Saints count cost of 46-point AFL win
St Kilda star Brendon Goddard was cleared of any serious damage to his neck but the Saints were still left counting the cost of their 46-point AFL victory over Fremantle at Patersons Stadium on Sunday.
Goddard and Sean Dempster were rushed to hospital after copping knocks to the head in separate incidents during St Kilda's thumping 15.12 (102) to 7.14 (56) triumph over a strangely flat Dockers outfit.
Young Saints forward Tom Lynch (suspected broken finger) and defender Jason Blake (knee) were also injured while Brett Peake was reported for striking in what could prove to be a costly win for St Kilda.
Goddard crumpled to the ground and rattled his legs in pain after copping a hip to the side of the face from teammate Zac Dawson in a first-quarter marking contest.
Umpire Dean Margetts immediately stopped play once he saw Goddard's distress, with St Kilda trainers rushing to his aid.
Goddard, who was put in a neck brace and stretchered off the field, was assessed by medical staff from both teams in the change rooms before being taken to Sir Charles Gairdner hospital in an ambulance.
An X-ray cleared the 26-year-old of any serious damage to his neck, but it is unclear whether he will be able to take part in Saturday's grand final re-match with Collingwood at the MCG.
Dempster was knocked out in the dying minutes of the game when he was collected by teammate Jason Blake, who was steaming in from the opposite direction in an attempt to take the mark.
Blake injured his knee in the incident and hobbled off the field.
"It's a hard business AFL football and we understand there's going to be injuries and collisions," St Kilda coach Ross Lyon said after the match.
"It's a collision sport and its just unfortunate it happens. You get a good run and you get a bad run and at the minute we're not having a great run.
"It's not ideal but ... you just play and talk about the ones you can pick and play.
"We'll just keep exposing our list and we're doing that."
St Kilda booted 4.4 to just three behinds in a dominant opening term and held a 45-point lead by half-time before cruising to their third victory of the season, keeping them within striking distance of the top eight.
More importantly, it seems the Saints have finally regained the fighting spirit that took them to three grand finals over the previous two seasons.
Fremantle booted just one goal in the opening half and Dockers coach Mark Harvey was scathing of his team's effort.
"We planned for everything that St Kilda do but unfortunately our players, for various reasons, didn't follow instructions," Harvey said.
"It was as flat as I've seen our players and I'm trying to come to terms with why."
Dockers stand-in ruckman Jonathon Griffin (38 hit-outs) toiled valiantly in the absence of Aaron Sandilands but St Kilda had too many winners, with Nick Dal Santo (30 possessions), Adam Schneider (four goals), Jack Steven and Clint Jones playing crucial roles.
Luke McPharlin was Fremantle's best player, keeping St Kilda spearhead Nick Riewoldt goalless.
Post a comment about this article
Please sign in to leave a comment.
Becoming a member is free and easy, sign up here.