ST KILDA coach Ross Lyon said on Wednesday the club’s decision to drop Nick Dal Santo and Stephen Milne for the Saint’s round-13 clash with Fremantle, brought “integrity” to the team.

“It brought integrity to the selection process and everyone understood that you really had to stand up in the areas that we wanted to,” Lyon said on SEN Radio's Morning Glory program.

“They (Dal Santo and Milne) were a bit unfortunate in that we had a strong discussion going into the Sydney game and, unfortunately for them, they were the ones at that time who didn’t deliver and they paid the price. It got everyone out of the comfort zone a little bit… it just sort of woke them up a little bit.”

While Lyon described the pair as “critical” in the Saints’ victory over North Melbourne on Saturday, he insisted that the duo were not always guaranteed their places after a one-week stint with Casey Scorpions in the VFL.

“They were judged on their actions as everyone is. Their effort was outstanding… they didn’t have to be best on the ground. The way they carried themselves and led the younger players gave us an opportunity to pick them. We were vindicated by the result.”

In a warning to the rest of the player group, Lyon insisted that under his reign, reputations mean little.

“You like to treat everyone fairly at a football club and it was just about us not performing so, if you’re down in certain areas, you’re going to put yourself out of the team," he said.

"(As for) reputations, at the end of the day you’re only as good as your last game.”