THE TEAMS
ST KILDA
B: Jason Blake, Max Hudgton, James Gwilt
HB: Jayden Attard, Sam Fisher, Steven Baker
C: Sam Gilbert, Luke Ball, Jason Gram
HF: Leigh Montagna, Nick Riewoldt, Aaron Fiora
F: Stephen Milne , Fraser Gehrig, RaphaelClarke
FOLL: Justin Koschitzke, Lenny Hayes, Nick Dal Santo
I/C (from): Xavier Clarke, Brad Howard, Clinton Jones, Michael Rix, Andrew Thompson,Brett Voss, Fergus Watts
In: Clarke,Howard, Jones, Thompson, Voss, Watts
Out: DavidArmitage, Shane Birss, Leigh Fisher (hamstring)
KANGAROOS
B: Glenn Archer, Michael Firrito, Kasey Green
HB: Jesse Smith, Drew Petrie, Leigh Brown
C: Daniel Pratt, Daniel Harris, Jess Sinclair
HF: Lindsay Thomas, Corey Jones, Shannon Grant
F: Adam Simpson, Aaron Edwards, Brent Harvey
FOLL: Hamish McIntosh, Andrew Swallow, BradyRawlings
I/C (from): Matt Campbell, Blake Grima, David Hale, EdLower, Brad Moran, Eddie Sansbury, Shannon Watt
In: Hale, Lower, Moran, Sansbury, Watt
Out: Gibson (inj), Scott McMahon
MATCH DETAILS
Sunday, June 10, Telstra Dome, 2.10pm (local time).
MEDIA COVERAGE
Television – Channel Seven, Radio – afl.com.au, 3AW, TripleM, NIRS.
TAB SPORTSBET (VIC)
St Kilda – $1.68, Kangaroos – $2.20
LADDER POSITION
St Kilda – 13th, Kangaroos – 8th
WIN/LOSS RECORD
Played – 141, St Kilda – 70, Kangaroos – 69, Drawn – 2
AT THIS GROUND
Played – 9, St Kilda – 5, Kangaroos – 4
LAST TIME
Round 9, 2006 – St Kilda 10.14 (74) d Kangaroos 8.9 (57),Telstra Dome.
RECENT STREAK
The Saints have won five of their past six matches againstthe Roos but prior to that endured an eight-game losing run at the hands of theShinboners.
INJURIES
St Kilda – Xavier Clarke (calf – test), Leigh Fisher(hamstring – test), Robert Harvey (hamstring – three weeks), Clinton Jones(collarbone – two weeks), Matt Maguire (foot – two weeks), Aaron Hamill (knee -indefinite), Andrew Thompson (knee - test), Brendon Goddard (knee - season),Michael Gardiner (foot – 2 weeks), Jarryd Allen (elbow - indefinite).
Kangaroos – Shannon Watt (hamstring tightness - test),Daniel Wells (knee – two weeks), Leigh Harding (knee – two weeks), Leigh Adams(thumb – five weeks), Daniel McConnell (shoulder – 10 weeks), Nathan Thompson(knee – season).
SELECTION TABLE
The Saints confirmed Leigh Fisher will miss Sunday’s clash whentheir 25-man squad was released on Thursday. The defender is out of the sidewith a hamstring strain while Shane Birss and David Armitage have been omitted.Xavier Clarke, Andrew Thompson, Brad Howard, Clinton Jones, Brett Voss andFergus Watts have been named on an extended bench.
The Roos have lost Josh Gibson for the rest of the seasonafter his unfortunate bathroom mishap while Scott McMahon has been dropped.Inclusions David Hale, Ed Lower, Brad Moran, Eddie Sansbury and Shannon Wattare named on a seven-man bench.
FORM
The Saints have lost their past three games and have a 4-6win-loss record. The Kangaroos had a six-game winning streak broken by theEagles last week and have a 6-4 record.
RED HOT
Jason Gram certainly arrived back on the scene with a splashafter spending two weeks sidelined with a back injury. The hard runninghalf-back flanker didn’t miss a beat, amassing 33 disposals, taking nine marksand kicking a goal against Geelong.Fellow backman Sam Fisher also impressed with 31 possessions and nine marks.
MATCH-UP TO WATCH
Nick Riewoldt v Michael Firrito – Dean Laidley writes histrusted defender’s name alongside the opposition’s most damaging forward everyweek and he hasn’t let him down too often this season. Riewoldt has rarely beenbeaten one-on-one so far this year, making this strength versus strengthmatch-up one to savour.
HOW'S STAT?
These two sides average an almost identical number ofdisposals per game, but the Roos generate five more shots on goal than theSaints.
WHAT THE COACH SAYS
“They’ve got very strong midfield talent with match winnersin Shannon Grant and Brent Harvey, a backline that’s standing up one on one andsome players are invigorated and playing with a real team spirit,” he said. “It’sa massive challenge but we’re aiming to get over the top of them, as we shouldbe.”
The views in this story are those of the author and notnecessarily those of the club.
