St Kilda thrash Hawthorn by 69 points to post their HIGHEST score under Brett Ratten

Max King’s heroics weren’t required on this occasion as free-scoring St Kilda continued their AFL resurgence with a third-straight victory, thrashing Hawthorn by 69 points.

Emerging superstar King had grabbed the two previous games by the throat when the Saints needed a hero to step up in frantic finishes against Fremantle and Richmond.

But the Hawks clash was a comparative Sunday stroll as St Kilda posted their highest score under Brett Ratten in the 22.10 (142) to 10.13 (73) win at the MCG.

Max King booted four goals as St Kilda thrashed Hawthorn by 69 points on Sunday

The Paddy Ryder-Rowan Marshall combination delivered again as the pair outpointed inexperienced Hawk Ned Reeves in the ruck and had an impact in attack.

Ryder kicked two goals from 10 disposals but will attract scrutiny from the match review officer over a late bump on Will Day, who was substituted out of the match with a concussion.

Brad Hill kicked a career-best four goals at half-forward in a tally matched by teammates Tim Membrey and Jade Gresham, who both booted goals in each quarter.

Bradley Hill also helped himself to a four-goal haul as the Saints hammered the Hawks

Tim Membrey was one of four Saints player to boot four majors as St Kilda posted their highest point tally of the Brett Ratten’s reign

While Hawthorn slipped to a second consecutive defeat after losing to Carlton last week

There were no major fireworks from King, though he also finished with four majors, including three in the final term, as one of eight goal-kickers in the comfortable win.

Jack Sinclair, Jack Steele and Brad Crouch were important for the Saints in a win coach Ratten said would build belief and momentum.

‘It was a step forward for us,’ Ratten said.

Brad Crouch finished with 29 disposals as St Kilda completely dominated proceedings

While Jack Sinclair had a monster game for the Saints, finishing with a team-high 35 disposals

‘Hawthorn’s played some really good football in the first three rounds and hurt opposition teams on counter-attack and been very potent.

‘But we built our game and across the board we stuck what we were trying to do and it worked really well.

‘Our defence is helping our offence and that’s been really pleasing.’

Luke Breust (right) was one of two Hawthorn player to kick three goals against the Saints

Hawthorn ball magnet Tom Mitchell was busy at the stoppages, leading his side to a 34-30 clearance advantage, while Mitch Lewis kicked 3.5 for the Hawks and took a huge mark on Ben Paton’s back in the dying stages.

Luke Breust also kicked three goals.

But St Kilda’s efficiency told a tale as they created 32 scores from 46 inside-50s, compared to the Hawks’ 23 from 45.

Tellingly, the Saints were able to blunt Hawthorn’s rebound off half-back and forced their opponents into a string of mistakes.

Hawks coach Sam Mitchell lamented his side’s poor control of the football after the game

‘We couldn’t withstand their pressure at the end of the day and we had nine turnovers in our defensive 50, which causes nine scoring shots for them,’ Hawks coach Sam Mitchell said.

‘With the type of game that we want to play, we can’t afford [to do that] against any side.

‘To their credit, they put a lot of pressure on us.’

The result gave St Kilda a 3-1 record ahead of a home game against Gold Coast in round five, while Hawthorn (2-2) face a tough test against traditional rivals Geelong on Easter Monday.