A POTENTIALLY serious leg injury to midfielder Max Holmes has soured Geelong's 27 point win over St Kilda on Thursday night.
The right foot of the hard-running Cat got trapped underneath him in a contest inside 50 in the fourth quarter, stopping play in a match that was dominated by the home side.
Holmes limped off the ground with the assistance of medical staff, unable to put weight on the injured leg, joining teammate Shaun Mannagh on the bench after the small forward was taken out of the game earlier with hamstring tightness.
Outside of the two injuries, it was a perfect night for the Cats who dominated from start to finish to win 15.12 (102) to 11.9 (75) in front of a crowd of 23,737.
The Cats made seven changes leading into the Thursday night match and a number of their inclusions took their opportunities with both hands.
Rowan Marshall battled hard for St Kilda, finishing with 33 disposals, two goals and 12 clearances, as did Jack Silvagni who was thrown up forward in the final term with Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera in an attempt to spark life into the Saints.
Young guns Hugo Garcia (31 disposals, seven clearances), Darcy Wilson (29 disposals, eight tackles) and Mattaes Phillipou (28 disposals, five tackles) also tried hard all day, with Garcia kicking the Saints' opening goal of the game.
The Saints matched it with the Cats in the second half, both sides scoring eight goals apiece, but three of St Kilda’s goals came in the final minutes of the match when a Geelong win was beyond doubt.
GEELONG 4.2 7.8 11.11 15.12 (102)
ST KILDA 2.0 3.5 7.6 11.9 (75)
GOALS
Geelong: Miers 3, O.Henry 2, Dempsey 2, Polkinghorne 2, Mannagh, Atkins, Worpel, Neale, Dangerfield, Smith
St Kilda: Marshall 2, Hall 2, Ryan 2, Garcia, Higgins, Lake, Silvagni, Wanganeen-Milera
BEST
Geelong: Smith, Miers, Humphries, Clark, Polkinghorne
St Kilda: Marshall, Garcia, Wilson, Silvagni, Phillipou
INJURIES
Geelong: Mannagh (hamstring), Holmes (leg)
St Kilda: Nil
Crowd: 23,737 at GMHBA Stadium
