Saints hail their King after match-turning effort
St Kilda coach Brett Ratten has declared young forward Max King “elite” and a rare talent who can turn games on a day his remarkable four-goal burst in the final term sunk Richmond.
King, as he did with four goals against Fremantle last week, produced a game-turning effort by booting 4.3 in the final term, as the Saints booted 10 goals to three after half-time to secure a 33-point win at Marvel Stadium.
That the Tigers lost co-captain Dylan Grimes (hamstring) proved critical, for he had held King goalless before he shuffled from the field midway through the third term.
Saint Max King celebrates a goal against the Tigers at Marvel Stadium yesterday.Credit:Getty Images
As the 2-1 Saints turn their attention to Hawthorn on Sunday, Ratten said King, 21, was a special talent.
“He is still growing but he is pretty exciting when he launches at the ball. The great thing was he kicked a few big goals to give us a little bit of breathing space,” Ratten said.
“The elite players, or the very good players, of the competition have the ability to change games whether it’s only two possessions, three possessions, or 10 and Max is one of those players that can do that.
“He is developing well. Some of his attributes, to be 204cm run around and launch at the footy and do what he does, is pretty special.”
Small forward Jack Higgins was subbed from the game in the first term after a head knock. Ratten said Higgins had concussion, but said there were no fresh concerns in lieu of Higgins’ history of two rounds of brain surgery in 2019.
“No, I don’t think so. Everything was right. We have terrific doctors at the football club and they have had a look at him,” Ratten said.
On a day Jade Gresham was best afield with 32 touches, while skipper Jack Steele, Seb Ross and Brad Crouch were also busy, Ratten praised his team’s resilience to rebound from a 25-point deficit in the third term.
“We have been under the pump at times this year and found a way to get back into the game. We didn’t win the Collingwood game but we were five goals down,” Ratten said.
St Kilda coach Brett Ratten was pleased with his team’s resilience.Credit:Getty Images
“Freo early and then tonight … just to find a way to get back into the game. Our resilience has been really pleasing. With that, you get a little bit of belief. Even if a team might skip away, you have the capabilities of coming back.”
Ratten said it was “good” to trial the use of three ruckman – Paddy Ryder, Jack Hayes and Rowan Marshall – but was unsure if that tactic will continue.
A former assistant coach with Hawthorn, Ratten said he was unaware of any issues Cyril Rioli had with the Hawks before retiring in 2018, but admitted it had been tough to read.
The Hawks have apologised this weekend for racist incidents in his time with the club.
“It’s not great. Cyril is a terrific person, an amazing footballer, but he is a great person. To read that, it’s not great, it shows we still have a bit of work to do in society with our comments and how we go about things and really understanding the first nation’s culture,” Ratten said.
Richmond coach Damien Hardwick lamented his team’s ill-discipline in conceding free kicks – one from Marlion Pickett which gifted a goal to the Saints – a theme that has become a problem.
“It’s disappointing. The cheapness of some of the free kicks, discipline, just too high, the stoppage free kicks hurt us once again. We have got to get better. We have spoken about that all year about trying to eradicate that from our game but it creeps in at critical stages but it is really costly,” Hardwick said.
“You can’t defend from a free kick, you can’t put pressure on, they get a free disposal.”
Hardwick also lamented the loss of Grimes, for it meant the backline had to be reshuffled. The Tigers expect Jack Riewoldt (thumb) to return next week but there is still no time frame for a Dustin Martin return from personal leave.
Sports news, results and expert commentary. Sign up for our Sport newsletter.
Most Viewed in Sport
From our partners
Source: Read Full Article