St Kilda coach Alan Richardson admits his AFL side aren't where they should be after effectively falling out of finals contention.
But he insists their improvement will come from within rather than an off-season list revamp.
After finishing ninth last season and missing the finals on percentage, the 11th-placed Saints appear set for a similar fate after losing a crucial game against Melbourne on Sunday.
The 24-point MCG defeat leaves them a win and significant percentage behind eight-placed West Coast, with games against North Melbourne and Richmond to come.
Richardson said the Saints' best football had improved from last season, as had their performances on the road.
But he conceded there was too much of a gap between the best and worst performances from a list which had grown in experience.
"What I do know is we have the personnel," he said.
"We have high expectations of our players. We've got a lot of blokes moving into that 50, 60, 70-game bracket now where consistency of performance should be there.
"We haven't been able to get that consistency yet.
"Today was a good example - some good footy, some average footy - and we're not going to be the team we want to be if we continue to be that way."
The Saints are expected to make a big play for off-contract Greater Western Sydney star Josh Kelly during the off-season.
Former skipper Nick Riewoldt will retire at the end of the season, while fellow veteran Leigh Montagna's future is uncertain after he suffered a season-ending hamstring injury last month.
Riewoldt missed the game against Melbourne with lingering concussion symptoms but is expected to face the Kangaroos.
Richardson said he expected a strong showing from the Saints during their final fortnight despite their ladder position.
"I would expect the blokes to be really disappointed, to end up having real clarity around what we didn't get done," he said.
"And then we'll get to work.
"That'll be a reflection of the maturity of the group - that we respond if we're fair dinkum about what we want to stand for as a footy club."
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