ST KILDA will spend a week in Adelaide ahead of its Gather Round clash against Greater Western Sydney, with the 'South Australian Saints' preparing for a week-long stint on the other side of the border.
A quirk in the fixture this season will see St Kilda play three of its first five games in South Australia, including successive matches in Adelaide before and during Gather Round.
The Saints will play Port Adelaide at the Adelaide Oval on April 6 before facing off against the Giants at Norwood Oval on April 13, with the club planning to stay in South Australia and not return to Victoria between the two games.
Clubs have taken a similar approach in recent years, with both Melbourne and Fremantle spending a week in Adelaide last season due to having other games in South Australia either side of Gather Round.
The Giants also have back-to-back games in South Australia, given they will play the Saints in Gather Round on April 13 and then the Crows at the Adelaide Oval on April 19. However, Adam Kingsley's side are planning to journey back and forth between NSW in between games, despite the six-day turnaround.
St Kilda is in the unique position of having also met Adelaide at the Adelaide Oval in round one, meaning it will play the same number of games in SA (three) in the first five rounds of the season as the two Adelaide clubs.
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North Melbourne will also play three games in South Australia in a five-week span; against the Crows in round three, against Gold Coast in Gather Round in round five and against the Power in round seven.
The Saints also played three matches in South Australia last year, playing away games against both the Power (in round seven) and Crows (round 18), as well as a Gather Round clash against Richmond in round four.
Meanwhile, in a further coincidence, St Kilda's AFLW program also played two matches in South Australia last season after meeting Adelaide at Norwood Oval and Port Adelaide at Alberton Oval in the space of 14 days.
