St Kilda great Sam Fisher has urged the Saints to risk injuries at training in order to improve their kicking, both for goal and around the ground.

Alan Richardsons side has just one win and a draw from seven games in 2018, and are the lowest-scoring team in the competition. St Kildas kicking for goal was an issue last year, prompting the hiring of Ben Dixon as a specialist goal kicking coach, but statistically the Saints have gone backwards in that area, kicking 61.89 for the season. They havent kicked more than 10 goals since posting 16.11 in round one against the Brisbane Lions.

Two-time St Kilda best and fairest Fisher, an All-Australian in 2008 who retired at the end of 2016, agreed with Richardson that inaccuracy could have a demoralising effect on a team. The 228-game defender said the Saints had to focus on upskilling their players, even if the clubs high performance staff called for workload to be moderated.

“I was thinking about it the other day. I was thinking maybe the fitness staff dont like the boys to kick too much,” Fisher told The Age.

“Theyre probably at the stage that at the risk of potentially getting an injury, for over-kicking, were probably better off losing a player for over-kicking it at the moment than not doing enough.

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“Were not going to make the finals now [anyway].”

However Fisher threw his support behind the embattled coach, noting that ultimately there was only so much Richardson could do when his players werent executing skills.

“I cant speak highly enough of 'Richo'. Hes still a work in progress too,” Fisher said.

“Five years as a senior coach in an AFL system is still not that great a period. And if were talking about the list not quite being right, then is it the chicken or the egg sort of thing?

“Theres no way hes lost the players, because they fight. They have a crack.

“I cant doubt them in that aspect.

“How long was [Richmond coach Damien] Hardwick there [before 2017]?”

While Fisher said the departure at the end of last year of Leigh Montagna and Nick Riewoldt had left something of a leadership void, but was loathed to criticise captain Jarryn Geary.

“I think Gears does a great job. But as a dominant presence on the field, we dont seem to have that presence on the football field, like a Rooey as such.”

Fisher said that several of the clubs top picks from recent years hadnt developed like the club would have hoped.

“I just dont think the players have come on like they were expecting. For all the high draft picks weve had, none of them have turned into superstars yet.

“The [team] is obviously down on confidence, which doesnt help.”

The Saints travel to Perth this week to face former coach Ross Lyons Fremantle on Saturday night before returning to Melbourne for meetings with Collingwood (Etihad Stadium) and Richmond (MCG). St Kilda then head back to Perth to face West Coast.

Richardson, in charge of the Saints since the end of 2013, was last year re-signed until the end of the 2020 season. St Kilda haven't made the finals since 2011.

Speaking after the loss to Melbourne on Sunday, Richardson said the Saints' poor kicking for goal may have "sapped" energy from his side.

"I get incredibly frustrated for us, I get incredibly frustrated for the players," he said.

"You are just not going to beat anyone given our even the competition is unless you can take advantage of your opportunities. You start to think about what it is doing to the rest of them and clearly it's something that we have to fix."

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Daniel is an Age sports reporter.

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