Under Brett Ratten, St Kilda has routinely been able to push away teams with similar talent levels. Photo: AFL MEDIA

St Kilda is a very weird football club.

And not in a cute, “oh look at that crazy haircut” kind of weird, but more of the “kids get in the car and don’t look at what that man is doing” variety.

Clearly, the Saints’ decision to sack Brett Ratten on Thursday comes at a perplexing time, off the back of a decidedly docile trade period that ushered in little in the way of new talent while failing to improve their draft standing.

What’s more staggering is that of everything presently broken at Moorabbin, Ratten was arguably the Saint’s least broken element.

Last week, St Kilda list manager James Gallagher told the footy world his club was “sick of mediocrity”, yet the Saints went and dismissed one of the few figures at the club who has actually held his end of the bargain in recent years.

For some time now, St Kilda has been one of the AFL’s worst when it comes to properly evaluating its own standing in the game.

For years, the Saints have mistakenly believed they were just a player or two away from genuine contention and traded away vital resources in pursuit of that quixotic goal. That policy has left them with just a solitary September appearance in the last 10 years as well as a significant talent drain that has them a lot closer to a 28th wooden spoon than a second premiership.

Which is why there’s little point speculating on who the club might have lined up as Ratten’s replacement – assuming it has. For all we know, the Saints could have absolutely anyone in mind from Adem Yze to Ross Lyon, from Diana Ross to Tony Lockett.

The reality is this club’s problems go a lot deeper than coach, which only increases the sense of puzzlement as to why Ratten of all people was shown the door, just three months after his re-signing, and not anyone responsible for one of the league’s least inspiring lists, one which now contains only two All-Australians in Jack Steele and Jack Sinclair.

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It was only then, after all, that St Kilda president Andrew Bassat said: “In addition to his strong football IQ, our players appreciate his ability to develop strong relationships, which he uses as a foundation to challenge each individual to get better and to deliver their role for the team.

“This balance, and the ability to unite his coaches, players and staff in a relentless quest for excellence makes Brett the best person to lead us towards our much longed-for second premiership.”

Can that perception really have changed that much in just over 100 days?

As for emerging talent, Max King is the only Saint in the last 18 years to finish top five in Rising Star voting, the club bringing in a grand total of just two first-round picks during Ratten’s tenure – one of whom is yet to play a single game at AFL level.

In fact, it could even be argued that Ratten’s ability to have kept St Kilda around the fringes of finals contention in recent years is indicative of excellent coaching, and a likely reason his executioners were comfortable extending his contract just three months ago.

Since Ratten arrived, St Kilda has routinely been able to push away teams with similar talent levels, going a solid 14-5 against bottom 4 foes since 2019.

Unfortunately, however, the Saints have gone just 4-16 against top-four teams in the same time, suggesting that Ratten has been able to take St Kilda only so far with the talent at his disposal, clearly imposing a ceiling on what is possible.

St Kilda is sick of mediocrity, yet mediocrity is shaping as a pass mark over the next few years based on how things are looking for the club right now.