ST KILDA will be racing the clock, and sweating on the decisions of the match review panel, as it prepares to salvage its finals campaign after being smashed by Geelong by 58 points in yesterday's qualifying final at the MCG.

The Saints will learn later today whether star midfielder Lenny Hayes has a case to answer for appearing to strike Cats hard nut Joel Selwood in the third term, while it is still unclear whether Luke Ball will be able to recover from his hamstring injury in time for Saturday night's semi-final against Collingwood.

Geelong's big win was soured slightly by what appeared to be a spiteful exchange between the Cats' top defender Matthew Scarlett and retiring champion Robert Harvey as the two teams left the field at the end of the game.

Scarlett approached the veteran after the final siren, launching a verbal barrage that left Harvey visibly agitated, before Scarlett's young teammate Andrew Mackie intervened, apparently in support of the dual Brownlow Medallist.

Neither player would comment on what was said after the game, but the exchange between the bombastic All Australian defender and one of the game's most admired statesmen is certain to be much discussed throughout the week.

Tall utility Jason Blake is also under an injury cloud after receiving what appeared to be a shoulder injury in the final term, though Saints coach Ross Lyon said Blake had just injured his thumb, and would be right for the coming week.

While Geelong coasted through the game, dominating the first three quarters before virtually packing up in the fourth, the win was not without its costs.

The Cats lost talented young midfielder Brent Prismall to what appeared to be an anterior cruciate ligament tear in the first quarter, and rested small forward Paul Chapman for the entire fourth term after he copped a heavy cork to his leg, and felt some tightness in the hamstring that kept him out of the side earlier in the year.

Prismall's knee injury comes as an especially cruel blow to the 22-year-old who had secured a spot in the Cats' line-up this year after narrowly missing last year's premiership side.

"We were really pleased that he was in our best team coming into the finals and it was up to him whether he stayed there," Geelong coach Mark Thompson said. "He's a terrific kid. It's a bit of a tragedy really."

Thompson said he had no such concerns about Chapman, who sat out the last quarter of the game as more of a precaution.

The Cats have now earned a week off and will meet the winner of Friday night's semi-final between the Bulldogs and Sydney in the preliminary final.

Lyon played down the significance of Blake's injury, which he said was just a problem with his right thumb.

"He jarred it up and he was obviously pretty sore but we're confident he'll be fine."

The Saints now face a tough road to the grand final, facing an undermanned but red-hot Collingwood after the Pies downed Adelaide at home on Saturday.

"We'll go in the underdog this week against Collingwood … and we'll have to work hard to earn some respect back that we gave up a little bit today," Lyon said.

The winner of that semi-final must then face Hawthorn in the following week's preliminary final, after the Hawks also earned a week off with a big win over the Bulldogs on Friday night.

Lyon conceded that the Saints buckled under the relentless pressure of the reigning premiers.

The Cats' fierce attack on the ball gave them a 123-to-91 advantage in contested possessions and 37 to 27 clearances.

"We'd like to be perceived as harder at the ball than that. We'd like to be perceived that we defend better than that. We'd like to be perceived that we compete against quality teams better than that," Lyon said.

"I felt that we've been doing that, but we need to go away and look at the reasons why we didn't."

The coach defended his tactic of taking the game on from the outset, rather than trying to contain the Cats' all-star midfield.

But he acknowledged they did not have the impact they hoped for.

"We didn't want to come in and try and save the game … there's always a couple you want to close down if you can, but if you try and close down Corey, Ablett, Bartel, Enright, we're not going to get too many forward entries," Lyon said.

The game looked as though it was set to become a massacre when the Cats kicked nine goals in the third term, giving them a 76-point lead at the final change.

But both sides appeared to give up on the game in the final term, resting key players. Saints skipper Nick Riewoldt, who had a very average day, sat out much of the final term, as did defender Max Hudghton.

But the Saints clawed back some of the deficit in the closing stages, outscoring the Cats by 18 points in the final term.