St Kilda's biggest AFL loss in more than a decade has been compounded by injuries to key players Nick Riewoldt, Lenny Hayes and James Gwilt.
The 16th-placed Saints were thrashed 21.11 (137) to 5.6 (36) by second-placed Geelong at Simonds Stadium on Saturday night, with the Cats piling on the game's last 15 goals.
It was a stark reminder of how sharply the Saints have plummeted since playing off in the 2009 and 2010 grand finals, compared to their 2009 conquerors the Cats.
The 101-point loss was the Saints' largest since round four, 2002, when Geelong thrashed them by 122 points at the same venue.
Gwilt was subbed out in the second term with what is believed to be bone bruising to a knee, further depleting a defence which was already struggling in the absence of injured pair Sam Fisher and Sam Gilbert.
Riewoldt limped off in the third term with a foot injury and while he briefly returned, his night soon ended.
Hayes injured a hamstring and coach Scott Watters admitted the trio were likely to miss Saturday night's clash with Brisbane at least.
The impact of losing inspirational pair Riewoldt and Hayes is obvious but Gwilt's absence could be felt just as hard given the Saints' threadbare defence.
Watters admitted the only reason Rhys Stanley played in the backlines on Saturday night was a dearth of options.
"If you can find us another defender on our list at the moment then I'm happy to play him," Watters said.
"Ideally we'd like to move Rhys forward."
Watters said the injuries were no excuse for the performance, but the Saints are a developing side that needs time while Geelong are clearly premiership contenders.
The Cats, who now have a firm hold on second spot, sustained their own blow, to ruckman Dawson Simpson (knee).
Coach Chris Scott said the good news was they were confident it was not an anterior or posterior cruciate ligament injury, which gives Simpson some hope of returning this season.
"The bad news is there appears to be something significant there," Scott said.
"They won't know the extent of that until midweek."
Riewoldt had scans on Sunday morning and told 3AW he hoped to be available for Saturday's match against Brisbane.
"It's probably not as bad as we first thought," Riewoldt said.
"I chipped a bit of a bone spur off so that's just floating around inside my foot.
"The prognosis is good and I should be able to get up for next week."
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