St Kilda players warm up during a St Kilda Saints training session at Linen House Oval in Melbourne.
Michael Gardiner, Jason Gram, Farren Ray, Zac Dawson, Adam Schneider, Steven King and Sean Dempster all arrived at St Kilda via a familiar path. All of them, for varying reasons, were in search of a fresh start, a second chance, or simply a new home, when the Saints took them on board.
All of them have gone on to establish themselves in the Saints’ best 22.
And now all of them – all seven of them – are in a position to win a flag.
Whilst some clubs declare that recycling players is an area they don’t want to touch, St Kilda are happy to go down the path of giving guys a new club. It’s one of the great little side stories behind their success so far this year.
Had they not gone down the path they did, it’s unlikely their list would be as strong as it is today.
The core of the team that came within an inch of playing grand finals in 2004 and 2005 is basically still there, with a few adjustments.
But because of player recycling, they’ve now also got a much stronger ruck division (thanks to Gardiner and King) and have plugged holes all over the ground (thanks to the other recruits).
One flow-on benefit is that Justin Koschitzke hasn’t had to spend anywhere near as much time in the ruck, giving them an extremely potent forward line.
Another flow-on benefit is the increased competition for spots. You only have to look at last weekend’s win over Hawthorn, in spite of eight outs on the team sheet, to know how eager fringe players are to land a place in the team.
Things like that can only help a side.
The only wonder is why more clubs don’t look at exploring avenues like the rookie draft, or trade week, or even take the time to look further into fringe players at other clubs. There are gems hiding all over the place.
Even Hawthorn last year benefited greatly by the addition of Stuart Dew – who was hiding away in retirement, of all places.
At the beginning of that season, and even later on in the year, there were question marks about whether or not the Hawks were “ready” yet. But the subtle addition of Dew proved to be a masterstroke.
He brought premiership experience to the team, played a handy role and, most important of all, put in a standout performance on grand final day.
The Hawks were a better side because they took that gamble.
St Kilda at the end of ‘06, after a disappointing finals campaign, knew that they probably needed that little bit more to taste success. A new coach, Ross Lyon, brought with him an open-minded attitude as to how they could bounce back and compete for a premiership.
The results weren’t instant, but they’re clearly showing now.
Before Lyon came in, Gardiner was at West Coast, Ray was at the Bulldogs, Dawson was at Hawthorn, Schneider and Dempster were at Sydney, and King was at Geelong.
Now, all these guys feature in the Saints’ best 22, a side that’s sitting at 19-0 with a genuine shot at a premiership.
Clubs should follow the lead of St Kilda. They should dig deeper for talent. They should consider actually doing something at trade week. They should go to whatever lengths necessary to bolster their list.
Because there are some gems hiding out there, and if they can find them, they’ll be a better club for it.
Pippinu
Roar Guru
A very exciting last quarter. I think what made it so exciting was the fact that we all knew the Dons were going to turn it over and every turnover was like a 50% chance of a goal to the Saints!! But every now and then, late in the game, Essendon would take a chance and run it forward - and even if they didn't manage to score a major, those few set shots they managed very late proably helped them hang on.
Michael DiFabrizio
Expert
And what a game it was! Real edge-of-the-seat stuff. Well done to Essendon, they certainly deserved the win. Eighth spot has been there waiting for someone to just grab it by the horns, and there's no better way to do that than by defeating a team that's 19-0! As for the Saints, I think despite what they've been saying, it'll take a bit of pressure off. The weight of being a club with only one premiership is enough to burden a finals campaign with. They probably don't want anything else on top of that.
megatron
Guest
Well the undefeated run has come to an end. I'm happy. It means Bombers kick the undeserving Power out of the 8.
Chris
Guest
But Adam Schneider and Sean Dempster have already won a flag for the Swans. And both played a key part in the premiership winning team. And Ross Lyon was on the coaching staff for the premiership winning Swans as well. I don't think this is the big ugly duckling story your making it out to be.
Michael DiFabrizio
Expert
Yeah good point, megatron. I think from memory there were four men left in the final round of interviews for the coaching gig, and the media had all been pumping up the other three. (I think even John Longmire was one of the candidates). That's why I'm a fan of how Richmond have gone about their coaching search. I must admit I thought when St Kilda sacked Grant Thomas it was a backwards step and would come back to haunt them. In hindsight, it was a backwards step. But it was the backwards step they needed to take in order to go to the next level. The results are showing now.
megatron
Guest
I remember when Lyon was hired I had never heard of him. Shows that the biggest name isn't always best. They've been building intellegently to this point.
Michael C
Guest
I recall my Rooboys back in the '90s did quite okay with recycled players - such as Abraham, Bell, 'Fridge' Roberts, McCartney, Robert Scott, Dean Laidley, and Pike, Clayton and Blakey all coming from other clubs, and only McCartney missing a premiership medallion due to suspension. It helps though when you've got the key posts filled, such as with Carey, McKernan, Martyn,.......and of course the Saints have Priority picks from the same year to thank for Riewoldt and Kosi, and Carlton I guess to thank for Goddard. The restructuring of priority picks means the Saints might be the 'last of the tanking' super teams. (note too that in that period, Collingwood picked up Fraser and Didak via Priority picks).