Demons continue their rise in easy win over wasteful Saints

MELBOURNE has made St Kilda pay dearly for its notorious inaccuracy, easily beating it by 39 points.

The Demons kicked clear in the second half yesterday for a comfortable 16.10 (106) to 9.13 (67) win under the Etihad Stadium roof.

Star Melbourne forward Jesse Hogan was high among their best with three goals, but he is likely to be fined for staging after a third-quarter incident. Hogan was pushed as Melbourne scored a behind and he dropped like a stone, drawing a dubious free kick in front of goal.

But karma struck immediately as Hogan missed the easy set shot. Midfielder Clayton Oliver starred for the Demons with 36 possessions — including a whopping 28 handballs — and ruckman Max Gawn continued his redhot form. Since the start of last season, Melbourne and St Kilda have been paired as two teams on the rise and building for top-eight returns.

Yesterday’s game again showed only the Demons deserve that status. The Saints matched Melbourne early, but their goalkicking again betrayed them. They kicked a wasteful 3.8 to halftime and trailed by 28 points. Two goals at the start of the third term put St Kilda back in the game, but Melbourne absorbed the challenge and kicked the next three goals to kill off the comeback.

Adding to the Saints’ woes, key forward Paddy McCartin apparently had an episode with his diabetes early in the match.

He also was forced from the ground before halftime after a clash of heads with Melbourne defender Neville Jetta.

McCartin returned to the game, but came off for good in the last quarter.

Midfielders Seb Ross and Jack Steven were best for the Saints. The win leaves Melbourne knocking on the door of the top eight with a 4-3 record, while the Saints only have a win and a draw.