St Kilda coach sacking: Brett Ratten and Saints part ways

In a move that has left the footy world in shock, St Kilda has sacked Brett Ratten just months after re-signing him for another two years.

PERTH, AUSTRALIA - JULY 24: Brett Ratten, Senior Coach of the Saints looks on before the 2022 AFL Round 19 match between the West Coast Eagles and the St Kilda Saints at Optus Stadium on July 24, 2022 in Perth, Australia. (Photo by Will Russell/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

St Kilda has sensationally sacked senior coach Brett Ratten less than 100 days after re-signing him for two more seasons.

The shock decision will mystify the club’s fan base and heap added pressure on the club’s executives, given the Saints’ decision in July to re-contract Ratten for seasons 2023 and 2024.

It comes amid a searching review of St Kilda’s football department and its football program, with the sacking coming only a day after the trade period ended and six weeks out from what looms as a critical national draft for the Saints.

Brett Ratten and St Kilda have severed ties. The two-time coach is understood to be shocked by the decision.

Ratten, 51, is understood to be shocked by the decision, especially given the vote of confidence he believed he had received when handed the new two-year deal.

St Kilda fans will be keen to find out what sort of payout there will be on Ratten’s contract, with the club likely to be protected with a six-month payout clause.

New St Kilda football boss Geoff Walsh said there was a “a degree of irrelevance” about the club in a recent strongly worded radio interview, while Saints list boss James Gallagher admitted on Thursday the club was not good enough to compete for premiership.

The timing of the decision will heighten speculation that the Saints may have already set their sights on Ratten’s replacement.

Contenders for the role could include club great Lenny Hayes, who has only just returned to Moorabbin as an assistant coach, former Essendon coach James Hird, highly-rated Melbourne assistant Adem Yze and departing GWS assistant coach Mark McVeigh.

New chief executive Simon Lethlean will have to own the decision. As the club’s football boss before taking on the new role, he would have played a role in extending Ratten’s contract when the club surged to a strong start to the season.

Brett Ratten and the Saints managed just 11 wins in 2022, narrowly missing playing finals.

But after a strong 5-3 start to 2022, which helped to bring about Ratten’s new contract, the Saints crashed with only three wins from their last 11 matches, to miss the final for a second successive season.

The pressure on Ratten and the club’s football department was only heightened when the club announced a review, headed by president Andrew Bassat but also including sacked North Melbourne coach David Noble, Lethlean and board member Jason Blake.

The club also engaged other independent advisors, with a forensic look at the football program including an external assessment of the club’s playing list.

The Saints also announced long-time football administrator Geoff Walsh as its new head of football last week, replacing Lethlean who has moved into the CEO’s role.

It’s the second time Ratten has been sacked as a senior coach, following on from Carlton’s decision to replace him with Mick Malthouse at the end of 2012 after he had taken the Blues to three finals series in his 120 games at the helm.

Ratten played a significant role in three premierships at Hawthorn as an assistant coach to Alastair Clarkson before moving to the Saints as an assistant coach.

Brett Ratten after the announcement he had signed a new two-year contract extension.

He took over as St Kilda’s caretaker coach from the last six games of 2019 before leading the club to a finals campaign in 2020, losing to eventual premiers Richmond in a semi-final.

Ratten’s Saints have won 34 of the 68 games the club has contested in his time in the role.

Bassat told the Herald Sun heading into 2022 that “I fully expect Brett to be our long-term coach and I fully expect — no pressure at all — Brett to become our second premiership coach, and hopefully not before too long.”

The Saints lost the last three matches of the 2022 season, seeing them crash out of finals contention, albeit the losses came against finalists Geelong, Brisbane and Sydney.

St Kilda was a bit player in the trade and free agency period, having failed to attract Jordan De Goey. They lost Ben Long to Gold Coast, brought in premiership Bulldog Zaine Cordy and managed to retain Hunter Clark, despite some strong interest from North Melbourne.

Originally published as St Kilda coach sacking: Brett Ratten and Saints part ways