St Kilda coach Ross Lyon refused to let the "F" word out of the bag after watching his AFL side keep their finals hopes alive with a 43-point demolition of Fremantle at Subiaco Oval.

Nick Riewoldt starred with five goals as the Saints poured in 11 goals to two after half-time to run out easy 17.10 (112) to 9.15 (69) victors, a win that keeps St Kilda in eighth spot on the ladder with two rounds remaining.

Brisbane are a game behind in ninth position, meaning the Saints can sew up a September berth with wins over Adelaide and Essendon in the final two rounds of the season.

But Lyon was quick to play down any thought of finals football just yet.

"As much as interstate wins are difficult, you only get four points, so what it means is we stay in the eight and we've got destiny in our own control, that's what it means," Lyon said.

"What's momentum? I'm not being smart but everyone talks about momentum and, gee whiz, we've one won ... we just get some confidence back that, gee, we are a reasonable team."

When asked what kind of impact Riewoldt could have on the September stage, Lyon replied: "Well I tell you what, you can't win finals and play in them until you're in them, and we are clearly not in them, so that question's irrelevant."

St Kilda's finals hopes were hanging by a thread midway through the second quarter when they trailed the Dockers by 16 points.

But with the Saints September hopes on the line, Riewoldt stepped up to the plate to inspire his team to victory.

Riewoldt booted three goals in the third quarter as the Saints piled on seven goals to one for the term to turn a four-point, half-time deficit into a match-winning 28-point advantage at the final change.

"Our leaders really stood up," Lyon said.

"Everyone led but, in particular, at the pointy end, Riewoldt and (Lenny) Hayes were outstanding.

"He (Riewoldt) is our captain, he plays with presence. The bottom line is you need your leaders playing well and he did that today."

Riewoldt finished the match with 22 possessions, 11 marks and five goals, while small forwards Adam Schneider (four goals) and Stephen Milne (three goals) also played crucial roles in the win.

Milne's contribution was all the more valiant considering the 28-year-old collided heads with Antoni Grover in the opening minutes of the match and was left to fight out the contest with a badly-swollen cheek that covered most of his right eye.

Dockers forward Adam Campbell booted three first-half goals but was held goalless after the break by Jason Blake, while Rhys Palmer (30 possessions) and Jeff Farmer (27) were important linkmen for the Dockers.

St Kilda defender Sam Fisher did a great shut-down role on Matthew Pavlich, restricting the Fremantle skipper to just 10 possessions and three goals.

Fremantle coach Mark Harvey said he was disappointed with the performance, especially in a game where the Dockers bid farewell to club great Peter Bell before the bounce.

"Peter spoke from the heart before the game," Harvey said.

"He didn't want to have a farewell (game) himself, he's one of those guys ... that doesn't like the attention of playing the last game.

"So he spoke to the guys about the day itself and what he wanted from them, and that didn't happen."

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