St Kilda Coach Alan Richardson says the early diagnosis on Nick Riewoldt’s knee appears positive after the champion forward landed awkwardly in the last quarter of Saturday night’s loss to Melbourne at Etihad Stadium.

On a tough night for the Saints, Riewoldt had been one of the few positives before the incident in the final term, booting four goals from 14 disposals and seven marks.

A relieved Richardson said Riewoldt will undergo scans on Sunday morning to determine the extent of the damage.

“It’s probably at this stage more positive than what it looked,” Richardson said in his post-match press conference.

“He heard a ‘pop’.

“The doctors are saying it’s pretty stable, they need scans really but it’s much more positive than what it could have been.

“We’re incredibly relieved, it’s only early we’ve got to get scans but it looks more positive than it might have been.”

Richardson said he feared the worst when Riewoldt fell to the ground and screamed in agony, while words from veteran Leigh Montagna didn’t help the emotion in the coaches box.

“I suppose what most of us would have been thinking, given that I’d seen the vision it didn’t look good,” he said.

“Experienced players usually know; ‘Joey’ was in the box and probably didn’t help things with his diagnosis.”

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