St Kilda defender Shane Savage concedes the last month has been disappointing with wins against bottom-four sides Essendon and Fremantle sandwiched between big interstate losses against premiership contenders West Coast and Adelaide.

At 4-7, the Saints are on track to surpass the six and a half wins they accrued last season, continuing an upward trajectory under Alan Richardson. But comprehensive defeats in Perth and Adelaide have taken some of the gloss of what had been an impressive start to the season.

In the immediate aftermath of Sunday night’s 88-point loss, Savage revealed Richardson and the coaching staff addressed the Saints’ lack of belief on the road this season, whilst the wounds were still raw in the bowels of Adelaide Oval.

“The last month has been disappointing. We’ve got two wins on the board, but West Coast and Adelaide have definitely been disappointing,” Savage told Melbourne radio station RSN on Thursday morning.

“‘Richo’ was more disappointed than the West Coast game. He was really flat and we admitted as a group we were really disappointing.

“We’ve had some really good performances this year. We’ve been in games where we probably should have won as well against some really good teams.

“But our two worst games for the year have come interstate so it was all about having that belief when we’re not at home and knowing that we can compete with the best. Belief was one of the main messages that came out of the meeting.”

After two consecutive wins at Etihad Stadium, St Kilda left their effort and intensity in Melbourne last weekend, dropping from the No. 1 pressure side in Round 10 to the worst in Round 11, on the way to losing almost every key statistic against the Crows.

“I think ‘Richo’ pointed it out after the game, it was just our pressure and our effort just wasn’t there from the get go,” Savage said.

“I think when Adelaide came at us we didn’t respond as a team and I think that was the most disappointing thing as a group because we’ve shown that we have got that effort this year.”

The Saints have the opportunity to put their season back on track when they face Carlton at Etihad Stadium on Sunday, before the mid-season bye the following weekend.

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