Updated July 26, 2026 – 9:48 p.m.,first published 17:29 Save You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from your saved list to add more. TOTOTO St Kilda coach Ross Lyon is convinced tortured St Kilda spearhead Max King was ready to play on Sunday despite his first AFL game in 757
Updated ,first published
St Kilda coach Ross Lyon is convinced tortured St Kilda spearhead Max King was ready to play on Sunday despite his first AFL game in 757 days ending prematurely due to a hamstring strain.
King’s latest setback in a challenging period for the 26-year-old marred the Saints’ 31-point victory over wildcard contender North Melbourne at Marvel Stadium, including a four-goal-to-one final quarter that turned a competitive contest into a comfortable victory.
Resident superstar Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera was once again the difference-maker, kicking three of his four goals after surging forward in the third quarter as part of a 46-disposal performance that took the game from the Kangaroos.
Lyon did not speak to King before his post-match news conference but said the star striker would undergo scans on Monday to assess any potential damage. The coach backed his medical staff’s decision to give King the green light after he suffered a hamstring strain in a VFL match in May.
“I don’t even know what the result is, so how can there be a mistake before there is a result?” Lyon said.
“But we maintain our decision to play with him. We have high-performance experts, we have [training] load, we have conditioning. We are really quite confident.
“In the four weeks [rehabilitation] block, had 50 percent more running volume at high speed and 500 percent more running volume at very high speed, that is, above 24 kilometers. [an hour]. His biggest sessions were 20 percent plus game loading sessions.
“So, in the context of that evidence, our conditioners thought [he was ready]and playing time was only 12 minutes per quarter: two six-minute periods. “It was very thoughtful, very thoughtful, and I’m happy that he felt with me and our team because we collaborated.”
King only had one kick (a long shot from the boundary in the second quarter) and one handball in limited playing time, but he left the field for good just 13 minutes into the third period. He headed to the quarters soon after and didn’t reappear before the Saints ruled him out.
King’s hamstring strain in May added to knee and calf problems that crippled a promising career that was stalled at 83 games for more than two years.
Speaking to SEN after the match, St Kilda veteran Brad Hill was hopeful King had avoided another long lay-off.
“Let’s cross our fingers because if so [serious]”It’s very sad,” Hill said. “It’s been a difficult journey for him the last few years, so I hope nothing bad has happened.”
King started each quarter on the bench and came on after seven minutes each time. North Melbourne defenders Charlie Comben and Aidan Corr took turns playing against him and rarely gave him much space.
His most notable impact was a heavy collision with Cam Zurhaar that cost the great Saint a 50-meter penalty after the Kangaroo made an interception mark.
King’s nightmare period began with a torn posterior cruciate ligament in his left knee that ended his season in a two-point loss to Port Adelaide at Marvel Stadium on June 30, 2024.
He signed a six-year contract extension in October of that year to tie him to the Saints through 2032, but has since suffered repeated injury complications, including three surgeries on his right knee last year after a preseason setback.
King’s problems continued with a calf injury in February before a hamstring strain in his second match of the VFL season in May further delayed his return.
He spent part of his final rehabilitation block on the Gold Coast, allowing him to spend time with his twin Ben, and St Kilda opted to bring him straight into the senior squad.
“It’s not ideal, right? But it’s about resilience and recovery,” Lyon said.
“I think ultimately you say, ‘Wow, I’ve run the AFL race, I feel good, I’ve got a start, I’ve got an idea of how hard it is and [I will] rehabilitate a potential soft tissue’. Who knows what it is? I don’t know.
The Saints also lost Cooper Sharman (controlled) and Rowan Marshall (back spasms) as late withdrawals, the latter after completing warm-up.
Dashers Hill (34 disposals) and Darcy Wilson (28) were other standout players for St Kilda, while ruckman Tom De Koning (19, seven disposals) shone on his return from broken ribs and a punctured lung.
They led by 16 points in the quarter, benefiting from a series of North Melbourne set-pieces, but the Roos took the lead early in the second half with the second of Jack Darling’s three goals.
But thanks to their 41-23 punting dominance, the 10th-ranked Saints fought back to lead by 13 points at the final break before claiming an important win.
Kangaroos defender Charlie Comben went to hospital after coughing up blood following a heavy collision late in the game, but coach Alastair Clarkson said club doctors were optimistic he had avoided a serious problem.
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