Missed the first instalment of our new documentary series, The March?  Here's what went down in Episode 1: Before.

Keep an eye on saints.com.au or subscribe to the St Kilda Football Club Official YouTube channel to view the latest episodes.

A pre-season for the ages

Three months out from the season restart, and there’s a new energy in the air at RSEA Park.

Six stellar off-season recruits headlined by Bradley Hill and the appointment of Brett Ratten as senior coach has breathed new life into the club.

Jack Billings is rapt to have the highly-decorated additions thrust into the side, while star pick-up Dougal Howard recognises the importance he’ll have to the Saints’ changing culture.

Building a sense of belonging – both physically and spiritually – and acknowledging our tradition are key factors in revitalising the red, white and black.

Danny Frawley’s mural looks down on the next crop of Saints at his beloved Moorabbin, his smile serving as a reminder to what he meant to St Kilda.

That sense of belonging, along with our star recruits, the return of some key sidelined stars and a series of fresh perspectives is bound to have an “immediate impact”, according to new Head of Football Program, David Rath.

For the Saints, Season 2020 seems “almost unrecognisable”.

How eerily correct that statement would turn out to be just a few short months down the track.

First impressions count

One month out from Round 1.

Senior coach Brett Ratten lays down the law in front of the playing group.

Making a great first impression is everything.  It will play a huge role in shaping the season and what the red, white and black will stand for in 2020.

And there would be no better way to stamp authority and cement a spirit of place with the opening Marsh Community Series game in front of a 10,000-strong crowd at RSEA Park.

Max Hudghton, Stephen Milne and Nicky Winmar all stopped by the club ahead of the landmark event, as Dougal Howard acknowledges how much RSEA Park means to the St Kilda faithful.

With one win on the board and the new-look Saints – complete with Max King up forward – notching up another win against the Magpies in Morwell, the newfound optimism hasn't been misplaced.

“You’re on journey together and you want to see some reward for the work that you’ve put in.”

All the signs are pointing in a positive direction down at RSEA Park.

But on the other side of the world, a far different picture is being painted. 

And it wouldn’t be long until that changed everything. 

Change on the horizon, a season suspended 

Three days out from the eve of the season.

Talk of no fans in the stands grips headlines, Victoria declares a state of emergency.

No one knows if Season 2020 will even go ahead.

“There’s this hope but uncertainty, I suppose is the balance, because we’re building, but we want to be able to see the fruits of that labour.”

COVID-19 has exploded from being a virus on the other side of the world to a global pandemic. 

The ramifications on the club, the industry and the planet are close to unfathomable.  Financial collapse looms. St Kilda's existence is threatened.

The day before Round 1, the AFL makes the decision to shorten the season to 17 rounds.  But the season will go on.

The legacy of a legend is handed onto young Max King, as the moment the red, white and black have all been building towards creeps closer. 

But not in the way anyone anticipated. 

'We're better than that'

A Round 1 like no other for so many reasons.

Crowds have been barred as Max King makes his debut in front of an empty stadium.  The new-look Saints ready to begin the club's new chapter do so to the sound of an echoing arena.

A flying start to the game marks the dawn of a new era.

The sound of silence at the final siren was deafening as the result slips through their fingers. 

Post-match, reality sinks in.

“There were some good things in the game.  It’s not like we’re sitting here saying ‘this has been a horrific performance’.

Amid the dejection and uncertainty, Jarryn Geary stands tall.

“We don’t know what our year looks like, but we’re not gonna let one game dictate the rest of our year, so we’ve got to pick ourselves up and learn from that.

One hour later, the news everyone has been dreading.

The 2020 Season has been suspended until at least May 31. The gravity of the situation begins to set in.

All the hopes, dreams and ambitions, crushed first by a disappointing defeat, and then by the postponement of the season.

The next day, the once buzzing halls of RSEA Park are deathly quiet.

Gym gear is packed and distributed to players.  The spiritual home left abandoned as COVID-19 grips the nation.  What was built in the off-season months left to wilt away.

Now, in the face of adversity, a new era has begun.

Keep an eye on saints.com.au or subscribe to the St Kilda Football Club Official YouTube channel to view the latest episodes.