I do not know what else I can do to help us win

[Sainter_Dad]

- I wear the same pair of socks on game day
- I do not trim my beard until after the game
- I avoid anything of the oppositions colours during the week up to the game
- I do not change my clothes on the day of the game
- I do not Vote on the Saintsational Player of the Year thread for the previous week.

I know that this is silly routines - lol - but after Ratt's press conference I am not sure that he does anything more than this to prepare for a game:

ratts said he and his coaching group didn't see it coming, he should have read a couple of the threads on here that predicted we would lose.

[Scollop]

We’re soft. We don’t play well when we’re in the spotlight like on a Friday night

We fold when there’s heat and when we’re expected to win

Maybe the whole club is too nice. The players have been told from the CEO down that they need to be nice. Ratten is too nice. You can see it in games when our players are stomped on or get their heads pushed into the dirt, too many of their team mates don’t offer support.

There’s only a select few of our boys who play hard and then when they do the whole world is against us. Look at how Paddy Ryder was treated when he stood his ground and the skinny kid from Hawthorn with the skinny long neck ran into his chest. Paddy gets done for a bump to the head when Paddy didn’t even make contact to his head. He bloody got whiplash. I reckon since that suspension he hasn’t been the same

Willy Rioli nearly decapitated Rowell from the Gold Coast and he got off. That prick from Adelaide ran at speed and smashed into Hunter Clark last year and the wankers on channel 7 and the MRO thought it was a fair bump. He fkn broke Hunter’s jaw!! Don’t you get it St Kilda? The AFL and footy fans actually want to see more of that sort of thing not less!!

Paddy tackled someone last night and they called it a ‘dangerous tackle’ and he copped a free against. Same thing was happening to Rowan in a few games. Our boys seem a bit gunshy but I think they just need to play that way continuously. It’s the only way that you can become a top 4 team with the sort of talent we currently have.

The reason we get done and the AFL makes examples of us is because they expect us to be nice. They’re used to us being nice. Well let’s change that. STOP being nice boys

We need to make our brand a tough ruthless brand where we take no prisoners. Don’t worry. The competition will soon get used to it. I reckon opposition fans and AFL headquarters might even like it. It sure is hell is better viewing on a Friday night when there’s some push and shove instead of players being nice to each other.

[Gershwin]

Nah, it’s my fault Sainter_Dad. I turned on the TV last week at half time when they were 2 goals up, and they immediately got hammered for the whole second half.
I went last night and they got slaughtered.
Don’t worry, I’m not going or watching them for the rest of the season.

[AuckSaint]

I’ll also put my hand up to blame. Came over from Auckland and went to Gabba and also last night at Marvel…haven’t seen Saints win “live” since 2004 and includes Gabba, Wellington, Marvel, Shanghai and MCG.

Good news is I’m at the Airport out in an hour so hopefully will remove my curse for the rest of the year.

[older saint]

Rare friday night bye with kids basketball saw me and my son at the game last night. fortunately no more byes this season means no more friday night games - my bad !

[Sanctorum]

The question I would have liked the reporters to ask Brett Ratten after the game last night is: "could it have been the elephant in the rooms before the game that caused the players to play with such a total lack of spirit?"

In many respects last night was a repeat of the Spud Game last year, when there was such a massive hullabaloo in the rooms pre-match about Spud's tragic end of life. The players would have been very much distracted by all the stories told by former team mates of Spud and in my view this could well have caused a major breakdown in focus on the game.

There is a degree of morbid irony that St Kilda (by far the worst performing team in the VFL/AFL since it's inception in 1873) with the establishment of the Danny Frawley Centre for Health and Wellbeing at Linton Street, is where people with mental health issues can attend programmes to assist them to cope with life's struggles.

I'm not for one minute suggesting that the club should not pay due respect to the problems of mental health, or not pay respect to such a great club legend, but they need to somehow do this in a way that will keep the players totally focused on the upcoming game.

[Yorkeys]

The question I would have liked the reporters to ask Brett Ratten after the game last night is: "could it have been the elephant in the rooms before the game that caused the players to play with such a total lack of spirit?"

In many respects last night was a repeat of the Spud Game last year, when there was such a massive hullabaloo in the rooms pre-match about Spud's tragic end of life. The players would have been very much distracted by all the stories told by former team mates of Spud and in my view this could well have caused a major breakdown in focus on the game.

There is a degree of morbid irony that St Kilda (by far the worst performing team in the VFL/AFL since it's inception in 1873) with the establishment of the Danny Frawley Centre for Health and Wellbeing at Linton Street, is where people with mental health issues can attend programmes to assist them to cope with life's struggles.

I'm not for one minute suggesting that the club should not pay due respect to the problems of mental health, or not pay respect to such a great club legend, but they need to somehow do this in a way that will keep the players totally focused on the upcoming game.

Yes, the Club perhaps needs to look at a different way to provide for the legacy game.

Suicide is not an uplifting subject, all the players should get a debriefing about the build up to Friday's game which seemed a bit too morbid, and really having a black colour theme is a real downer - Spud was more a bright red type of guy?

It is a mightily worthy cause but the emphasis maybe should be on how good it can be to experience life and we don't necessarily have to relive Danny's contribution, career and condition each year - that's the basis for the game, but possibly move on to some other positive themes?

It seems a bit contradictory to me to say a goal is to remove stigma, then talk euphemisms in a hushed voiced.

And get rid of having other clubs personalities address us and the players, I understand the spirit but its about us and Danny and mental health. Let the other clubs do what they want. And shorten any group huddle in a spotlight, uncomfortably long and the speeches could be done in the warm ups if they are needed at all.

Anyone else think it possibly ironic the main theme was talk to a mate, enquire how they are travelling, yet the Coach says we didn't see this terrible performance by the players coming? I guess its perhaps true, no good deed goes unpunished.

[Gershwin]

I’ll also put my hand up to blame. Came over from Auckland and went to Gabba and also last night at Marvel…haven’t seen Saints win “live” since 2004 and includes Gabba, Wellington, Marvel, Shanghai and MCG.

Good news is I’m at the Airport out in an hour so hopefully will remove my curse for the rest of the year.

Yeah, piss off.

[shanegrambeau]

We’re soft. We don’t play well when we’re in the spotlight like on a Friday night

We fold when there’s heat and when we’re expected to win

Maybe the whole club is too nice. The players have been told from the CEO down that they need to be nice. Ratten is too nice. You can see it in games when our players are stomped on or get their heads pushed into the dirt, too many of their team mates don’t offer support.

There’s only a select few of our boys who play hard and then when they do the whole world is against us. Look at how Paddy Ryder was treated when he stood his ground and the skinny kid from Hawthorn with the skinny long neck ran into his chest. Paddy gets done for a bump to the head when Paddy didn’t even make contact to his head. He bloody got whiplash. I reckon since that suspension he hasn’t been the same

Willy Rioli nearly decapitated Rowell from the Gold Coast and he got off. That prick from Adelaide ran at speed and smashed into Hunter Clark last year and the wankers on channel 7 and the MRO thought it was a fair bump. He fkn broke Hunter’s jaw!! Don’t you get it St Kilda? The AFL and footy fans actually want to see more of that sort of thing not less!!

Paddy tackled someone last night and they called it a ‘dangerous tackle’ and he copped a free against. Same thing was happening to Rowan in a few games. Our boys seem a bit gunshy but I think they just need to play that way continuously. It’s the only way that you can become a top 4 team with the sort of talent we currently have.

The reason we get done and the AFL makes examples of us is because they expect us to be nice. They’re used to us being nice. Well let’s change that. STOP being nice boys

We need to make our brand a tough ruthless brand where we take no prisoners. Don’t worry. The competition will soon get used to it. I reckon opposition fans and AFL headquarters might even like it. It sure is hell is better viewing on a Friday night when there’s some push and shove instead of players being nice to each other.

Agree

Funny thing.
Essendon were labeled as soft and disinterested in the press earlier this year..

Maybe it’s like cold that people catch and spread?

But I concur about St Kilda and how the AFL and the Saints are in co-dependence.

Club is on welfare cheque food stamps, and must be passive, in so far as just eating whatever the AFL tells em to eat.

[shanegrambeau]

We’re soft. We don’t play well when we’re in the spotlight like on a Friday night

We fold when there’s heat and when we’re expected to win

Maybe the whole club is too nice. The players have been told from the CEO down that they need to be nice. Ratten is too nice. You can see it in games when our players are stomped on or get their heads pushed into the dirt, too many of their team mates don’t offer support.

There’s only a select few of our boys who play hard and then when they do the whole world is against us. Look at how Paddy Ryder was treated when he stood his ground and the skinny kid from Hawthorn with the skinny long neck ran into his chest. Paddy gets done for a bump to the head when Paddy didn’t even make contact to his head. He bloody got whiplash. I reckon since that suspension he hasn’t been the same

Willy Rioli nearly decapitated Rowell from the Gold Coast and he got off. That prick from Adelaide ran at speed and smashed into Hunter Clark last year and the wankers on channel 7 and the MRO thought it was a fair bump. He fkn broke Hunter’s jaw!! Don’t you get it St Kilda? The AFL and footy fans actually want to see more of that sort of thing not less!!

Paddy tackled someone last night and they called it a ‘dangerous tackle’ and he copped a free against. Same thing was happening to Rowan in a few games. Our boys seem a bit gunshy but I think they just need to play that way continuously. It’s the only way that you can become a top 4 team with the sort of talent we currently have.

The reason we get done and the AFL makes examples of us is because they expect us to be nice. They’re used to us being nice. Well let’s change that. STOP being nice boys

We need to make our brand a tough ruthless brand where we take no prisoners. Don’t worry. The competition will soon get used to it. I reckon opposition fans and AFL headquarters might even like it. It sure is hell is better viewing on a Friday night when there’s some push and shove instead of players being nice to each other.

Agree

Funny thing.
Essendon were labeled as soft and disinterested in the press earlier this year..

Maybe it’s like cold that people catch and spread?

But I concur about St Kilda and how the AFL and the Saints are in co-dependence.

Club is on welfare cheque food stamps, and must be passive, in so far as just eating whatever the AFL tells em to eat.

[shanegrambeau]

We’re soft. We don’t play well when we’re in the spotlight like on a Friday night

We fold when there’s heat and when we’re expected to win

Maybe the whole club is too nice. The players have been told from the CEO down that they need to be nice. Ratten is too nice. You can see it in games when our players are stomped on or get their heads pushed into the dirt, too many of their team mates don’t offer support.

There’s only a select few of our boys who play hard and then when they do the whole world is against us. Look at how Paddy Ryder was treated when he stood his ground and the skinny kid from Hawthorn with the skinny long neck ran into his chest. Paddy gets done for a bump to the head when Paddy didn’t even make contact to his head. He bloody got whiplash. I reckon since that suspension he hasn’t been the same

Willy Rioli nearly decapitated Rowell from the Gold Coast and he got off. That prick from Adelaide ran at speed and smashed into Hunter Clark last year and the wankers on channel 7 and the MRO thought it was a fair bump. He fkn broke Hunter’s jaw!! Don’t you get it St Kilda? The AFL and footy fans actually want to see more of that sort of thing not less!!

Paddy tackled someone last night and they called it a ‘dangerous tackle’ and he copped a free against. Same thing was happening to Rowan in a few games. Our boys seem a bit gunshy but I think they just need to play that way continuously. It’s the only way that you can become a top 4 team with the sort of talent we currently have.

The reason we get done and the AFL makes examples of us is because they expect us to be nice. They’re used to us being nice. Well let’s change that. STOP being nice boys

We need to make our brand a tough ruthless brand where we take no prisoners. Don’t worry. The competition will soon get used to it. I reckon opposition fans and AFL headquarters might even like it. It sure is hell is better viewing on a Friday night when there’s some push and shove instead of players being nice to each other.

Agree

Funny thing.
Essendon were labeled as soft and disinterested in the press earlier this year..

Maybe it’s like cold that people catch and spread?

But I concur about St Kilda and how the AFL and the Saints are in co-dependence.

Club is on welfare cheque food stamps, and must be passive, in so far as just eating whatever the AFL tells em to eat.

[Sainter_Dad]

- I wear the same pair of socks on game day
- I do not trim my beard until after the game
- I avoid anything of the oppositions colours during the week up to the game
- I do not change my clothes on the day of the game
- I do not Vote on the Saintsational Player of the Year thread for the previous week.

I know that this is silly routines - lol - but after Ratt's press conference I am not sure that he does anything more than this to prepare for a game:

ratts said he and his coaching group didn't see it coming, he should have read a couple of the threads on here that predicted we would lose.

I think the OP was trying to emphasize the point that his silly rituals seemed to be as involved as the planning that went into Friday night's debacle.

[SuperSaint66]

Santorum & Yorkeys, you have articulated my thoughts precisely.

I was worried about this game, having memories of 2021 v Melbourne when the players seemed drained of energy & enthusiasm right from the start. A similar lethargy was evident this year v Essendon. (IMO).

By all means StK can honour a club legend and focus on the importance of the Danny Frawley Centre.
But not right before the game, neither in the rooms nor with the players on the ground!

The players should be focusing on their routines that work for them, listening to a final message of inspiration from the Coach, and revving themselves up ready to begin a ruthless match with confidence & enthusiasm.