Cornes: Saints were “reckless, desperate, irresponsible” with King

Max King suited up for St Kilda's AFL side for the first time in 757 days against North Melbourne on Sunday.

His return did not go to plan, however, as the injury-prone key forward was unable to complete the game, leaving the Marvel Stadium field during the third quarter with hamstring tightness.

Kane Cornes has criticised the club for bringing King back in this manner, as well as coach Ross Lyon's defence of the decision.

Cornes said it was “reckless, desperate and irresponsible” of the Saints.

“It was a ridiculous decision, absolutely ridiculous,” Cornes said on SEN’s Fireball.

“Anyone with a brain could see that this was not going to work out well for them. There is a difference between training and playing intensity, there just is.

“For Ross not to understand that is ridiculous to me. In that media conference he speaks about high-speed running and uses all sorts of acronyms to try and confuse everyone.

“Well done, you ticked the box of running fast at training. You haven’t ticked the box of having an opponent on you, having multiple inside 50s coming at you, having someone hanging off you, leading, coming back, starting on the bench, cooling down, warming up again. You haven’t been put through that at training.

“I don’t care what you say you’ve done at training, how much running you’ve done at high intensity - anyone who has played football understands the difference in intensity between training and playing. You cannot replicate matchday intensity at training.

“For them not to understand that, particularly with a player who hasn’t played for 700-odd days, is ludicrous to me.

“He couldn’t get through a game and a half at VFL level at that intensity. How was he ever going to get through a full game?

“They’re clearly not confident and clearly hesitant because he starts on the bench for every quarter.”

Cornes made it clear that his criticism is directed at St Kilda, and not at King himself.

“I think it was reckless, desperate and irresponsible to do that to a player who has just not shown that he’s got the resilience physically to get through a game of footy,” he continued.

“He’s clearly absolutely shattered and rightly so. This is no criticism of Max here. We are all thinking of him and what he’s going through mentally.

“But I just think it was irresponsible to put him in that position where we have to discuss this once again, and Ross being highly defensive of their decision when he just can’t understand that playing intensity is different to training intensity.”

What would St Kilda fans think of this situation?

“They always back their club up,” Cornes said.

“They’re the most easily satisfied supporter group in the country. They eat out of the palms of the St Kilda decision makers. Of course they’re going to be happy, of course they’re going to be defensive of their club. I’ve seen it.

“It was an irresponsible call. I can’t see how you can see it any other way.”

The Saints beat the Roos by 31 points with King contributing just two disposals and one mark.

The 10th-placed Sainters next face Sydney, Carlton, Richmond and Gold Coast as they continue to chase a wildcard slot.

The severity of King's fresh injury concern is yet to be confirmed.

Cornes warned Saints of "desperate" move

On Saturday, when it had become apparent that King would play, Cornes described it as a "desperate" move.

He and Tom Morris discussed King's impending return.

“It's a high-risk strategy,” Tom Morris explained on SEN’s Crunch Time.

“They've changed it, so instead of him playing VFL and getting match practise that way, they've tried to give him a conditioning block and allow him to get his fitness up at training.

“It's amazing that last time he was playing VFL and this time they've gone against that, and he's gonna play.”

But Cornes expressed confusion over the decision, wondering if he’ll be able to play out the remainder of the season without interruption given his previous history.

“I don't understand that,” he said.

“It's easy to say what are they doing? But that's what I'm gonna say.

“He did his hammy coming out on a very slow lead last time in the VFL.

“I would've rather four weeks in the VFL and then, if you make an unlikely run towards the finals, then play him then.

“I think it's a desperate move and I'd be surprised if it works out well for them.

“We all hope it does, cause he's one of the most watchable players, and we're all praying and hoping that it goes well for him.

“But I'd be staggered if he can play uninterrupted for the back part of this year, particularly when they play against some of the better sides.”

While Cornes doesn't like the call, former West Coast coach Adam Simpson acknowledged St Kilda’s decision wasn’t abnormal.

However, he noted the Saints will be feeling plenty of nerves when the 202cm key forward lines up on the field.

“The normal build-up is to go through the VFL, and that was the first plan,” Simpson added.

“We'll play you 40 minutes, 60 minutes, 80 minutes, then come back in the AFL.

“But he does his hamstring in the second game (back) so clearly they've gone, ‘Let's get that build-up off the field, and whether that works or not, we won't know’.

“But we did that a lot at West Coast. (If) the first plan of action didn't work, let's try a different plan, let's over-index the training loads and all the metrics you take, but you go into the game with so much trepidation.”