One, two bounces, he sprinted down the ground and delivered the ball onto the chest of teammate Jake Stringer, who lined up and booted the goal.

It was that kind of Saturday night at Etihad Stadium for these teams – the Saints worked hard, but the Doggies were more skilled, worked better together and showed greater discipline.

The Saints' stalwart players stood up, but their youngsters fumbled the ball and failed to match the Bulldogs in one-on-one contests.

But despite the convincing victory, kicking practice looked likely to be scheduled at Whitten Oval this week.

The Western Bulldogs could have won by much more had they found greater accuracy in front of goal, finishing with 13.15 to the Saints 5.6.

It was Nick Riewoldt's 300th game and a fundraiser for Maddie Riewoldt's Vision, a charity named for his sister who died of Aplastic Anemia last year.

The St Kilda captain missed an easy set-shot in the second quarter, from 15 metres out on a slight angle, but otherwise was mostly good, taking a spectacular contested mark to kick a goal in the third and finishing the match with 23 possessions.

Saints fans gave him a standing ovation in the last quarter when he booted truly from the 50-metre line to score the team's fifth goal.

But try as he might he could not get his young teammates to lift any further – they clearly wanted to win it for him, but were dominated through the centre and did not give their forwards enough opportunities.

Both teams formed a guard of honour as teammates lifted him onto their shoulders and carried him from the ground.

Another St Kilda veteran, Leigh Montagna, was everywhere, notching 32 disposals and Jack Steven did more than his fair share, but their less experienced players made too many mistakes.

The Bulldogs had 19 inside-50s to St Kilda's seven in the first quarter, but Matthew Suckling and Josh Dunkley both missed set shots.

St Kilda's Jimmy Webster gave away a 50-metre penalty with a late charge on Shane Biggs, who also missed.

Running in packs and hitting their targets, the Doggies went to the first break 17 points up and St Kilda struggled to get their hands on the ball.

That set the pattern for the rest of the match, the Doggies looking like they were running drills as they smoothly worked the ball down the ground.

Johannisen, who starred at half-back, was the most exciting player on the ground, showing a particular knack for reading the play and explosive speed through the middle of the ground.

The Western Bulldogs now face a much sterner test, against reigning premiers Hawthorn at Etihad on Sunday afternoon.

The Hawks are not a team that lets their opponents get away with errors, and Doggies coach Luke Beveridge will have plenty to think about, in particular how to get his boys kicking straight in front of goal.

St Kilda face Collingwood at the MCG on Saturday, hoping to win their first game of the year, but the Magpies are confident after their one-point win over Richmond.