ST KILDA 12.10 (82) d WEST COAST 10.8 (68)
Bradley Hill and Mason Wood of the Saints celebrate a goal.Credit: AFL Photos
KEY POINTS
REID IN HOT WATER
West Coast young gun Harley Reid faces a nervous wait on Sunday to learn if he is still in contention for the Rising Star Award after laying a dangerous tackle, as St Kilda eased the gloom at Moorabbin with a fighting victory over the Eagles.
Reid had lit up Optus Stadium with a blistering second quarter but his day took a turn for the worse in the third term when he dumped Darcy Wilson in a sling tackle minutes before the three-quarter-time siren.
Wilson was able to take his kick but left the field moments later for treatment. He was able to play out the game, which would lessen any suspension but not the likelihood of him being cited by match review officer Michael Christian.
West Coast premiership player Will Schofield and David King, also a flag winner, expected Reid would be in trouble.
“That will be a suspension, I don’t think there’s any doubt about it,” Schofield said on Fox Footy’s telecast.
King said: “The tackle, the action, it’s a problem for him.”
Reid had been a short-priced favourite at the start of the game to take out the Rising Star gong after a suspension to Western Bulldogs forward Sam Darcy, but he too is now in grave danger of being out of the running for the prestigious award.
It is unclear if Reid and Darcy could still poll votes at the end of the year if suspended but, if so, one of them would likely become the first player since Corey McKernan in 1994 to poll the most votes when ineligible.
Reid was arguably best afield to half-time with 17 possessions in the first half, including 13 and six clearances in the second quarter, but his impact was dulled after Saints coach Ross Lyon moved Marcus Windhager to him.
Windhager shut him out of the game, limiting Reid to only three disposals in the second half.
Reid’s frustrations boiled over in the closing minutes when he body checked Windhager, resulting in a down the ground free kick to Mason Wood for the sealing goal.
Harley Reid and the Eagles leave Optus Stadium after losing to St KIlda.Credit: AFL Photos
KING’S KNEE WORRIES
The Saints’ win came at a cost with star forward Max King subbed out with a knee injury.
King came off the ground in the third quarter for treatment and though he returned to the field he could not play out the game.
His absence, though, did not hurt the Saints, who booted five goals in the final quarter with a reconfigured forward line which broke down the Eagles’ defensive pairing of Jeremy McGovern and Tom Barrass, who had been dominant in the first half.
Swung forward, wingman Mason Wood booted four goals in a match-winning performance, including two in the final term.
ROSS THE BOSS
After a trying few weeks, Saints coach Ross Lyon pulled several masterstrokes in the coaches’ box.
Lyon had urged his men during the long break to play with more run and flow – and they answered their coach’s call.
The move of Windhager to Reid changed the game, turning an area where the Saints had been beaten in to one of strength in the second half.
The quicker ball movement allowed the Saints to kick to a more open forward line, putting more pressure on McGovern and Barrass, who had feasted in the first half.
Paddy Dow could never quite put it together at Carlton but the No.3 pick from the 2017 draft has made a bright start to his time at Moorabbin.
One of the Saints’ better players in their loss to Melbourne, Dow was the game’s leading clearance winner, and one of the reasons why the match turned.