FOR St Kilda, it was a night when the future rubbed shoulders with the past. With devastating impact, too.

Leigh Montagna is 23 and one of the best young players in the competition. The St Kilda ruck-rover had 36 disposals, and a whopping 15 in the game-breaking final quarter, to win the Ian Stewart Medal for best afield against Richmond at Telstra Dome. Montagna is one of a batch of fine, young midfielders who will form the foundation of St Kilda's next decade, and he was a worthy winner.

But the award might just as easily have gone to a 35-year-old playing possibly his last season in the red, white and black. Robert Harvey is the man who inspires the likes of Montagna, Luke Ball, Lenny Hayes and Nick Dal Santo as they try to write their own stories. With 28 touches of his own — deft handballs and chipped passes to teammates — Harvey made light of his age to cut holes in Richmond's defence as St Kilda secured a 17-point victory.

Mostly denied the opportunity to see their champion play his 350th game because the Saints were in the Perth last week, the St Kilda faithful had to be content to watch Harvey roll back the years with a brilliant 351st game in midfield.

Harvey chip, chip, chipped away at Richmond, rollicking into the open spaces and dishing out those delightful, little passes to teammates. Scarcely a disposal missed its target, nor a loose ball spilled from his soft hands. When he ran off the ground at the 17-minute mark of the final quarter with the game secured, the crowd gave him the kind of ovation he had earned.

Coach Ross Lyon said it was a moment that the fans craved. "It was important for the fans to see him and embrace him tonight. It really is self-evident what he stands for, with all he stands for with all his awards and accolades and finals appearances."

Montagna acknowledged that the remarkable Harvey had set the example for others to follow.

"Just going to his testimonial, it opened our eyes to what it's about becoming an elite AFL player, the way he trains and goes about it off the field. That just reminded us about fighting it out and grinding it out the way we have the last couple of weeks."

Lyon also believes the midfield group is chasing Harvey's deeds. "There's a lot of young talent here, but they all aspire to the greatness that Robert Harvey's achieved. Now, can they do the hard work and apply themselves like he has, day in-day out? Time's going to answer that question."

The Saints and Richmond played a high-scoring shootout under the roof and the game had many highlights, notably Nathan Foley's sensational first-quarter goal after he collected the ball behind the centre, took two bounces and bombed it from 55 metres.

It was a goalfest, with Fraser Gehrig making a welcome return with five goals, Nick Riewoldt garnering four, and at the other end, Matthew Richardson, Kayne Pettifer and Nathan Brown all getting on the scoreboard with regularity. The game was won in the early stages of the final quarter, when the gut running of Montagna and Harvey and the size and power of Gehrig and Riewoldt up forward gave St Kilda the edge, and broke Richmond open.

At 6-7, the Saints are back in the running. "We're not writing it off," Montagna said. "We think we're a good enough team to win eight of our last 10 games. Hopefully later in the season, we're in with a chance."

As for Harvey, Old Man River just keeps rolling along. Lyon, who played against the champion Saint, has had his eyes opened by a closer look at his work-rate on the track. "When you understand he's done that for 20 years, then you get some comprehension of what Robert Harvey's about."

It continues to raise the question of whether he could go on in 2008, for he has stepped directly into the form he was displaying before breaking down with a hamstring tear against Fremantle a month ago.

Lyon doesn't know the answer to that riddle, but he does know one thing. "Regardless of whether he plays next year, we want him at St Kilda because he'll be snapped up, he's such a valuable resource.

"Robert will know and he'll knock on my door and we'll have a coffee, but clearly, his form is really strong right now. But he's only a Fremantle injury away, maybe from saying: 'I've had a really good go and and I love my children and my family, Danielle, and Connor and Remy.' They'll have the discussion first. Robert will come and tell me what he wants to do."