HAVING attacked and lost in his public relations war with Grant Thomas last week, Rod Butterss and the St Kilda administration went into defensive shut down mode yesterday. Henceforth, Butterss said he would be mum about his dispute with Thomas, while his lieutenant Archie Fraser was dispatched to face the media firing squads.

At three-quarter-time yesterday, coach Ross Lyon implored his players to be bolder from the kick-ins. Having introduced a more accountable and defensive game style than the free-wheeling Thomas, the coach clearly figured that they could only win by taking some risks.

It worked for a time. Then, as the Saints drew within nine points, Nick Dal Santo — their best player yesterday — took a kick-in at the 14-minute mark and kicked the ball straight up the middle, where it was marked by Kangaroo Ed Lower, who played on and booted the goal that quashed the St Kilda rally.

"We spoke at three-quarter-time about being bold and our kick-ins are normally conservative," Lyon said. "(I) sent a message to be more aggressive with the kick-in and it didn't pay off."

Whether it's on the field, the airwaves or in its negotiations with the local council, the Saints just can't strike the right balance between attack and defence. The club is collectively finding it difficult to pick the right option, at the right time.

It happens when you're losing. You can't hit the target.

Butterss attacks Thomas, then retreats. The Saints spend the best part of three quarters butchering the ball, overusing it and locking down on the Kangas before opening it up.

Lyon wants the Saints to play as they did early in the last quarter. But they don't, or can't sustain it. He will be blamed for that failure by many supporters, even if injuries/conditioning provide a partial alibi. He is ready for the barrage.

In an attempt to exorcise Thomas and purge the club of his influence, Butterss brings Thomas into focus, makes him the story of the week. Creates more questions that have to be answered — "what was Thomas up to behind the play?" The attack succeeds only in putting the Saints on the back foot.

Perhaps, both the accountable Lyon game plan and the offensive tactics employed by Butterss will be vindicated in the long-term. Who knows? But right now, they are losing, and Thomas casts a shadow over both president and coach, each of them forced to defend his methods.

Lyon does not reckon his game style with the ball is all that different to what the Saints have done over the past few years. "There's subtle adjustments. When we've got the ball, there's not too much difference. We want to play on, we want to use it inside, we want to give it to the runner, and we want to hit the lead or under pressure kick it long."

"There's numerous times today we were under pressure we tried to invent a handball … at the minute, we've lost a few in a row, we're bereft of probably confidence."

The Saints are adamant that what was euphemistically referred to as "the events of the week" did not have any impact on the team's performance yesterday. "The outside influences had no impact on our performance today," Lyon said. "From what I know."

From what he knew was an admission that the coach can never be certain of his players' thoughts. The players had the same line, however — that the Butterss-Thomas fall-out was irrelevant.

"Absolutely not, no," said Jason Gram. "The boys don't even pay any attention to that. We, like, might read about it, but it's got nothing to do with us, it's between Rocket and Grant. So, it's no distraction at all."

Gram, who was tagged effectively by Kasey Green yesterday, also believed that the Saints' troubles came down to their poor use of the ball. The statistics showed they were competing well, beating their opponents in contested situations, tackling and working hard.

"The effort and all that sort of stuff is there, but our disposal is not up to it and it's letting us down."

And, if that's the diagnosis, they're letting their coach down, too. Lyon says he accepted that criticism was part of the coach's job description when he signed on, and he knew that there was only one way to deal with the deluge of dissatisfaction.

"What deals with it is fixing performance. Wins. I don't have to make any excuses or explain anything when we win." True, and the same simple logic applies to the bloke who hired him.