PREVIEW: Saints v Hawks

VENUE & TIME: TELSTRA DOME, 7.10pm AEST, Saturday, July 21

HEAD TO HEAD: Hawthorn: 71, St Kilda: 68, Draws: 1

LAST TIME: Hawthorn 10.12 (72) def St Kilda 6.8 (44), Round 8, 2007 at the MCG

WALKING WOUNDED: Hawthorn coped well without key forward Tim Boyle (hamstring) last week against Richmond and will have to do so for one more match at least. Michael Osborne (abdominal) is a wait-and-see prospect while Danny Jacobs (ankle) must pass a fitness test to take his place. Tim Clark (Achilles) continues to struggle and Mark Williams (knee) won't play before round 20. Luckless St Kilda defender Max Hudghton (hamstring) is a chance to resume, but it may once again be at VFL level. Aaron Hamill (knee) has not played a senior game this season and that won't change this weekend. The only other Saints on the injury list will miss the entire season; recruit Michael Gardiner (foot) and talented young leader Brendon Goddard (knee).

FORM: The Saints posted their third win in four starts with a gutsy two-point success over Adelaide at Telstra Dome. Hawthorn rebounded from its humbling defeat by the Crows to give hapless Richmond a 53-point belting.

WHO'S HOT: All the talk about the high-flying young Hawks makes it easy to forget the impact of their senior stars. While the spotlight may have shifted away from him slightly, Shane Crawford continues to get the job done. Last week 'Crawf' racked up a season-high 32 touches and slotted a classy goal to round off his afternoon's work. For the Saints, there's another bloke the wrong side of 30 leading the way. Robert Harvey racked up his 300th for the season in his 13th match last week as he willed his side across the line. At 32 and 35 respectively, it'd be nice to see the veterans go head-to-head on Saturday night.

WE THINK: As long as these teams don't serve up another snore-fest like they did back in round eight, who cares who wins. The game took a big hit when the Saints and Hawks played keepings off for 100 minutes. Since that fateful night Alistair Clarkson has released the shackles and his impressive young side now sits second on the ladder. St Kilda has shown signs in recent weeks that its not done and dusted for 2007. With confidence gained from the gutsy win over the Crows, expect the Saints to take it up to Hawthorn and survive in another close one. St Kilda by nine points.