AFL finals: St Kilda coach Ross Lyon picks Zaine Cordy over Dougal Howard

Dougal Howard is fit to play in St Kilda’s first final after suffering a fractured wrist, but coach Ross Lyon has gone another way.

St Kilda coach Ross Lyon knows all about finals. Picture: Darrian Traynor/Getty Images

St Kilda coach Ross Lyon is putting faith in form and is set to leave out key defender Dougal Howard for Saturday‘s elimination final clash with GWS, declaring “possession is nine-tenths of the law” as he backed Zaine Cordy to get the job done.

Howard has been a mainstay of the St Kilda defence over the past four seasons and played every game until round 19 this season before being sidelined by a fractured wrist, opening the door for Cordy, a premiership winner with the Western Bulldogs in 2016, who is loaded with finals experience.

Despite Howard being cleared to make his return, Lyon said Cordy would keep his spot after claiming some “good scalps” in recent weeks.

“He is unlikely. I had a good conversation with Dougal in my office. We talk pretty well. He understands possession is nine-tenths of the law. Cordy has done a pretty good job,” Lyon said on Thursday.

“Dougal has missed a bit, but in saying that, it was a wrist and Dougal really grew throughout the year with us. In fairness to Zaine, he has had some good scalps and played well.”

Dougal Howard won’t play in his team’s opening final. Picture: Darrian Traynor/AFL Photos/Getty Images

Lyon also conceded he had a “big decision” to make on veteran midfielder Seb Ross, who trained fully on Thursday but has only played one full game since round 16 because of hamstring issues, including being subbed out of the round 21 win over Geelong.

Ross, 30, is a key leader for the Saints who are back in the finals in Lyon’s first year back in charge, but the veteran has been susceptible to the injury.

“It‘s a big decision because of (the risk of) recurrence. He hasn’t played a lot in the last month,” Lyon said.

“He is a leader. I’ll be guided by him and what he says to us because once you declare yourself, you’ve got to get it done.”

Lyon has coached in 20 finals and four grand finals across 328 games in his two stints at St Kilda, as well as Fremantle, having twice taken the Saints to the grand final.

Star forward Max King said earlier this week Lyon had been preparing his players all year to be ready for finals.

The Saints spent the entire home-and-away season in the top eight before finishing sixth on the ladder.

Ross Lyon knows all about finals. Picture: Darrian Traynor/Getty Images

Saturday’s MCG clash marks the club’s first final in Melbourne since 2011 when Lyon was in last in charge, and he said his players had decided to embrace their surprise underdog status.

“The sentiment is the Giants go in favourites and maybe deservedly so, but we‘ve had our backs to the wall and that’s nothing new,” Lyon said before Thursday training.

“But it probably steels us just that little bit more.

“I‘ve loved some of the language from our players – we prepare like it’s a final every week, nothing is really different, just the result is bigger.

“We’re a very inexperienced finals team compared to the Giants, we understand that.”

“They know us, we know them and you just get to work on game day.”