St Kilda coach Alan Richardson says the Saints will learn from Sydney smashing

UPDATE: ST KILDA veteran Sam Fisher has been cleared of any structural damage to his jaw after a clash that left him in hospital.

Alan Richardson. Picture: Getty Images.

ST KILDA veteran Sam Fisher has been cleared of any structural damage to his jaw after a clash that left him in hospital.

The 34-year-old was taken straight to hospital after Saturday night’s loss to Sydney, after he was sent to ground in a clash with Swan Toby Nankervis.

The defender, who was released from hospital later in the evening, will be assessed throughout the week with a further update on the injury expected on Tuesday.

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“’Fish’ committed strongly to the ball. It was one of those awkward bounces, and a collision coming the other way,” coach Alan Richardson said post-game.

Fisher is out of contract at the end of the season, with Richardson saying his future will be raised in a few weeks’ time.

“We’ve still got a couple of weeks to run and we’ll just have to wait and see and have those conversations respectfully at the end of the year,” he said.

Ruckman Tom Hickey was also set to have scans on his leg after limping from the ground in the last quarter.

Sam Fisher is taken from the ground. Picture: Getty Images

Richardson declared that St Kilda will benefit from the harsh lessons of a 70-point mauling from Sydney — both in the immediate and long-term.

Confident the Saints could extend a fine opening deep into the second half, Richardson was bitterly disappointed as the Swans obliterated St Kilda’s faint finals hopes.

“They’re (Sydney) at a different level, there’s no doubt about that,” he said.

“We need to improve across the board, from our young blokes to our guys that have been around for a while.

“Yeah, they (Sydney) certainly showed us the way in a few areas and we’ll learn from this game.

“We’ll take it into the next couple of weeks and we’ll take it into the pre-season — and I’m referring to the gap.

“They were just too good in the contest. Their midfield versus our midfield, there was a bit of a gap.

“Some of our young blokes got pretty good lessons tonight and they’re great opportunities for our young guys.

“I thought (Blake) Acres was really positive again in a really intense game against a quality team, in and around the ball.

“There were many lessons for a lot of our players.”

Richardson had no explanation for St Kilda’s fadeout, other than the disparity in quality between the teams.

“It was pretty disappointing,” he said.

“It was just as if the guys completely ran out of legs and just didn’t quite have the real appetite for the brutal contest after halftime, which was really surprising.

“We were pretty positive for a half.

A disappointed Nick Riewoldt leaves the ground. Picture: George Salpigtidis

“It was inside and outside really, we just got beaten badly around the ball.

“Scores from clearances was 13 goals to two their way, so their ability to execute under pressure and deliver quality entry was way superior to ours after half-time.

“We got beaten pretty badly on the outside.”

Originally published as St Kilda coach Alan Richardson says the Saints will learn from Sydney smashing