A huge match-up against two great ball winners. Nat Fyfe is back to his Brownlow medal best, and has been leading the charge at the Dockers all year. For the Saints to be any chance, they must find a way to quell his influence or get just as much production out of 3 time Trevor Barker Award winner Jack Steven on Saturday night.
Hickey v Sandilands
Tom Hickey did a fine job last weekend against one of the premier ruckmen in the competition in Max Gawn, finishing the game with 26 hit-outs, 17 disposals and a goal. Tom will have another big test coming this weekend. Aaron Sandilands seems to have regained some form of his own, and he monstered Richmond ruckman Toby Nankervis on the weekend with 49 hit-outs and 11 touches.
Our Forwards v Their Backs
Not so much a one on one match-up, but more a group match-up here in that the Saints must get some reward for effort on Saturday night with their new look forward line. St.Kilda will have to find a way to kick a winning score. If Josh Battle can get onto the end of a couple, Jade Gresham and Jack Billings become dangerous around goals, and if Tim Membrey can get back to his accurate best it will go a long way to winning the game for the Saints.
Tip
With Paddy McCartin and Ben Long out injured the Saints will look to find other avenues to goal in what has been a very ineffective forward structure. Fremantle have been beating the teams below them all year and I think the travel to Perth and to a new stadium for the first time will be too much to overcome for the visiting side. I think Nathan Fyfe and Lachie Neale are going to be hard to stop and will be the difference in Saturday night's game.
Dockers by 37 points.
Thoughts?
