in the contest and knocked him unconscious, and there was a three-minute delay while he was stretchered from the ground. Gardiner converted the goal from 10m to give St Kilda the lead. St Kilda flooded its defence for the final minute, and held on for a six-point victory, St Kilda 14.7 (91) d. Geelong 13.7 (85). Overall There was no consensus for the best player on the ground, but it was St Kilda ruckman Michael Gardiner who received three Brownlow votes and whose performance was best remembered. In a game in which both teams were missing their first choice ruckmen – Steven King suspended for St Kilda and Brad Ottens injured for Geelong – Gardiner stepped up as the most effective ruckman on the ground: his 20 hit-outs were serviceable, albeit fewer than his two opponents Mark Blake (25) and Shane Mumford (22), but his mobility gave him an advantage around the ground and his opponents were unable to counter his influence. He took seven marks and drifted forward to kick four goals, including the game winner in the final minute, while neither Geelong ruckman took a mark. Gardiner's mark for the final goal drew comparisons with Leo Barry's famous last-minute pack mark in the 2005 AFL Grand Final. Gardiner had been a No. 1 draft pick and 2003 All-Australian at as a star mobile ruckman, but through a combination of injury and poor off-field behaviour he had been traded to St Kilda in 2007 and played only 25 games between 2004 and 2008; having regained a regular place in St Kilda's team in 2009 and been among the best in the one of the biggest games of the year, it was seen as a game of redemption and became the defining moment of Gardiner's career. The game fell on Gardiner's 30th birthday. The remaining Brownlow Medal votes went to Geelong midfielder Jimmy Bartel (37 disposals, 6 clearances) and St Kilda key forward Nick Riewoldt (11 marks, 3 goals), while the best on ground for sportswriters in both the Age and Herald Sun newspapers was St Kilda midfielder Lenny Hayes (33 disposals – including 13 in the final quarter – and 12 clearances). St Kilda half-backs Sam Fisher (20 disposals, 6 rebounds) and Sam Gilbert (27 disposals, 5 rebounds), who were significant in launching St Kilda's attacks, were both among the best; Fisher in particular was influential in St Kilda's