St Kilda want to be smart players rather than superpowers in the AFL’s renovations race.
While conceding the Saints will have to expand their controversial new home at Seaford, coach Scott Watters said they could not afford to spend too much money on the upgrade.
After a disagreement with the local council, St Kilda dramatically abandoned their long-time Moorabbin ground in late 2010.
They moved further out of Melbourne to the new facility at the south-eastern suburb of Seaford.
Privately, players and support staff were unhappy with the relocation further out of the city.
It also quickly became clear that the new headquarters were not big enough for an AFL club.
“You need to be very careful about getting caught in an arms race,” Watters said.
“Like every facility, ours needs to continue to evolve.
“You see the jumps that many of the clubs have made, even in the last 12-24 months.
“You do need to remain cutting edge to remain competitive, but at the same time it’s not just about massive expenditure and bigger necessarily meaning better.”
Chief executive Michael Nettlefold said land was available for expansion and they were planning what to do next.
“A lot of that is going to depend on our future requirements for sports science and a range of those sorts of things,” he said.
Nettlefold also confirmed that while the Saints still have a 30-year lease at Moorabbin, their main focus will now be Seaford.
They want to develop the Moorabbin ground into a community venue.
“In the context of where we’re going to operate our training and our administration, that will be from our new facility down here,” Nettlefold said.
On the field, the Saints are in transition, with the team rebuilding after nearly winning the premiership in 2010-11.
Watters said the signing of a three-year major sponsorship with lighting company LEDified sent a strong message to the team.
“It says a lot about where we’re heading as a club and that rubs through to the playing group,” he said.