Media articles & stats: Saints hold off Tigers in Saturday scrap

[one-eyed]

Saints hold off Tigers in Saturday scrap

By Gemma Bastiani
AFL Media
Aug 9, 2025, 4:21 pm

RICHMOND  1.0   4.5   6.8   7.10 (52)
ST KILDA     3.2   5.3   5.6   8.8 (56)

GOALS
Richmond: Mansell 2, Balta, Armstrong, McIntosh, Taranto, Lynch
St Kilda: Higgins 2, Sharman 2, Garcia, Wanganeen-Milera, Hall, Sinclair

BEST
Richmond: Vlastuin, Young, Miller, Mansell, Short, Ross
St Kilda: Windhager, Wanganeen-Milera, Macrae, Wilkie, Sinclair

INJURIES
Richmond: Nil
St Kilda: Nil

SUBSTITUTES
Richmond: Steely Green (unused)
St Kilda: Liam Henry (replaced Max Heath at half time)

Crowd: 41,395 at the MCG

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St Kilda has shaken off a seriously spirited Richmond outfit to land a third-straight win.

Just.

After getting out to a 20-point lead in the first quarter, the Saints won the 8.8 (56) to 7.10 (52) nailbiter despite the Tigers' best efforts on a perfect Melbourne winter's day at the MCG.

Marcus Windhager (32 disposals, nine marks) was the tough, reliable presence both at the contest and around the ground that the Saints needed, while the decision to swing defender Jack Sinclair (30 disposals, one goal) into the thick of it for the final quarter proved to be a sound one.

Jack Ross (26 disposals, 440 metres gained, seven score involvements, five clearances) and Rhyan Mansell (17 disposals, two goals, seven tackles, six score involvements) were both standout performers for the Tigers.

The Saints got off to record pace when it came to marking the footy, as Richmond allowed them to own possession and patiently chip the ball around. Taking a whopping 48 uncontested marks in the opening quarter, they worked slowly to build up, shifting from wing to wing before opting to go forward.

But that was where it all broke down for St Kilda, as it too often sent long, high balls into attack, playing right into the hands of Richmond's clever interceptors of Nick Vlastuin (seven intercepts, 19 disposals), Ben Miller (seven intercepts, eight marks), and Tylar Young (four intercepts, 17 disposals).

Once Richmond established more effective pressure higher up the field, however, it was game on. Juxtaposing St Kilda's patient build up, the Tigers played with dare and a pinch of chaos, becoming unpredictable to their opponents.

Maurice Rioli offered his signature close-down pressure, Mansell got dangerous in the attacking arc, and Dion Prestia was strong in the contest.

There was a real physicality about how Richmond opted to play following the first break and they worried the opposition ball carrier.

Finding some dash and aggressive attacking movement was crucial for St Kilda, but it all too often felt like it was Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera or bust. The star Saint shook off a left leg complaint in the second half to get dangerous through the corridor, ultimately finishing with 33 disposals, 629 metres gained, and a remarkable goal.

Both Tom Lynch (one goal, three behinds) and Mason Wood (two behinds) had misfiring radars, with plenty of opportunities to contribute on the scoreboard from both sides, but neither were able to make the most of them.

But Lynch, in his first game since Round 16, kicked truly when it counted, getting off the mark early in the final quarter to lift the crowd and his young teammates.

Unfortunately for Adem Yze's side, it wasn't enough to secure a sixth win of the season, but it certainly showed enough to keep Tigers fans enthusiastic about what's possible in the coming weeks, and years.

https://www.afl.com.au/afl/matches/7147#match-report

[one-eyed]

TIGERS RUE FATAL NAS ERROR DESPITE REASONS TO BE ‘REALLY PROUD’

Jack Jovanovski and Will Faulkner
Foxsports
10 Aug 2025

Adem Yze’s call to leave Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera to roam dangerously across the half-backline, particularly in the last quarter, played a significant hand in Saturday’s result.

The Tigers gave up the eight-point lead they held at the final change, with Wanganeen-Milera posting eight disposals in the stanza alone to help surge the Saints home.

Dual All-Australian Leigh Montagna questioned “the leaving of Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera to roam free, especially in the fourth quarter, when the game was up for grabs”.

“It mightn’t have been the whole last quarter, but the first five to 10 minutes at least, lock him away — don’t allow his run and creativity to get them back in a winning position, and that’s exactly the way that it panned out,” lamented Western Bulldogs legend Brad Johnson on Fox Footy in the aftermath.

“Once he stepped to half-back and Sinclair went in the middle of the ground, you knew exactly what they were going to try to do in the early part of that last quarter, and he executed perfectly.”

Lewis said of Richmond’s missed opportunities: “They had their chances going inside forward 50 on a couple of occasions but just couldn’t connect.”

But Johnson also praised the Tigers’ ability to get the game back on their terms after a sluggish start.

“I was really proud of their second quarter, in a way, today. They had 50 uncontested marks against them in the first quarter — a huge number — to be able to adjust that and then build their game up to be in a strong position to win and have a strong second half was excellent,” he said.

“So, I think they take a lot of that as a group because Adem Yze would’ve instructed them at quarter-time, they were able to execute that really well, and at least give themselves that strength and belief to go ‘OK, we can go on and win this game’.”

Ultimately, though, there were a few decisions made going into attack that the Tigers would’ve liked back if they had their time again.

“They gave themselves an opportunity, especially late. A couple of decisions going inside forward 50 could’ve meant the result went their way,” Lewis said.

“So, they were in a position to get the victory, and I think in terms of their stuff in and around the stoppages — especially late — they learned things, and maybe could’ve been a little bit more aggressive to give themselves a chance to win.”

After conceding the first three goals of the game, Richmond booted three of the next four in a highly contested second quarter; getting the game on its terms and ultimately putting itself in a position to win the game.

“They’ve made it into more of a contested game. In the first quarter, the Saints were able to chip the ball in their back half and find the open side, really challenging Richmond to defend,” Lewis said on Fox Footy at half-time.

“They’re cutting off those inside-45s and switch kicks at the moment, which is forcing St Kilda down the line, and Richmond are getting numbers to that contest and then being able to use the numbers to take the ball forward.

“This is more of a contested quarter, which is suiting the Richmond Football Club.”

At the main change, Brad Johnson added: “(They’re) starting to get a forward-half game happening. They put pressure off the back of it, locked it in, and then got the repeat entries required.”

Richmond was also flexing its ball movement muscle again, having ranked fourth-best in the competition in the past five weeks for defensive-50-to-forward-50 success rate.

Noah Balta continued to impress up forward with his competitiveness, playing alongside veteran Tom Lynch in his return game.

https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/live-afl-2025-richmond-tigers-vs-st-kilda-saints-round-22-live-scores-and-updates-stats-blog-start-time-aest-and-how-to-stream/news-story/b1f176c6f25de461a2036a7aa71d767d