St Kilda have given their chances of making the AFL finals a big boost with a thrilling eight-point win over West Coast.
The stakes were high at Etihad Stadium on Sunday afternoon with the Eagles and Saints eighth and 11th respectively going into round 20.
With their finals hopes on the line, St Kilda trailed by 14 points early in the last quarter but held their nerve and rattled through three unanswered goals to hit the lead then hang on for a 15.13 (103) to 14.11 (95) win.
There was just one point in it as the clock ticked down the dying minutes, but Jack Billings marked and kicked the sealer with less than 30 seconds left in a pulsating contest.
Jack Steele was outstanding for the home side with 26 possessions, 10 tackles and two goals, with Blake Acres (30 disposals) and Billings (25 touches, two goals) also important.
Josh Kennedy kicked five goals for the Eagles, with Sam Mitchell (23 possessions) and Andrew Gaff (30) also influential.
West Coast led the fast-paced game by three points at the first break and seized the momentum midway through the second term.
Kennedy kicked his 50th goal of the season and 500th of his career as the visitors piled on four goals in seven minutes to open up a game-high 22-point lead.
But the Saints hit back with the last three goals of the first half to reduce the Eagles’ lead to three points.
West Coast retained a three-point advantage at the end of a see-sawing third quarter and had the momentum early in the final term.
But goals to Shane Savage, Billings and Steele proved decisive as St Kilda hung on for their 10th win of the season.
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