The 23-year-old handed gruesomely on his left ankle, which saw his lower leg majorly displaced<\/a> and a stretcher aid him off the ground.<\/p>\nTeammate James Rowbottom was ruled out before quarter time with a suspected broken hand, while St Kilda\u2019s Jack Silvagni came from the field in the final quarter with a shoulder injury that saw him sport a sling in the changerooms before full time.<\/p>\n
St Kilda goalkickers: Wanganeen-Milera, Hall 3, Lake, Higgins 2, Ryan, Garcia, Caminiti<\/p>\n
Sydney goalkickers: McDonald 4, Curnow 3, Heeney, Cootee, Ch.Warner 2, Serong, Gulden, Papley<\/p>\n
THE 3-2-1… (with Jack Jovanovski from Marvel Stadium)<\/p>\n
3. SAINTS\u2019 MAJOR FINAL BOOST THEY HAD… UNTIL THEY DIDN\u2019T<\/p>\n
It was all set up to be a character-building St Kilda win to significantly bolster its finals candidacy. <\/p>\n
Instead, it was a 10th loss from 10 clashes with top-10 opposition for Ross Lyon\u2019s side, in devastating fashion. <\/p>\n
A scintillating Sydney piled on seven last-quarter goals to two to claim a win that looked like St Kilda\u2019s for a vast portion of the day. <\/p>\n
And it\u2019ll hurt that much more for the Saints after they had Sydney on the ropes at times in the first and second halves, leading by as many as 24 points late in the third term. <\/p>\n
The Saints dominated the early territory battle, winning clearance and spreading dangerously from it. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re getting the game they want at the moment,\u201d former Carlton coach Michael Voss said on Fox Footy in the first quarter. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re winning the important clearance battle – certainly the centre square bounce first and foremost, but then their ball movement forward of centre is also becoming a factor.\u201d<\/p>\n
Voss added later: \u201cI love what they\u2019re doing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dunstall chimed in: \u201cThe forward-half pressure the Saints are putting on to create those turnovers – they\u2019re what coaches love more than anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
St Kilda\u2019s forward-half pressure had the Swans hearing footsteps in their backline, getting out to as much as a 20-point lead in the second period. <\/p>\n
\u201cIf you\u2019re Ross right now, you\u2019re really happy as a coach with how the game is being set up at the moment. They\u2019re definitely playing the style of football they want,\u201d Voss said. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve got good balance between using their hands and using the ball by foot, getting territory, attacking the deep, and then setting up the game in their half to be able to give themselves opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n
At half-time, the Saints had 54 more disposals than the Swans, 51 more uncontested possessions, three more clearances and seven more contested possessions. <\/p>\n
As for superstar Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera \u2014 who Voss said was \u201cinside the matrix\u201d after he kicked his second goal \u2014 six of his 14 first-half disposals were score involvements, along with his two majors. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe spots up players beautifully \u2026 he makes the most of his possessions, and he\u2019s been one of the best players on the ground,\u201d Dunstall said at half-time. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd when he\u2019s playing well, St Kilda is playing well.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018Nas\u2019 was draped all day by Sydney tagger James Jordon, but he was damaging particularly when he went forward. <\/p>\n
And early in the third quarter, Wanganeen-Milera had his third goal of the day after capitalising with zero margin for error in terms of congestion at the contest. <\/p>\n
Sydney kicked the first goal of the second half, but St Kilda immediately got the game back on its terms, locking the ball back in its forward half and suffocating the Swans with their front-half pressure. <\/p>\n
Anthony Caminiti\u2019s goal at the 13-minute mark made it a game-high 23-point margin. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey are under siege, the Swans,\u201d Montagna said. <\/p>\n
Voss added: \u201cThe game feels like it deserves this margin \u2026 St Kilda has been super efficient inside 50.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ten of the Saints\u2019 11 goals to that point in the third term had been from turnover.<\/p>\n
2. \u2018THAT IS NASTY\u2019: HUGE SWANS DOUBLE BLOW AS SAINTS DEALT SCARES OF THEIR OWN<\/p>\n
In a devastating scene, emerging Sydney defender Will Edwards suffered a nasty ankle injury in the fourth quarter. <\/p>\n
Rising high in a marking contest, Edwards didn\u2019t just cop a knock to the head, but also landed extremely awkwardly on his left foot. <\/p>\n
In gruesome vision, Edwards\u2019 left ankle appeared to snap on contact, with the 23-year-old in immediate agony. <\/p>\n
\u201cOh, that\u2019s gone sideways. That\u2019s broken. We won\u2019t show that again,\u201d Dunstall said as replays of the incident were shown on the broadcast. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd to top it all off, you get your head split open as well. That is a nasty one.\u201d<\/p>\n
Edwards, since making his debut in Round 7, has fit in seamlessly in Dean Cox\u2019s backline, playing his 14th consecutive AFL game on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Heartbreak for Swans’ Will Edwards | 00:31<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s slotted in seamlessly, playing in key defensive posts; he\u2019s been a good intercept marker, he certainly doesn\u2019t want for anything in terms of having a contest. He will attack it,\u201d Dunstall said. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd we saw the one that he got injured in; there were bodies everywhere, and he was right in the middle of it, going hammer and tong for the footy. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s been impressive since coming in. And whilst this looks to be pretty serious, we hope for the best possible outcome for the young man.\u201d<\/p>\n
It comes as Sydney hard nut James Rowbottom is also set for a stint on the sidelines after suffering a suspected broken hand earlier on Saturday. <\/p>\n
Rowbottom, who\u2019s played in every game for the Swans this season, came from the field midway through the first quarter under duress after an innocuous incident in the middle of the ground. <\/p>\n
The midfielder-turned-pressure forward required lengthy treatment from Sydney\u2019s medical staff, with his body language indicating his ailment was serious. <\/p>\n
\u201cJames Rowbottom is clearly not happy with a hand injury down on the boundary. He spent a lot of time talking to the doctors and trainers,\u201d Fox Footy\u2019s Sarah Jones shared. <\/p>\n
She added a short time later: \u201cJames Rowbottom is so dejected down here. <\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s had a cuddle from Errol Gulden; he\u2019s really struggling. He looks quite upset. Clearly in a lot of discomfort, and pretty frustrated.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was a matter of time before Rowbottom was officially ruled out of the game and made his way down to the rooms, sporting a makeshift cast. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe know how integral he is to their system,\u201d dual All-Australian Leigh Montagna said on the broadcast. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a big blow. They\u2019re going to have to rely on a few of these others to step up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hawthorn legend Jason Dunstall added: \u201cLet\u2019s hope he\u2019s back quickly, because he\u2019s such an important player for the Swans.\u201d<\/p>\n
Since moving forward, Rowbottom has kicked an equal career-high nine goals this season while still averaging 16.2 disposals per game. <\/p>\n
The severity is yet to be determined, with subsequent scans to confirm, but the club, at the time of writing, suspects a break. <\/p>\n
In a brutal blow for the Saints too, star recruit Jack Silvagni came from the ground in serious pain with what appeared to be a shoulder concern.<\/p>\n
The 28-year-old was seen sporting a sling in the changerooms minutes before the final siren, speaking with family.<\/p>\n
Earlier, St Kilda was dealt a Tom De Koning scare after an apparent hamstring concern in the third quarter. <\/p>\n
At a ruck contest, De Koning awkwardly went to ground after tussling with Hayden McLean, before immediately grabbing at his left hamstring. <\/p>\n
He walked from the far side of the ground towards the bench, before slowly jogging off with a physio by his side.<\/p>\n
The big left-footer went straight down to the rooms for further assessment, with Rowan Marshall, freshly back into Ross Lyon\u2019s side, temporarily assuming number-one rucking duties. <\/p>\n
Promisingly, a short time later, De Koning reemerged and did some groundball work before riding the stationary bike until three-quarter-time. <\/p>\n
And fortunately for the Saints, the prized recruit rucked the first ball-up of the final term.<\/p>\n
1. \u2018SMALL WINDOWS\u2019: SPIRITED SWANS LIFT LATE IN GUTSY GRIND<\/p>\n
These are the kinds of games the best teams manage to win, even in mightily difficult circumstances. <\/p>\n
And down two important players at either end of the ground \u2014 James Rowbottom and Will Edwards \u2014 the Swans found a way to overrun the spirited Saints, despite looking like the lesser team for a large portion of the day. <\/p>\n
It means their momentarily unstable top-two positioning remains intact. <\/p>\n
Sydney showed scattered glimpses of its scintillating best in the first half, but couldn\u2019t piece together sustained momentum as the Saints pounced. <\/p>\n
Finding themselves down as many as 20 points in the second quarter, it was clear the Swans were on the back foot and not able to stem the hosts. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re only doing it through moments right now; it\u2019s not through style, it\u2019s not through great play,\u201d Voss said on Fox Footy. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re just getting their small windows to be able to score, not quite finishing their work. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhat would be concerning is that St Kilda definitely has its game in order at the moment; they\u2019ve got a great balance with what they\u2019re doing between contest and how they\u2019re using the ball. It\u2019s putting (Sydney) under a lot of pressure.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Swans needed more out of Isaac Heeney after the superstar managed a goal from just eight possessions in the first half, with young Saint Hugh Boxshall shadowing him at every opportunity. <\/p>\n
And he started the second half with a goal after drawing a 50-metre penalty on Boxshall, in what Montagna labelled an \u201cominous warning sign\u201d. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere is a definite intention from Heeney to push forward post-stoppage,\u201d Voss noted in the third quarter. <\/p>\n
Still, as soon as it seemed like the Swans had momentum in the game, the Saints hit back and rejuvenated their forward-half pressure game \u2014 leading by four goals late in the third. <\/p>\n
But the Sydney charge came again \u2014 after the minutes-long break in play that saw Edwards leave on a stretcher, no less \u2014 as Cox\u2019s men dug deep. <\/p>\n
The Swans\u2019 end-to-end transition that was stifled for more than half the game suddenly came to life, and it overwhelmed the hosts in the end. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhen Gulden, Heeney and Warner are involved in a chain, it generally ends the way it did,\u201d Montagna said after Chad\u2019s second goal to make it a 20-point lead in the last. <\/p>\n
And it wound up being a last-quarter avalanche, with Sydney piling on seven goals to two in the stanza \u2014 after trailing by 12 points at the final change \u2014 to devastate the Saints for the second time this season.<\/p>\n
Re-live our coverage of St Kilda vs Sydney in the blog below! Can\u2019t see the blog?Click here<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sydney has survived an almighty four-quarter threat to their top-two hopes on Saturday afternoon, pipping St Kilda at…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":838341,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[560],"tags":[638,64,63,55,639,85],"class_list":["post-838340","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-afl","tag-afl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-australian-football-league","tag-australianfootballleague","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/838340","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=838340"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/838340\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/838341"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=838340"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=838340"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=838340"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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