What a world we live in when Richmond supporters feel comfortable expressing disappointment with a win. It isn’t that long ago when a win against St Kilda would have brought the kind of joy that watching Ferris Bueller’s Day Off for the first time can replicate, but yesterday’s result seems to have been greeted with the reception one would expect James Hewitt would receive if he fronted up to Buckingham Palace and asked for a room.
I recently read a book by Alex James from Blur who wrote about the band’s handing over control of the quartet just before Britpop got up and going. Funnily enough, the guy went and bought himself a house in the country literally weeks before Country House went and blew the music industry apart. There was no il-will, he simply pointed out that if the guy had waited a few months he could have bought a much bigger house in the country. Undoubtedly, I am drawing the longest of bows here but my point is that while beating St Kilda is nothing to scoff at, there is a slim but not that remote chance that taking the foot off the pedal in the last quarter could cost us fourth position and the unique opportunity to be humiliated twice instead of just the usual once in the finals.
Frustration about letting them claw the margin back pushed to the side, there wouldn’t be of us who would have put their hand on heart and claim we would get through those three games without dropping one. In the same stretch our fellow bottom half of the eight aspirants have gone: 2-1 (Footscray, North and GWS), 1-1-1 (Adelaide and Geelong) and 0-3 (Collingwood). Unlike last year when we were desperately making up for lost time and soon to be reliant on Jack Ziebell doing incredible things, we are using this part of the year to set a platform from which to launch an attack at the big boys Hawthorn. Now it gets tricky with games against Freo, Hawthorn and Adelaide after which I suspect we’ll know more about exactly where we sit in the pecking order.
All in all, it was another forgettable game. We came out switched on but didn’t blow them away like we should have, we got serious for the second and third quarter and then let them erode the margin far more than we should have.
One encouraging part of the last couple of weeks is that we’ve tapped the much discussed depth without everything going pear shaped unlike earlier in the year and actually found a couple of players this time around. A swallow doesn’t make a summer and all that junk, but Lennon hinted at providing the creativity up forward that we have lacked from a medium sized forward since Browny and Lambert got busy and even managed to hit the scoreboard. On the flipside, McDonough looked miles off it and despite him being Twitter’s favourite that could be all she wrote unless we really get hit by the injury bus and Newman managed to snap a goal but the poor bugger is screaming mediocrity at the moment. Titch’s absence will likely buy him a few weeks, but every week Knights makes it through in the VFL without falling apart seems one closer to Newman’s final demise. Thank goodness he managed to get off this table when he did and how refreshing that Lynden Dunn heads that instead of the bad old days when Newy and Lids had nearly 100 games on everyone else in the competition.
The Gordon, Lambert, Lennon, Newman, McDonough, Morris selection roundabout will eventually sort itself out but the one question they’ll have to address is who is our best ruckman. Vickery’s suspension and Griff’s injury bought them this week but I thought it was fairly obvious that Hampson and Maric can’t play in the same 22, I don’t envy making the decision either. Do they go with Maric’s round the ground game and leadership, or Hampson’s dominant ruck work? Maric’s hitout numbers aren’t terrible, but Hampson does far more with them. Alternatively, Hampson’s field kicking leaves a bit to be desired and he still approaches marks inside 50 as if every marking contest is his first and when it gets to set shot stage he looks about as natural as Ronaldo did kicking the ball around on the G. Undoubtedly, Ivan has the credit in the bank but I’d love to see H and the rucks we are likely to face in the finals include Sandi, Nic Nat, McEvoy and Goldstein - all of whom have form over Maric. Whichever way they go, it’s a tough old decision.
While all the attention has been directed at Rance, Hardwick and Co have managed to build a settled and efficient backline that has only once this year given up more than 100 points. Not only are they stingy, they’re increasingly proving a source of attack. Vlastuin is unlikely to be the 20+ weekly stat padder we’d love him to but he seems more often than not to be on the right side of 15 now. Though at times he seems glacial like when he has the ball, Chaplin is finding his intercept groove again. Grimes and Batchelor have gone from fringe battlers to locked and loaded in the best 22 and Taylor Hunt has quietly stitched together a month of seriously good football.
Up forward we found a way to score goals. Jack, who must have been beyond distracted given the build up didn’t have his radar humming and none of Ty, Griff nor Titch was there but we still managed to find 13 goals from unusual sources in: Lennon, Vlastuin, Newman, Maric and Lambert. Against the really good teams it becomes more likely that Jack will be nullified by the better defenders so finding more guys who can hit the scoreboard between now and September is imperative and this was a pretty good start.
Lids was fantastic and his importance to our cause was perfectly summed up in the second quarter when we were faffing about with the ball inside our 50 and looked all the world like we were about to squander another goal before he simply grabbed it from a stray handball and hoofed it 15 rows back straight through the middle. No mucking around, no extra handball, just results. How far we go in this season and future years, might just depend on his achilles.
Final note
Good on both clubs in putting on such an occasion for a cause that was so close to the Riewoldt family. I didn’t know much Bone Marrow Failure Syndrome before it hit the news recently but it is a horrific disease that no person or family should go through.
Donate to the cause if you are able to.
Changes for next week
It’s increasingly hard to get a read on our injuries which I actually don’t mind but makes writing this section nearly pointless, but here is a stab at it anyway and a reminder that these are what I’d do rather than what I think they’ll do.
In: McBean, Griffiths and C Ellis
Out: McDonough, Newman and Maric
The votes
5: Brett Deledio
4: Taylor Hunt
3: Bachar Houli
2: Dustin Martin
1: Ben Lennon
Apologies: Chaplin, Grigg, Miles and Lambert.
Leaderboards
The Benny:
24: Dustin Martin
22: Trent Cotchin
18: Bachar Houli
17: Jack Riewoldt
16: Shane Edwards, Shaun Grigg and Alex Rance
15: Anthony Miles
14: Brett Deledio
12: Taylor Hunt
11: Brandon Ellis
8: Nick Vlastuin and Dylan Grimes
5: Ivan Maric
3: Troy Chaplin, Kamdyn McIntosh, Chris Newman, Ben Griffiths and Jake Batchelor
2: Sam Lloyd
1: Steven Morris, Ty Vickery, Shaun Hampson and Ben Lennon
Blair Hartley Appreciation Award:
18: Bachar Houli
16: Shaun Grigg
15: Anthony Miles
12: Taylor Hunt
5: Ivan Maric
3: Troy Chaplin
1: Shaun Hampson
Anthony Banik Best First Year Player:
3: Kamdyn McIntosh
Joel Bowden's Golden Left Boot:
18: Bachar Houli
16: Shaun Grigg
3: Jake Batchelor and Troy Chaplin
Greg Tivendale Rookie List Medal:
No votes yet.
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