Melbourne: St Kilda bolstered their finals claims with a comprehensive 67-point win over Richmond that lifted the Saints to within two per cent of the fourth-placed Tigers.
And the Tigers' woes were compounded by a first-quarter report to captain Trent Cotchin for striking the midriff of Saints goalsneak Jack Lonie.
The win made it the first time the Saints, who led by as much as 95 points in the third quarter, have recorded four consecutive wins since 2011, and coach Alan Richardson said his team's "first half was as good as we've played for a long time".
Richardson was not prepared to discuss finals, but added "I think we can be a danger to any team if we play that sort of footy".
St Kilda's Shane Savage is brought down by the Richmond defence.Credit:Getty Images
He said the team had taken enormous heart from last week's gutsy win over Fremantle in Perth, and he was pleased with the way the players had responded to the hype and attention during the week.
Richardson however conceded he would sweat on the match review of a second-quarter incident in which forward Tim Membrey (five goals) clumsily clattered into Richmond's Dylan Grimes in a marking contest.
"You always (have concerns) when there's a collision that ends up being a free kick," he said.
"It looked like Tim, from my perspective, going for a mark in mid-air, then braces."
Tigers captain Trent Cotchin has gone on report for striking St Kilda's Jack Lonie.Credit:AAP
Membrey's forearm made contact with Grimes' head, and the Tigers defender sat out the second half over concussion concerns.
Cotchin, meanwhile, was reported after allowing his frustration to spill over following a penalty for a deliberate out of bounds decision just eight minutes into the match.
He threw a short jab into Lonie's stomach, was reported and conceded a 50-metre penalty, gifting Seb Ross a goal.
Richmond coach Damien Hardwick said he was not prepared to comment on tribunal matters, but was disappointed that two of the Saints' first three goals were assisted by 50-metre penalties.
Hardwick said the 11-goal loss was "incredibly disappointing" and suggested his team's "foot skills were as poor as they've been".
He scoffed at a comment on social media from his former Port Adelaide premiership teammate, Ken Cornes, who suggested the Tigers had "got ahead of
themselves. No other explanation."
"Seriously, I'd love to see Kane, I'd really love to see Kane," Hardwick said. "Don't get me wrong, that's his job, to write shit comments."
He gave credit to St Kilda for playing outstanding football, and said the Tigers were "absolutely obliterated" in the fundamentals of the game in the first half.
He said the Tigers had eight days to "get to work" on getting their game back on track ahead of the Sunday match against the bottom-placed Lions at Etihad Stadium.