The third game on Sunday for AFL Round 14 is between Richmond Tigers and St Kilda Saints. The opening bounce is set to commence at 4:40pm with the game to be played at MCG. The favourite for the match is home team Richmond Tigers. View our preview and teams for the game between Richmond Tigers and St Kilda Saints.
Round: Round 14 4:40 PM June 30, 2013
Stadium: MCG
Weather: 15° Sunny
Featured Bookmakers:
Richmond Tigers $1.22 vs St Kilda Saints $4.25 at Sportsbet Australia get a $500 FREE BET on this match
Richmond Tigers $1.22 vs St Kilda Saints $4.25 at Luxbet Australia get a $500 FREE BET on this match
Odds Comparison by AFL Odds:
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| Richmond Tigers | 1.22 | 1.22 | 1.22 | 1.22 | 1.22 | 1.23 |
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St Kilda Saints
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4.25 | 4.25 | 4.25 | 4.25 | 4.25 | 4.30 |
Preview:
The final game of the round sees Richmond taking on St. Kilda.
Richmond posted their third successive win – their fifth of the past six weeks – in convincing style with a 60 point win over Western Bulldogs. It sees the Tigers placed sixth on the ladder.
They face the struggling St. Kilda outfit here who snapped a four game losing streak with a win over Melbourne at their most recent outing.
Last time these two sides met was back in Round 2 and resulted in a 99 – 82 win to the Tigers and continued a tradition of close encounters between the two sides, where less than 21 points has separated them in the past four clashes, which includes draw, with Tigers winning the most recent two.
Richmond holds a 4-3 record at the MCG this year with losses coming to Collingwood, Geelong and Essendon.
St. Kilda tends to save their best for Richmond and the past encounters have produced close encounters including a draw three games back however, Richmond have all the momentum now and should prove too strong here.
Teams:
Richmond Tigers: 
B: Steven Morris, Alex Rance, Bachar Houli
HB: Chris Newman, Troy Chaplin, Nick Vlastuin
C: Shaun Grigg, Trent Cotchin, Daniel Jackson
HF: Aaron Edwards, Shane Edwards, Jake King
F: Ty Vickery, Jack Riewoldt, Dustin Martin
Foll: Orren Stephenson, Brett Deledio, Nathan Foley
Int (from): Matt White, Matthew Arnot, Brandon Ellis, Luke McGuane, Jake Batchelor, Reece Conca, Matt Dea
In: L.McGuane, O.Stephenson, J.Batchelor, M.Arnot, M.Dea
Out: I.Maric (groin), D.Astbury (hamstring)
St Kilda Saints:
B: Jimmy Webster, James Gwilt, Sean Dempster
HB: Jarryn Geary, Dylan Roberton, Nathan Wright
C: David Armitage, Nick Dal Santo, Terry Milera
HF: Trent Dennis-Lane, Rhys Stanley, Clinton Jones
F: Justin Koschitzke, Nick Riewoldt, Jack Steven
Foll: Ben McEvoy, Farren Ray, Leigh Montagna
Int (from): Arryn Siposs, Jack Newnes, Sam Dunell, Sebastian Ross, Tom Ledger, Brodie Murdoch, Ahmed Saad
In: A.Siposs, T.Ledger, N.Wright, A.Saad
Out: T.Simpkin (suspension)
Hayes set to return to stop Tigers
St Kilda are hoping the likely AFL return of veteran midfielder Lenny Hayes has a trickle-down effect that stops the surge of Richmond dangerman Jack Riewoldt in their MCG clash on Sunday.
The gun forward has almost single-handedly put the Saints to the sword in their last two AFL meetings, kicking a total of 15 goals.
“Jack has been a thorn in our side, no doubt,” said St Kilda coach Scott Watters.
“We need to have a look at what sort of options we’ve got to apply pressure.
“Ultimately it always comes down to what sort of midfield pressure you apply as well, and the type of supply that he’s getting, but he’s certainly been a player that’s caused us a lot of trouble over the last three or four years.”
Their cause hasn’t been helped this week with the loss of defender Sam Fisher, who required season-ending toe surgery.
Hayes hasn’t played since round nine in late May due to a hamstring injury but is tipped to make a comeback on Sunday afternoon.
Watters said that Hayes still had to get through training before he was given the green light, and if he didn’t come up for the Tigers, could play for their VFL club Sandringham.
“We’d be really hopeful that Lenny plays this week,” he said.
The young Saints have missed his on-field leadership, and his return is key with the Tigers’ midfield one of the best in the competition.
“They’re a very talented side,” Watters said.
“I think five or six of their midfielders are top-10 draft picks and probably four or five of them are top-five draft picks, so merely looking at the talent, it’s a great challenge for our group.”
Watters said his team had taken confidence from their 35-point win over Melbourne after a tumultuous week that saw veteran Stephen Milne stood down from playing after being charged with rape.
The coach didn’t want to expand on Milne apart from saying he was “coping well”.
Ruckman Ben McEvoy, who got a head knock against the Demons, looked strong at training at Seaford and is set to take his place in the side.