Sunday had a bit of everything you could want from the final day of a long season: close games, farewells, good performances in losing sides, and the final makeup of the top eight not being decided until the last few minutes of the final game of the day.
In fact, even though St Kilda lost badly, it was still an enjoyable game to be at – and the end of an era.
Once it became clear that Fremantle were not going to pull one of the upsets of the year off, the St Kilda vs Richmond game should have become about Nick Riewoldt’s final few marks and possessions. But, in reality, it was about Richmond’s march into the top four.
The contest was over at quarter time, so all that was left for the Saints was to find some purpose, besides saying goodbye. And Jade Gresham provided that purpose.
This year has seen the coming of age of both Jack Billings and Luke Dunstan, who both seem to be finally on their way to fulfilling their potential. On Sunday it was Gresham’s turn to put in a complete performance.
Like the other pair, Gresham has shown glimpses of brilliance in the past, but this was the first occasion that he has really shown more than a glimpse. Sure, maybe Richmond’s defence were paying more attention to others, and after the result became clearer, they might have been less defensively minded, but that does not take away from the game Gresham played.
For a couple of weeks now, there has been talk of trading Gresham as part of a possible Josh Kelly deal with Greater Western Sydney. No matter how good Kelly is (and he is exceptionally good), Gresham can now surely not be included in any trade.
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What also stood out is that Richmond cannot lose Dustin Martin. He is central to the way they play and is worth everything they give him.
On Sunday, when Richmond were in the ascendency, Martin was in everything. He was unstoppable, untackleable and clearly the best player on the ground. For the brief period in the third quarter when St Kilda put were actually on top, Martin was invisible. Whether he was on the bench, was being tagged out of the game, or the run of play was just against him, I don’t know. But his absence in that period was noticeable.
If Martin leaves, Richmond will be in a much worse position. Not to get too hyperbolic, but he alone does what Patrick Dangerfield and Joel Selwood do together for Geelong.
In the end, the game probably ended the best way possible. At halftime, many were cheering for a loss that would put St Kilda below the Bulldogs on the ladder, at which the Saints were successful – although that is probably due more to Richmond than any short-term tanking.
But the result, combined with Essendon’s performance, did mean that it was definitely Riewoldt’s final game. It would have been horrible for St Kilda to be in the position that Melbourne ultimately found themselves in, where the finals were still a possibility until West Coast won. I can’t imagine the stress of the train ride home if finals were still on the line, especially the feeling of not knowing whether it was Nick Riewoldt’s last game.
As it was, the train ride was very enjoyable, with 90 per cent of the carriage seemingly attached to their phones, following along as West Coast ultimately secured their place in the eight.
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