HE MAY be just about to complete his 13th AFL season, but Nick Riewoldt remains as driven as ever to propel St Kilda towards the top of the ladder again.
His recent form reaffirms this: 26 disposals, 15 marks and four goals against Gold Coast was a performance that exemplified his raw ability to dominate games.
“I’ve felt in pretty good form all year – pretty consistent,” Riewoldt told SAINTS.com.au. “There is one [game] to go so I will be able to get through to the end of the year in one piece which is good.”
VIDEO: Classic Nick Riewoldt
With his body in good shape and his hunger undiminished, Riewoldt has spent much of 2013 balancing his own training with guiding youngsters through the early stages of their career.
“Every game is an opportunity to improve and to work on things,” he said. “Clearly there are a lot of areas that we need to improve in. We are not going to waste an opportunity.”
“We need to turn it around pretty quickly, not just internally, but for our supporters as well. We’re training hard every day to try and get back towards the top of the ladder.”
Sunday was a significant day for the club for more than one reason, with Lenny Hayes announcing he will play on in 2014, much to the delight of his skipper and the Saints fans.
“Lenny is just the heart and soul of the club and I’m so happy that he’s decided to go around again,” Riewoldt said. “It’s fantastic news for us as his teammates [because] we love playing with him.”
“The roar when the supporters got told at quarter time was pretty special. You could understand what had just occurred. It’s great news for the footy club.”
VIDEO: Lenny Hayes post-game
Following Sunday’s performance Riewoldt is leading the AFL for total marks and second for marks inside 50, confirming his aerial dominance hasn’t subsided in 2013.
You can follow Tom Morris on Twitter: @tommorris32
