St Kilda Coach Alan Richardson admits Paddy McCartin is ‘a little bit unlucky’ to miss out on selection this weekend, but after the Saints returned to form against North Melbourne, the match committee decided to stick with a winning formula.

After making inroads in the two games either side of the bye, McCartin missed the 17-point win over the Kangaroos last Friday night due to knee soreness but has now overcome the issue and will return for Sandringham against Coburg on Saturday.

“He’s a little bit unlucky. His last two performances were really heading in the right way and really promising,” Richardson told reporters at a press conference ahead of Sunday’s clash with Gold Coast at Etihad Stadium.

“It just so happened that he went out of the team through injury, the team was able to turn things around and the coaches said we’re not making any change. So he’s a little bit unlucky from that perspective.

“So it didn’t matter if it was Tom Hickey or if it was Jack Steele or if it was Paddy, this was the week that we were saying to the boys who got the job the done for our footy club and for our cause, well done, you’ve turned it around and as long as you’re fit, you’ll play again. So we weren’t going to change the team.”

After three disappointing losses against Sydney, the Western Bulldogs and Adelaide, St Kilda returned to the winner’s list last weekend and levelled their season at 6-6 as they turn for home.

Gold Coast has been ravaged by injuries in the wake of their loss to Carlton last Saturday night, with Gary Ablett postponing his 300^th milestone due to a calf strain, along with six other forced changes, including Michael Barlow (broken leg), Brandon Matera (hip), Aaron Hall (hamstring) and Matt Rosa (suspension).