Roast St Kilda in no mans land - Part 2

[Lavender Bushranger]

St Kilda will definitely improve.

But FWIW..

Freo will be better than last year.
Brisbane will still be good.
Gold Coast will be better than last year.
If Hawthorn get Merritt, they'll be better too.

So they won't bridge the gap on those teams.

Which means any significant rise up the ladder needs to see them overtake:

Adelaide
GWS
Geelong
Collingwood
Bulldogs


I'd say they'll have these guys covered:

West Coast
Carlton
Richmond
North
Sydney
Melbourne
Port
Essendon

So in summary, if all goes Ok for them, they should be in that 5th to 8th range.

 

[Orange crush]

St Kilda will definitely improve.

But FWIW..

Freo will be better than last year.
Brisbane will still be good.
Gold Coast will be better than last year.
If Hawthorn get Merritt, they'll be better too.

So they won't bridge the gap on those teams.

Which means any significant rise up the ladder needs to see them overtake:

Adelaide
GWS
Geelong
Collingwood
Bulldogs


I'd say they'll have these guys covered:

West Coast
Carlton
Richmond
North
Sydney
Melbourne
Port
Essendon

So in summary, if all goes Ok for them, they should be in that 5th to 8th range.

Think you’re underestimating Sydney … they were injury riddled 1st half of the season

 

[Hollow Knight]

St Kilda will definitely improve.

But FWIW..

Freo will be better than last year.
Brisbane will still be good.
Gold Coast will be better than last year.
If Hawthorn get Merritt, they'll be better too.

So they won't bridge the gap on those teams.

Which means any significant rise up the ladder needs to see them overtake:

Adelaide
GWS
Geelong
Collingwood
Bulldogs


I'd say they'll have these guys covered:

West Coast
Carlton
Richmond
North
Sydney
Melbourne
Port
Essendon

So in summary, if all goes Ok for them, they should be in that 5th to 8th range.

But will they be able to then make the even more difficult leap from 5-8th into genuine contender? Or have they cooked their cap?

 

[Purple Suit]

Think you’re underestimating Sydney … they were injury riddled 1st half of the season

Sydney just had a down year since they had a new coach and got flogged in the GF. Watch them bounce back.

I recon Geelong might switch places with them in 2026 and things will go wrong for the cats since they also got belted in the GF.

 

[Lavender Bushranger]

But will they be able to then make the even more difficult leap from 5-8th into genuine contender? Or have they cooked their cap?

Who knows?

I think the salary cap thing is overblown.

They have freed up heaps of salary from Jack Billings, and Marshall and Steele being front loaded.
Add that to only paying 90% or whatever of the salary cap for the past two years, plus the salary cap will increase anyway.

I don't think that's an issue.

The jump from 5th - 8th to Top 2 will be dependent realistically on developing a champion or two from their current young guys. IMO.

That's in addition to NW-M continuing to be a gun, and them getting too shelf output from TDK and Flanders.

 

[Mr.X]

Sydney just had a down year since they had a new coach and got flogged in the GF. Watch them bounce back.

Saints too, 2025 was a down year.

They were super strong during trade period and have brought in players that’ll have an immediate impact.

They are the team to watch

 

[Sainter3and7]

The Saints these days are not nearly as bad as they have been in the past. Some people seem to think that by pointing to the team's mediocrity, they will win an argument. But Saints fans are diehards and tragics. We've seen worse and we qre generally proud of our loyalty despite the results.

We've seen a lot worse... and this is just in living memory.

 

[Mr.X]

Sydney just had a down year since they had a new coach and got flogged in the GF. Watch them bounce back.

I recon Geelong might switch places with them in 2026 and things will go wrong for the cats since they also got belted in the GF.

Sydney with curnow will be improved, but expecting saints to advance quicker with what they’ve just traded in

 

[Seattle Mariners]

I’ll call a finals win a success for St Kilda next year.

 

[Andyy]

I'm guessing a finish between 7-10.

Personally I just don't see throwing the sink at these particular recruits having a huge impact that sees any genuine contention.

TDK. Good player but often we see rucks don't make or break teams. Simply put, budget rucks still win flags, often.
Jack Silvagni

1

Jack Silvagni

Age

27

Ht

194cm

Wt

92kg

Pos.

D/F

Career

Season

Last 5

D

11.0

3star

K

7.1

3star

HB

3.8

3star

M

3.8

4star

T

2.9

4star

MG

176.9

3star

D

5.3

1star

K

4.0

1star

HB

1.3

1star

M

1.7

2star

T

0.7

1star

MG

91.0

2star

D

9.2

3star

K

6.2

3star

HB

3.0

3star

M

3.4

4star

T

2.8

5star

MG

131.4

3star

. I like him as a player but he's not a world beater. He'll play a role.
Sam Flanders. Good midfielder. Steel also left, although a little slower, so either break even or slight upgrade IMO.
Liam Ryan

1

Liam Ryan

Age

29

Ht

181cm

Wt

76kg

Pos.

Fwd

Career

Season

Last 5

D

11.3

3star

K

8.6

3star

HB

2.7

2star

M

3.0

3star

T

2.0

4star

G

1.3

5star

D

9.9

3star

K

8.0

3star

HB

1.9

1star

M

3.3

3star

T

1.6

3star

G

1.3

5star

D

11.4

3star

K

9.0

4star

HB

2.4

3star

M

3.8

4star

T

1.8

4star

G

1.6

5star

. Meh. At his peak was going at about 1.5 goals/game and hasn't been there for 4+ years.

 

[phantom13]

I'm guessing a finish between 7-10.

Personally I just don't see throwing the sink at these particular recruits having a huge impact that sees any genuine contention.

TDK. Good player but often we see rucks don't make or break teams. Simply put, budget rucks still win flags, often.
Jack Silvagni. I like him as a player but he's not a world beater. He'll play a role.
Sam Flanders. Good midfielder. Steel also left, although a little slower, so either break even or slight upgrade IMO.
Liam Ryan. Meh. At his peak was going at about 1.5 goals/game and hasn't been there for 4+ years.

I think most would agree with this assesment broadly (although TDK is a substantial tap work upgrade on Marshall which should help the midfield a bit).

For the most part the recruits should compliment the core. Max King (if fit) makes a bigger impact than anyone weve recruited. Philipou also has a really high ceiling for a kid who has been injured alot.

Add in a year of development and progression for Nas, Windhager, Hall, Garcia, Boxshall, Tauru, Wilson and Travaglia (potentially Collard, Keeler and a couple others who havent been seen by alot of casuals) and the depth and potential is huge.

Now potential doesnt count for much until its realised but the alternative for the saints was to sit on our hands and bank on that potential being enough to lift us up. Instead weve tried to bolster some spots to assist that development.

It might not work but its refreshing for a lower end club being aggressive and trying to push on.

 

[jwikked]

TDK. Good player but often we see rucks don't make or break teams. Simply put, budget rucks still win flags, often.
Jack Silvagni. I like him as a player but he's not a world beater. He'll play a role.
Sam Flanders. Good midfielder. Steel also left, although a little slower, so either break even or slight upgrade IMO.
Liam Ryan. Meh. At his peak was going at about 1.5 goals/game and hasn't been there for 4+ years.

TDK is a big upgrade on Marshall. Marshall isn't that good in the ruck, but works well around the ground. Having both is a huge win for St Kilda.

Jack Silvagni improves the team, but I agree. I'd rather Silvagni over Leek, and I'm glad we abandoned Leek once we got Silvagni.

Sam Flanders is a big upgrade on Steele. He had a down year this year, but he's an instant improvement. Jack Steele's best years were 3-4 years ago.

I agree with you on Liam Ryan, that's one trade I don't really understand.

 

[Saints43]

I'm guessing a finish between 7-10.

Personally I just don't see throwing the sink at these particular recruits having a huge impact that sees any genuine contention.

TDK. Good player but often we see rucks don't make or break teams. Simply put, budget rucks still win flags, often.
Jack Silvagni. I like him as a player but he's not a world beater. He'll play a role.
Sam Flanders. Good midfielder. Steel also left, although a little slower, so either break even or slight upgrade IMO.
Liam Ryan. Meh. At his peak was going at about 1.5 goals/game and hasn't been there for 4+ years.

The players you've mentioned improve St Kilda on every line.
The rising tide...

 

[Saints43]

I agree with you on Liam Ryan, that's one trade I don't really understand.

I reckon Ryan is going to replace Mason Wood. Good runner, good on the air, great field kick, some goal threat.

 

[Dazb86]

I applaud the Saints for trying to get out of no mans land by landing some small fish with big lures.

Let's see how it pans out.

 

[phantom13]

I applaud the Saints for trying to get out of no mans land by landing some small fish with big lures.

Let's see how it pans out.

Opposed to big fish like Cal Wilkie with no rod, boat, lure or bait?

 

[Dazb86]

Opposed to big fish like Cal Wilkie with no rod, boat, lure or bait?

Didn't cost us a thing.

Cost you guys though

 

[phantom13]

Didn't cost us a thing.

Cost you guys though

Probably cost you a flag given you got no one

 

[Dazb86]

Probably cost you a flag given you got no one

We finished 9th. I don't think one player will make the difference. If we were top 4 with a missing piece maybe it's worth giving up a bit for a 30 year old. But we aren't and aren't even close.

 

[Sainter3and7]

I hope they can get Max King

Multiple players found. Use birthday to differentiate. eg [PLAYERCARD="23/11/1962"]Joe Smith[/PLAYERCARD]

's body right. Re-signed him on a long contract, and hasn't been on the park so much... we must have a lot of faith in the rehab people.

 

[phantom13]

We finished 9th. I don't think one player will make the difference. If we were top 4 with a missing piece maybe it's worth giving up a bit for a 30 year old. But we aren't and aren't even close.

2 wins off fourth spot with a better percentage than all but 2 other teams with a ****ing GAPING hole in your defence and no Bont for 6 weeks plus Darcy has a year of development.

Frankly im staggered you did absolutely nothing in trade week to adress your one massive weakness, i reckon youre a decent CHB off being a flag contender.

 

[Beer n Skittles]

I'm guessing a finish between 7-10.

Personally I just don't see throwing the sink at these particular recruits having a huge impact that sees any genuine contention.

TDK. Good player but often we see rucks don't make or break teams. Simply put, budget rucks still win flags, often.
Jack Silvagni. I like him as a player but he's not a world beater. He'll play a role.
Sam Flanders. Good midfielder. Steel also left, although a little slower, so either break even or slight upgrade IMO.
Liam Ryan. Meh. At his peak was going at about 1.5 goals/game and hasn't been there for 4+ years.

You don't need a good ruck to win a flag, but IMO TDK is the kind of ruckman who can win you a flag. He just needs a run of games fit & niggle free, which really only happened twice at Carlton

 

[jwikked]

Didn't cost us a thing.

Cost you guys though

Didn't cost us anything. Gotta spend the money somewhere

 

[Dazb86]

2 wins off fourth spot with a better percentage than all but 2 other teams with a ****ing GAPING hole in your defence and no Bont for 6 weeks plus Darcy has a year of development.

Frankly im staggered you did absolutely nothing in trade week to adress your one massive weakness, i reckon youre a decent CHB off being a flag contender.

I watch us every week. Our percentage flattered us beating up on teams like the Saints. Certain teams we have very little chance of beating. Generally ones that can match our midfield. Junktime goals kept some margins closer than what they should have during the year.

It is what it is.

 

[Andyy]

You don't need a good ruck to win a flag, but IMO TDK is the kind of ruckman who can win you a flag. He just needs a run of games fit & niggle free, which really only happened twice at Carlton

He's good, but he's no peak Gawn man.

I may be wrong.

But at face value...although I can see some improvement...I don't see this catapulting the team to contention.

Mind you, I really didn't see the acquisition of Nankervis, Prestia and Caddy doing that to us in 2016-17, whilst we moved on Deledio...