Southern league: St Kilda City coach Richard Houston’s strong message
St Kilda City coach Richard Houston has declared he won’t accept “stupid people doing stupid things” in a stunning pre-season message to his players.
Southern
Don't miss out on the headlines from Southern. Followed categories will be added to My News.
St Kilda City president and senior coach Richard Houston has had some “black and white” conversations with his playing group as he is prioritising an improvement in club culture in 2023.
While he was proud his Saints finished just one win from a grand final appearance last season, Houston is focusing on the culture ahead of performance at the Peanut Farm.
“The real focus this year to be honest is off the field,” he said.
“As much as our success on the field last year was fantastic, we had some issues behind the scenes and the club was falling over a bit.
“We have to develop our culture on and off the field, that will be our priority this year, we have a good team, we will hopefully make finals and be competitive, but the main focus is to keep the club together and working well.”
In the early stages of the pre-season, Houston made it clear to the playing group that advances in the culture will come both on and off the field.
From the big incidents to giving away undisciplined free kicks, it has all been on the agenda.
“We have had a lot of discussions with our players, because we had a lot of issues with some players last year,” he said.
“I have watched our reserves play and saw a couple of our boys sniping … that’s unacceptable, I have spoken to the players, I have made it very black and white.
“Umpires weren’t going to umpire our games last year, when you get to that level, that is just rubbish.
“We were losing games last year because stupid people were doing stupid things, all that discipline is coming back this year.
“My number one priority is getting this group together and making sure the culture of the club is exemplary.”
While Brendan Fevola isn’t expected to play for the Saints, former Brownlow Medallist Dane Swan is set to return.
St Kilda City is also looking to field an under-19 side in 2023 with the hope of giving young players an opportunity in the senior side.
The local footy teams to keep an eye on in 2025
From clubs with massive off-season recruiting drives to those who need to live up to the pressure, these are the local footy teams you need to keep an eye on in 2025.
Named: the biggest local footy recruits of 2025
From Melton to Mornington, Epping to East Brighton, local footy clubs have secured some elite talent. We’ve named the biggest moves of the summer here.