Richmond, Essendon, and Geelong saw St Kilda win the tournament. Dal Santo had an excellent Premiership season, playing every match, averaging over 18 disposals a game, and kicking 11 goals for the year. He completed his first ever 30 disposal plus match in St Kilda FC's 10th Premiership season win in a row against Carlton in Round 10, the clubs 14th win in a row for the year including the Wizard Cup Premiership. The Saints were three games clear in first position on the AFL standings at the end of round 10. The team had a difficult and oppressive second half of the season, qualifying a creditable 3rd on the official standings. Dal Santo played in his first ever Finals Match win by 51 points against Sydney at the M.C.G. in the 2004 Semi-Finals, the Saints largest winning margin in a Finals match since the 1970's. On the field, St Kilda's season ended prematurely in the Preliminary Final at Football Park in Adelaide. 2005 Triumph in Adelaide and Brownlow Medal Success Former Essendon Football Club coach Kevin Sheedy, during the 2005 season, likened Dal Santo to triple-Brownlow Medallist Ian Stewart for his exceptional skill and courage. In that same year, former Hawthorn champion Gary Ayres said this of Dal Santo in an interview: "He's got a high skill level on both sides of his body. He's a good reader of the play, he's got football smarts which are very hard to teach and the thing he does very well is he's got that ability to be composed when he uses the ball. He doesn't seem to get too flustered or rushes it, and that's a pretty special quality to be able to have when you play elite football because a lot of players can get the ball but do they make the right decision?" In 2005 Dal Santo took his game to a new level, racking up over 500 disposals for the year at an average of 22.6 per game. He was a clear standout player in the league for the season, finishing a close third in the initial 2005 Brownlow Medal count. Dal Santo was recognised for his excellent season with selection in the 2005 All-Australian Team as a midfield player, his first career All-Australian Team award. St Kilda had a dominant second half of the season, qualifying for the finals series in 4th officially after defeating Brisbane Lions