BRISBANE has kept their slim finals chances alive with a 31-point win over St Kilda at the Gabba.

The Saints battled tirelessly all night and controlled the contest for periods at a time, but were unable to apply the necessary scoreboard pressure in times of around-the-ground dominance.

The opening stanza of the final quarter exemplified this preposition, St Kilda registering 24 of the first 29 disposals without troubling the scorers. Fittingly, Brisbane’s next two entries inside their forward 50 resulted in majors, breaking the back of St Kilda after a sustained period of ascendancy.   

Nick Dal Santo (31 disposals) and Leigh Montagna (28 disposals) both continued their prolific recent form, pushing forward on numerous occasions. Montagna also helped out the defenders, amassing eight rebound 50s to complement his four inside 50s.

Arguably, the final margin doesn’t reflect the evenness of the contest, however St Kilda will rue a host of missed opportunities in front of goal and on the forward charge. Occasionally they lacked the polish to complement the diligence and fierceness in the clinches. Regardless of the margin, Brisbane were clearly the better team on the night. Tom Rockliff was especially prolific, amassing 39 touches for the evening.

Time after time St Kilda chipped the ball laterally, showing composure and poise in defence, but struggled to find a clear target forward of centre. Tom Lee presented well all evening, as did Nick Riewoldt, but it was the kick from the wing to half-forward where the Saints often fell down.

Scott Watters men applied significant pressure for the first half of the third term, holding Brisbane goalless until the 20-minute mark. However Pearce Hanley’s long-bomb from 55 swung the pendulum back in the Lions favour.

Earlier in the quarter the Saints two primary ball-winners for the evening both goaled magnificently. Montagna slotted his second from the boundary, while Dal Santo ran the length of the centre square after receiving a sharp handball from David Armitage and finished superbly from long-range. Both goals were team-lifting efforts but lacked follow-up majors that would have pushed the Saints ahead.

St Kilda’s third term endeavour gave it hope that a positive result was a possibility. Glimpses of class and link-up play were at times intersected with sloppy ball use via hand and foot. This was a vastly improved performance from last weekend. Four multiple goal-kickers and five players who collected 20 or more disposals indicates a decent spread of contribution. 

The Lions led by 24 points at the main break after a hard-fought opening half of football. Continuing the curse of St Kilda’s tall defenders, Rhys Stanley was subbed in the dying minutes of the second term with a collarbone injury. He will have scans on Sunday to assess the damage.

A couple of late goals to Brisbane, including Daniel Rich’s third for the evening hurt the Saints heading into half-time. Rich streamed forward after a centre square ball-up and goaled from 65, the ease in which he broke away from the pack reflecting Brisbane’s stoppage ascendancy in the first half.

Aside from Montagna and Dal Santo, David Armitage was an influential contributor for the majority of the evening. The left-footer finished with 30 disposals - 15 of them contested - and seven clearances in another terrific display.

Farren Ray also continued his consistent form with another 20 touches, disposing at 95 per cent efficiency for the evening.

Jack Steven booted the first major of the evening, taking four bounces en route to goal. It was a team-lifting run that exemplified Steven’s terrific dash and flair. He finished with 15 disposals and a team-high five tackles for the night.

You can follow Tom Morris on Twitter: @tommorris32