Nick Riewoldt v Harry Taylor
An entertaining battle but this was ultimately won by Riewoldt. The Saints skipper opened the afternoon with a typically courageous mark when he ran back with the flight of the ball and kicked truly from the goal-square. He continued to find space in the first quarter but that evaporated in the second when he had just two touches. One may have finished with a brilliant goal from 50m abutting the boundary but the Cats wouldn’t have been disturbed by that. With the Saints’ lead cut to four points late in the third term, Riewoldt conjured some magic with a 60m roost which dribbled through. He remained a major threat in the last quarter when Andrew Mackie was shifted on to him.

Gary Ablett v Clint Jones
This was a win on points to the Cat. The Saints No.1 stopper was on top early in the first quarter but Ablett’s shift forward changed that. Given space to roam in, Ablett marked and prospered from a 50m penalty to kick the Cats’ first major. From there his confidence grew, with another goal coming from a clever Cam Mooney kick in the second term. Ablett had 16 touches until halftime and five tackles in the third term as the Cats lifted their intensity. He remained a creative influence in an amazing final term and finished with 27 possessions, including 10 contested.

Nick Dal Santo v Cameron Ling
This duel was clearly won by Ling, who has traditionally done well on the Saint. The free-wheeling Dal Santo had 26 touches but it was questionable what impact many of these had. Ling struggled with the pace of the game early when he was caught holding the ball but he soon settled into his hard-running routine. He turned up the heat on Dal Santo in the third term when the Saint was held to just two touches. Dal Santo had the chance to all but give the Saints victory in the final term when he ran into an open goal but his miss opened the door for a late Cats’ surge.

Cameron Mooney v Zac Dawson
Another entertaining armwrestle but this was ultimately won by Mooney. Missing the injured Steve Johnson, the focus intensified on the ‘big hairy Cat’ and he lifted for the occasion. He had only the one possession in the first term but raised his work-rate in the second.