Richo’s wary of slower Saints
CHANGE has been the tonic at St Kilda this season, though coach Alan Richardson admits things might have been taken a little too far.
The Saints have gone from second in the competition to 10th, with the drop in numbers a symptom of sending the ball long and forcing stoppages.
It has resulted in the team rocketing from last in the competition last year for stoppages to third.
It’s been a more “simple” Saints.
But Richardson has conceded the style — which has produced three wins in four rounds — might be too underpace.
“It’s frustrating us, a little bit, too,” he said this week.
“We’re still coming to terms a little bit with what 6-6-6 is doing to rebound.
“We know it’s helping teams score from the centre bounce, but in terms of rebound, the reality is you don’t have the free players — it’s hard to get overlap and that’s been a real strength of our game.
“We’re still working through that and we’re not deliberately wanting to be as slow and as deliberate as we have been … [trying to get more creative] is a little bit of a work in progress for us.”
Midfielder Jack Sinclair credited the “positive” coaching staff and said players have been afforded “more licence to play in different positions and get more involved in the game”.
For Sinclair, that’s meant “being thrown around”, which he welcomed.
“We’ve got a whole bunch of guys being thrown around in the midfield, which keeps opposition teams guessing a bit,” Sinclair said.
“I think in the past we’ve been a bit too one-dimensional, with the same sort of four guys playing inside mid, but then now we’ve got Gresh [Jade Gresham] going through there a bit, Longy [ Ben Long], Matty Parker.
“There’s been a lot of changes over the off-season in terms of game plan and our whole system.”