He fell seriously ill in his first year with St Kilda but managed to make nine appearances in the second half of the season.[1]
The following year, in round five, he was nominated for the 2001 AFL Rising Star award after amassing 23 disposals against Carlton, a performance that would also win him two Brownlow Medal votes.[1] Beetham, who had Scheuermann's disease, played a total of 20 games that season and was St Kilda's fourth leading disposal getter.[1][2]
In 2002 he struggled for form and at the end of the year announced a surprise retirement from AFL football.[3]