Injury-hit Saints condemn Tigers to sixth straight lossBy Kaitlyn Ferber at RSEA Park
afl.com.au
Sep 21, 2025, 5:35 pmST KILDA has denied Richmond a chance of snapping its losing streak, prevailing in a close seven-point win over the Tigers in a thrilling, wet affair at Moorabbin on Sunday afternoon.
The rain was heavy and persistent in the first half, with the slippery ball resulting in a low scoring start that eventually picked up pace to culminate in a 6.7 (43) to 5.6 (36) contest.
But the win wasn’t without damage to the Saints' midfield, with Molly McDonald going down with an injury to her ankle in the third quarter, whilst young gun J’Noemi Anderson also hobbled off the ground with an ankle injury in the fourth quarter.
It was a defensive game across the board, with St Kilda’s seven inside 50s in the first term producing just the two behinds, whilst Richmond pushed a touch harder, with its 11 inside 50s leading to two behinds but an impressive run-on goal from Paige Scott.
St Kilda’s Serene Watson was doing the heavy lifting for the Saints as the ball remained in their back half, with her 10 disposals, eight of those kicks, in the first quarter resulting in 28 disposals and 20 kicks by the games end.
It was a cold day out in Moorabbin, but the game was red hot, with both sides battling it out with the pressure rising extensively by the second quarter. The Saints finished the match with 86 tackles whilst the Tigers had 75.
Richmond looked to be in complete control in the second term with a speedy goal earned by Ford 30 seconds in, but Amber Clarke finally got the Saints' first major on the board. After initialling missing the marking opportunity in the contest, she worked to obtain it back from the ground up, scooping the Sherrin up neatly before slotting the goal.
The Tigers responded shortly after with Ellie McKenzie’s first goal of the match, but the Saints were in it now, and the tensions of defensive footy finally hit boiling point. After a melee resulted in Anderson being thrown to the ground, she was quickly awarded a free kick right in front of goal. Followed by another unanswered major, this time by Patrikios, the Saints were in front.
The third quarter see-sawed back into Richmond’s favour, with McKenzie having an absolute day out for her Tigers, finishing the match with two goals, eight score involvements and 25 disposals and putting plenty of pressure on the Saints. Grace Egan was also a welcome return back from injury for the Tigers with her 15 disposals.
The game was neck and neck by the final quarter, but Ash Richards brought the game back into the Saints' hands with huge goal giving them some breathing space over Richmond. Richards effort was immense across the game as she finished with not only the goal, 17 touches and seven tackles.
Ultimately it was an event of Déjà vu for the Tigers, as they finished the game with five more inside 50s, but were unable to convert their entries to a score that would have got them their first win of the season, whilst the Saints keep marching in with their first back-to-back win of 2025.
Melee melee meleeThe pressure was on for both sides, with St Kilda wanting to back up their huge win over the Bombers last week, but the Tigers desperate for their first. Huge tackles and bumps from both sides came to a head in the second quarter, with a melee that earned cheers from the crowds. The Saints came off best in that contest, with Anderson converting a neat goal following a 50m penalty.
And injury concerns for *checks notes* Razor Ray?Former AFL umpire and now AFLW umpire 'Razor' Ray Chamberlain was also seen on the bench during third quarter, shortly after McDonald came from the ground with ice being heavily strapped to his right calf. Hashtag whistles out for Razor.
Up nextSt Kilda will host another Sunday special in round seven, with Port Adelaide travelling to RSEA Park for the early afternoon game. Richmond will be heading up to sunnier weather than what was on offer today, as they take on Brisbane at Brighton Homes Arena also on Sunday.
ST KILDA 0.2 3.3 3.4 6.7 (43)
RICHMOND 1.2 3.2 4.5 5.6 (36)
GOALS
St Kilda: Clarke, Anderson, Patrikios, Baskaran, Richards, Wardlaw
Richmond: McKenzie 2, Scott, Ford, Greiser
BEST
St Kilda: Watson, Lambert, Patrikios, Richards
Richmond: McKenzie, Miller, Conti, Egan, Seymour
INJURIES
St Kilda: McDonald (ankle), Anderson (ankle)
Richmond: Nil
LATE CHANGES
St Kilda: Nil
Richmond: Nil
Crowd: TBC at RSEA Park
https://www.afl.com.au/aflw/matches/7912#match-report
