I'm a believer?

There were so many moments to deconstruct from Friday night's win that it's hard to know where to begin.

But there is one guy, often under appreciated, who that stood out to me. Taylor Hunt doesn't really know much about losing and I suspect he doesn't enjoy it when it happens. He sits in the top 15 players in the competition for winning %, alongside this he has stitched together eight wins without a loss against Hawthorn which is startling considering how good they've been during his career. In an eighty game career he still has six clubs (Carlton, Essendon, Gold Coast, GWS, Hawthorn and Richmond) that he has never played in a losing team against and on Friday night it showed. It seems unfair to single out one person for defensive pressure but his running capacity to get back on the last line to create pressure was a snapshot of how hard our players were willing to work to see through the game plan. He created goals up our end and, alongside our other defenders, made sure they earned every one of the seven they managed to kick. Even when they got the better of us he made them earn it, the tackle on Puopolo in the square (which slipped high) was a monster, and his attack on Rioli following that ludicrous free kick in the pocket was brutal. Every time Hunt was near the ball, Hawthorn knew they were in a game and that's not bad at all for a player who at the start of the year seemed a depth top-up.

We are in this season right up to our necks. Seven days ago Hawthorn seemed untouchable, but we touched them up. Obviously it will be easier from fourth if we can somehow manage that but fifth shouldn't be seen as no man's land. If Sydney can manage to drop a game (best chance is next week at Geelong and to a lesser extent GWS a few weeks later) or if West Coast get the speed wobbles up and drop three (Hawthorn, Fremantle and away to Adelaide aren't completely out of the question).

It was a big dog game on a big dog stage. In the past when we've pinched one of Hawthorn, I suspect that they haven't been 100% up for it but on Friday night they were well and truly keen to stamp out an insurgency from a potential rival.

The form of Miles, Deledio, Maric, Rance, Chaplin, Riewoldt, Cotchin and others has been widely discussed throughout the media but one person who I feel isn't getting enough credit is the gaffer. Many people (including yours truly) have been quick to write him off on multiple occasions. I've often wondered if he is up to it, and too often decided that he isn't. But the last few weeks have shown that Richmond has grown up, in terms of leadership, belief, effort and coaching. Probably about the most ballsy way you can try and beat Hawthorn is by out Hawthorning them and that's exactly what Hardwick oversaw. Kudos to the playing group for seeing it out and respect to the coaching staff for thinking it up.

From the get-go we were up for it. One of my favourite findings of the last few weeks has been Angry Trent Cotchin and him going head-to-head with Hodge from before the first bounce was beautiful to watch. Throughout the night we annoyed them, really good teams get so used to being treated like demi-gods that they can often be thrown when somebody really takes it up to them. I'm not talking melees or cheap shots, we've tried that before (remember Fleming vs Riewoldt and King & Hislop vs Collingwood?) but putting your head over the ball for 120 minutes and letting them know that you aren't going to give it to them easily. Roughead was rattled to the point that he was basically ineffective, Rioli was so worked up about kicking a goal from a diving free kick that he missed goals late in the game that he would usually kick with his eyes closed, Gibson and Lake got frustrated by being made to be accountable and Mitchell was rushed and not anywhere near the usual midfield force he can be. If we do come across them later in the year we won't get them by surprise, but being prepared for that kind of treatment again doesn't necessarily mean they'll get the better of us. Getting in their heads is a beautiful thing.

Not all that long ago (and by that I mean a few weeks, if not Friday afternoon), I'd have said the only way that we would have a shot against Hawthorn would be on the back of Jack. Unfortunately for Jack he was beaten again by Frawley, but we found other avenues to goal. Lids bobbed up from the very start, Lloyd bobbed up at the end and what a moment that was, while Lambert, Houli and McIntosh cycled through to hit the scoreboard. What it came down to was defensive pressure and the fact we only needed ten goals. Hawthorn haven't been held to that low a score since early 2012 in Perth by a red-hot Eagles team. I seem to say it every week but Rance, Chaplin, Grimes, Batchelor, Houli and Hunt have formed a formidable defensive unit. What I haven't said every week is that it just might be the best unit in the competition.

Up forward, Ty got arse about late in the game but kept Lake honest all night. Lake has done some jobs on us over the years and the first task of any forward playing on him is to make him defend for two hours. If he can get off the chain then it's very hard to beat Hawthorn and Ty ran him ragged. It wasn't his best got output wise but I imagine, play on shames aside, that the coaching staff were very happy with him.

Finally, and what a way to finish off, what an amazing night for Bachar. Less than a week after the lowest moment of his career he hit back, hard. After a shaky first half, his second half was something to behold. When he lined up for that set shot he had the whole football world watching, waiting to judge, and not only did it kick it but it split the middle like a laser beam. He is a wonderful man and it was so good to see him back on top of his game.

We beat them on the ground, and we lead the competition off the ground with our response to the treatment of Adam Goodes. Until the ball was bounced on Friday night it was shaping up as one of the shittiest weeks in recent footy history but the response right across the competition was fantastic, starting with our decision to wear our (brilliant) Dreamtime kit and also the moving messaging on our banner. The next day, I was lucky enough to be at SCG to see Sydney respond and support one of the game's greats. What a world we live in when people respond like this.

How good is sport? #IStandWithAdam

A photo posted by Sean (@sjhross) on Aug 1, 2015 at 12:38am PDT

Goodesy, you're a legend and keep doing what you are doing. If you are pissing off Panahi and Bolt then you must be doing something right.

Changes for next week

Same again (assuming Titch doesn't get up in time).

The votes

5: Anthony Miles
4: Brett Deledio
3: Alex Rance
2: Ivan Maric
1: Trent Cotchin

Unlucky: everyone

Leaderboards

The Benny:

24: Dustin Martin

23: Anthony Miles and Trent Cotchin

19: Alex Rance

18: Bachar Houli and Brett Deledio

17: Jack Riewoldt

16: Shane Edwards and Shaun Grigg

15: Brandon Ellis

12: Taylor Hunt

8: Nick Vlastuin, Dylan Grimes, Troy Chaplin and Ivan Maric

3: Kamdyn McIntosh, Chris Newman, Ben Griffiths and Jake Batchelor

2: Sam Lloyd and Kane Lambert

1: Steven Morris, Ty Vickery, Shaun Hampson and Ben Lennon

Blair Hartley Appreciation Award:

23: Anthony Miles

18: Anthony Miles

16: Shaun Grigg

15: Anthony Miles

12: Taylor Hunt

8: Troy Chaplin and Ivan Maric

1: Shaun Hampson

Anthony Banik Best First Year Player:

3: Kamdyn McIntosh

2: Kane Lambert

Joel Bowden's Golden Left Boot:

18: Bachar Houli

16: Shaun Grigg

8: Troy Chaplin

3: Jake Batchelor

Greg Tivendale Rookie List Medal:

2: Kane Lambert