- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
Nick Riewoldt of St Kilda looks on with disappointment. Slattery Images
Play extra-time, we want to see more. Hawthorn and St Kilda staged a remarkable draw at Etihad Stadium on Friday night when Saints ruckman Ben McEvoy kicked a goal with 12 seconds remaining.
Hawthorn finished on 13.9 (87) to St Kilda’s 14.3 (87) in a result that could have a major say on the standings of the finals after the home and away season.
In one of the games of the season for its evenness and sheer entertainment value, the Saints can thank a Hawthorn interchange infringement for keeping them alive.
Hawk Cyril Rioli was denied a goal with two minutes left when one of his teammates infringed on the sidelines and the ball was awarded to St Kilda in the middle of the ground.
The Saints rushed the ball forward for skipper Nick Riewoldt to kick a behind, but McEvoy soon after grabbed a ball out of the air and rolled through a major which tied the scores.
Had Hawthorn not infringed on the sidelines, Rioli’s kick would have given the Hawks a 13-point lead with all the momentum behind them.
The draw was the second of the season after Collingwood and Melbourne finished level in round 12.
Hawthorn’s Lance Franklin conceded four 50-metre penalties in the first half yet finished with five goals of his own in a superb return from injury, while fellow forward Jarryd Roughead snapped out of his doldrums to boot three.
Franklin gave away back-to-back 50-metre penalties in the second term which led to a goal to opponent Zac Dawson.
He looked to have righted his wrongs at the start of the last quarter when he got a 50-metre penalty of his own and put the Hawks 14 points up.
But St Kilda’s Stephen Milne kicked the next two goals to keep his sides hopes alive and set up a thrilling finish.
Hawthorn paid a huge price for their interchange infringement, as the ball was awarded to St Kilda in defence and a 50-metre penalty given, which allowed the Saints to push into attack.
The interchange rules were introduced in 2008 after Sydney and North Melbourne played out a draw when the Swans briefly had 19 players on the field.
The result could be more damaging for Hawthorn, who needed to keep winning to be any chance of finishing in the top four.
The Hawks two points moved them from seventh spot to sixth, but they are still a game-and-a-half outside the top four.
St Kilda moved from third to second, percentage behind the ladder-leading Magpies.
In many ways the draw was a fitting result as Hawthorn led by one point at quarter-time, St Kilda took a one-point lead into half-time and scores were level at the final change.
Midfielders Luke Hodge and Brad Sewell were magnificent for Hawthorn, defender Josh Gibson did a good job keeping Riewoldt in check and Michael Osborne prevented Saints backman Sam Gilbert from having an impact and booted two goals himself.
Riewoldt kicked two goals and all three of the Saints’ behinds.
Milne, Adam Schneider and Justin Koschitzke all kicked three goals for the Saints, while onballers Lenny Hayes and Brendon Goddard were again influential.
St Kilda coach Ross Lyon said the game was a battle for his side but was pleased the Saints played hard to the end of the game.
“You take what you can get and move on. Two points and move on,” he said.
Lyon was pleased with the way the Saints responded after last week’s thrashing at the hands of Collingwood.
But he was furious with a third-quarter indiscretion when his side’s runner denied Koschitzke a shot at goal by running over the mark.
“Do I address it? My oath I addressed it. Immediately,” he said.
Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson was unsure exactly what his side was penalised for late in the game, but the Hawks suspected defender Grant Birchall either took a step over or outside the line marking the interchange area when he should not have.
But Clarkson could not hide his disappointment with the hefty penalty.
“The disappointment, I suppose, is the severity of the penalty,” he said.
“There’s a blade of grass in it if there’s an infringement or not and to cop such a severe penalty and have the game change and 50,000 people in the stadium not knowing what’s going on with the game, and an orange flag being waved.
“No one really knows what the infringement was and it had no bearing on the outcome of the game in terms of one step over the line, if that was what happened.
“That rule was introduced to try to stop blatant (examples of having) 19 men on the ground … and this is hardly blatant.
“We’ve just got to learn to deal with it and get on with it unfortunately.”
But Clarkson was pleased with his side’s continued good form against the best sides.
The game was marred by a series of slips by players on the shifty Etihad Stadium surface, but neither team had any negative comments.
Who’s in your ultimate team? Pick the best team and compete with other fans for daily prizes on Draftstars. For the best odds on the game try out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Think. Is this a bet you really want to place? Set a deposit limit.