St Kilda has slumped to their second defeat of the season after a humiliating loss to Adelaide by 49 points at Etihad Stadium in front of only 19,324 spectators.
While the Saints gave it their all for the first two and a half quarters - and were expected to following their embarrassing performance against North Melbourne last week - their efforts did little to impact the scoreboard.
With poor skill execution and sloppy ball use in front of goal once again at the forefront of their game, the Saints could do little to turn the tide as the Crows trounced them in the latter stages of the third quarter.
Yet in the opening stages of the game, both sides were close to evenly matched.
The Saints appeared to be far more switched on from the opening quarter, with Shane Savage taking advantage of the Crows' sluggishness, allowing him to have a running shot at goal from outside the 50 - something which an alert Adelaide would never allow.
Although the Crows eventually scored the first goal of the game courtesy of Mitch McGovern, St Kilda soon retaliated with back-to-back majors from Jack Sinclair and Blake Acres to regain the lead.
Moving clean out of defence, the Saints were effective in switching the ball to the fat side of the ground through the loose man in defence, debutante Nick Coffield.
But finding targets up forward was a problem once more - further compounded by the late withdrawal of Tim Membrey - and when the ball actually found its way into the forward line, woeful kicking (2.6) undid all the Saints' endeavours for the term.
Adelaide as a result punished them for their inaccuracy, overcoming their slow start and capitalising on the scoreboard with majors to Taylor Walker and Rory Atkins.
While the Saints led the clearances and shots at goal by the end of the term, the Crows' fluidity from defence - driven by Rory Laird - and subsequent conversions enabled them to finish with a four-point advantage.
Little changed in the relatively dull second term, with the Saints in control of the ball yet allowing errant kicking and turnovers to keep Adelaide well within the contest.
While Richard Douglas jagged the first one of the quarter early, it was Eddie Betts whose goal was the standout, finally breaking his drought and adding his name to the score sheet.
Still on top of the contested possessions and inside 50s for the half (29-21), the Saints only managed to score the one goal for the term from Coffield, as Adelaide's aggression and tackling pressure slowly began to seep into the game.
Bryce Gibbs stamped his presence through his hardness around the contest, ending the half with six clearances and eight tackles, while his midfield counterpart in Sinclair led with a game-high 19 disposals.
An exhausted St Kilda certainly had their opportunities in the low-scoring term to catapult themselves into the lead, yet dismal entries and unclean finishes within sizeable periods of control saw them trail by 10 points at half-time.
The two-goal margin turned out to be all the momentum Adelaide needed to put away their persistent, albeit unpolished opposition.
Sensing St Kilda's fatigue, the Crows put the pedal to the metal, booting six goals to displace and demoralise the Saints, who only cobbled together a pitiful 1.3 for the term.
With Josh Bruce slotting the Saints' solitary major for the quarter at the nine-minute mark, Adelaide piled on the next five, two of which came from the reignited Betts.
As the hapless Saints struggled to find cohesion, the Adelaide midfield spearheaded by Rory Sloane, Gibbs and Sam Jacobs in the ruck owned the middle, giving their lurking forwards first opportunity to score.
While the endeavouring St Kilda midfield of Sebastian Ross and Jack Steven battled through the Adelaide avalanche of goals, their efforts alone couldn't minimise the 40-point deficit going into the final quarter.
But endeavour ultimately lacked results for the Saints.
As the Crows cruised home with a four-goal final quarter over the tardy Saints, Betts and Walker finished their nights with three majors apiece.
Consolation goals to Jade Gresham, Jarryn Geary and David Armitage did little to bolster St Kilda's confidence, with their lacklustre second half paving the way for their 49-point loss.
Alarmingly for the Saints, their 7.13 for the night came from 54 entries inside the forward 50, highlighting not only their dysfunctional forward attack, but sheer inability to convert despite multiple opportunities.
St Kilda will be desperately hoping to resurrect their dreams of being in top-eight contention this season, but it won't be an easy ask when they take on the in-form Geelong.
Adelaide meanwhile, will be back at home in the hopes of making it 3-1 against Collingwood, who are set to regain some big names for Friday's clash.
ST KILDA 2.6 3.9 4.12 7.13 (55)
ADELAIDE 3.2 5.7 11.10 15.14 (104)
GOALS
St Kilda: Sinclair, Acres, Gresham, Coffield, Armitage, Geary, Bruce
Adelaide: Walker 3, Betts 3, Seedsman 2, Atkins 2, McGovern 2, Gibbs, Douglas, Jenkins
BEST
St Kilda: Ross, Sinclair, Webster, Dunstan, Steven, Marshall
Adelaide: Laird, GIbbs, Seedsman, Betts, Jacobs, Walker, Doedee
INJURIES
St Kilda: Membrey (knee soreness, replaced by Wright), Steven (ankle)
Adelaide: Nil
TALKING POINTS
1. ST KILDA NEED A DRAMATIC TURNAROUND TO MAKE THE TOP EIGHT
Following their shambolic display against North Melbourne last week, the Saints were intent on resurrecting their form of old coming in against the hot favourites in Adelaide.
While their persistence was evident in the first half, persistence alone won't be enough for St Kilda to turn their shocking start to the season around and push for the top-eight.
Despite being in control of patches of play, the Saints' inconsistency and inability to score was unable to be overlooked.
Terrible entries inside the forward 50, adverse kicking in front of goal and constant turnover footy are traits more akin to a bottom-four contender rather than top-eight optimists.
Complete with a misfiring forward line, St Kilda need to rectify their woes before they become the laughing stock of season 2018.
2. EVEN ON A BAD NIGHT, ADELAIDE FIRE
There's no denying Adelaide were slow out of the blocks, and they were fortunate St Kilda's inaccurate 2.6 for the opening term didn't open up a sizeable lead.
Sluggish and slow, Don Pyke's men looked like they might be
But entering into the second half, the Crows easily dispatched the Saints, piling on six goals in the third quarter alone and stamping out their inaccurate turnovers to definitively close out the game.
Taylor Walker had little of the ball with only 10 disposals yet managed to kick three goals, while Eddie Betts also kicked three after being kept goalless in the first two matches of the season.
Even with the returning Tom Lynch goalless, Adelaide kicked 15.14 for the game while Lynch racked up 21 disposals.
If that's the Crows on a bad night, oppositions better watch out for the them on a good night.
3. INACCURACY IN VOGUE FOR THE SAINTS
It must be the latest craze, because the Saints are jumping aboard in the inaccuracy train like there's no tomorrow.
Registering 2.6 for the opening term, St Kilda did little to improve their figures, finishing the game with 7.13 and going down by 49 points.
Sure, it's a slight improvement from their abysmal 5.13 against North Melbourne last week, but that wouldn't have been difficult following last week's unmitigated disaster.
The Saints certainly missed Tim Membrey's presence in the forward line, but 55 points from 54 entries is inexcusable.
Big sticks, Saints.
4. DOES PADDY McCARTIN SPEND MORE TIME IN THE VFL?
He's often St Kilda fans' whipping boy when things aren't going well, but it's fair to say Paddy McCartin was close to ineffectual last night.
Kept goalless for the night, McCartin was unable to work himself into the game and only registered two marks inside the forward 50.
With coach Alan Richardson saying post-match the St Kilda forward line needs a big shake-up, is omitting McCartin from the side a possible avenue to take while he gains some confidence in the VFL?
Taken as the No. 1 draft pick, forced to fill the massive shoes of Nick Riewoldt and all the while battling through concussion issues, it's a massive weight on the shoulders of a 21-year-old.
While McCartin certainly has the talent, it's an option Richardson will undoubtedly have to consider as he works out whether the Saints work best with a two or three-pronged forward attack.
5. EDDIE IS GOING TO EXPLODE NEXT WEEK
After being kept goalless for the first two rounds, Eddie Betts finally burst onto the scene with three impressive goals on Saturday night.
There was always the feeling it would only take one goal to bring Eddie's magic back, and that was certainly the case.
Along with 16 touches and his constant harrying presence on the mind of the Saints' defenders, Betts lit the spark that will see him achieve massive feats this year.
Expect a big Eddie bag next week at Adelaide Oval.
Comments