One-Eyed Richmond Forum
Football => Richmond Rant => Topic started by: one-eyed on July 24, 2016, 10:19:30 PM
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Tigers no match for Hawthorn
Nick Bowen
AFL Media
July 24, 2016 5:58 PM
A nine-goal-to-two final quarter from Hawthorn, has seen Richmond thoroughly beaten by the Hawks at the MCG on Sunday afternoon.
With scores level at quarter time, Richmond only contriubuted three more goals for the remainder of the match as Hawthorn initially edged ahead, then kicked away in the last term to inflict a 70-point defeat on the Tigers.
Although the Hawks had the better of general play for most of Sunday's game, it was not until Jack Gunston and Cyril Rioli kicked consecutive goals in a tick over a minute late in the third term that they got some genuine breathing distance over the Tigers.
Those two goals helped the Hawks take a 28-point lead into the final break and opened the floodgates for a nine-goal-to-two final quarter that carried them to a 16.18 (114) to 5.14 (44) victory.
Richmond had won three of the teams' previous five clashes heading into Sunday's game and battled hard until the Hawks' class eventually proved too much.
Alex Rance stood up manfully amid a barrage of inside 50 entries from the Hawks – they won the count 56-37 – while Dustin Martin (a game-high 39 possessions) continued his recent prolific ball-winning, albeit without his usual influence.
Anthony Miles (26 possessions) provided handy support to Martin through the midfield, and Nick Vlastuin was solid in the Tigers' defensive 50.
The Hawks dominated the opening minutes of the game, denying the Tigers an inside 50 until nearly nine minutes had elapsed.
Hawthorn failed to take full advantage of that dominance, kicking 1.3 with their opening major coming from Brendan Whitecross.
By the time Richmond kicked its first goal at the 19-minute mark – via Nathan Drummond in his first senior game back from a knee reconstruction in a rare highlight – the scores were level.
Tigers skipper Trent Cotchin then goaled, but this was soon answered by a Luke Breust major after the Hawk forward brilliantly smothered Richmond defender David Astbury at the top of the goalsquare, and the teams went into quarter-time tied on 2.5 (17).
Alastair Clarkson's men had the first five scores of the second term, but only the last was a goal, James Sicily's clinical set shot from 30m putting the Hawks up by 10 points at the 12-minute mark.
A Daniel Rioli goal cut Hawthorn's lead to four points five minutes later, but soon after Gunston capitalised when Ben Griffiths slipped in the Hawks' goalsquare, sharking the Tiger's errant handball and finishing truly.
Richmond would only add two more goals from that point on - both to Jack Riewoldt in the final term - as the likes of Gunston, Sicily and Rioli piled on the misery for the hosts.
HAWTHORN 2.5 4.11 7.15 16.18 (114)
RICHMOND 2.5 3.7 3.11 5.14 (44)
GOALS
Hawthorn: Rioli 3, Gunston 3, Sicily 3, Breust 2, Puopolo, O'Rourke, Whitecross, Gibson, McEvoy
Richmond: Riewoldt 2, Rioli, Drummond, Cotchin
BEST
Hawthorn: Mitchell, Gibson, Hill, Birchall, Gunston, Lewis, Stratton
Richmond: Martin, Rance, Grigg, Miles
INJURIES
Hawthorn: TBC
Richmond: Grimes (hamstring)
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Brown, Schmitt, Kamolins
Official crowd: 51,892 at the MCG
http://www.richmondfc.com.au/news/2016-07-24/round-18-match-report
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Hawks salute Sam with Tiger rout
Sam Landsberger
Herald Sun
25 July 2016
THE old Name-A-Game hotline won’t be lighting up today with requests to purchase this DVD.
Sam Mitchell might dial up to grab a copy of his victorious 300th game.
Richmond youngster Nathan Drummond could be tempted to savour his first AFL goal, kicked 16 months after a debut where he ruptured his ACL.
And goalkicking coaches across the land will want to attach it to their resumes in the pursuit of fulltime employment.
Other than that? Hard to see any takers. To be kind, for three quarters this was a game bereft of any spark.
To be stuff, this was trash. Until the last break Hawthorn seemed to lack urgency and Richmond seemed to lack any real desire to go full-throttle at winning.
The clubs combined for 21.32 in perfect MCG conditions. At the last break that read 10.26 and at one stage the set-shot tally was 4.14.
There were more behinds than a nudist beach.
But ultimately there was Hawthorn’s first pair of wins against Richmond in the same season since 1992.
Jason Dunstall kicked a lazy 12.6 that day and the goalkicking great must have squirmed as he watched forwards from both teams sink in front of the sticks on Sunday.
Until a late burst of last-quarter goals, nine in fact, it was like the Tigers were content to remain in striking distance and the Hawks satisfied to keep them there.
Then again, the Hawks wake up today two games clear on top of the AFL ladder with just five games remaining.
It is still July yet the Hawks have now equalled their 16 home-and-away wins from last season.
And with the top eight resembling a game of musical chairs, that’s a handy break when so many clubs will be scrambling to be in the top four when the music stops.
A day after Sydney and West Coast stumbled their way to victory and the Western Bulldogs tripped up, the Hawks played dodgy and won comfortably.
Aside from the Essendon rout, this was Hawthorn’s biggest win since last September.
Scary. In tennis parlance, the Hawks are losing their serve but not losing their nerve.
They just keep playing at the standard required to win, and a historic fourth-straight premiership has never looked more likely.
The tone was set early on Sunday. In the first 10 minutes the ball didn’t escape the Hawks’ forward line, yet they had just 1.3 — all from set-shots.
Mitchell, Ben McEvoy and Luke Breust all misfired and it became contagious
Jack Gunston, James Sicily and Paul Puopolo would follow.
The Tigers were similarly as bad. Raw kid Liam McBean missed two sodas, Ben Griffiths shanked his only shot and Shane Edwards finished with 0.3.
But as Mitchell was chaired off by captain Luke Hodge and fellow warrior Jordan Lewis, he did so with yet another record within touching distance.
Sunday was the 113th time he has recorded 30 possessions.
Only Robert Harvey (118) has more, and Mitchell might have him covered before this year’s Mad Monday.
Mitchell getting chaired off will go down as famous images in Hawthorn folklore.
As for the two hours leading up to it, let’s try not to speak of it again.
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HAWTHORN 16.18 (114)
RICHMOND 5.14 (44)
BEST
Hawthorn: Mitchell, Gibson, Lewis, Hill, Birchall, Gunston, Burgoyne
Richmond: Martin, Rance, Hunt, Miles, Grigg
GOALS
Hawthorn: C Rioli 3 J Gunston 3 J Sicily 3 L Breust 2 B McEvoy B Whitecross J Gibson J O’Rourke P Puopolo.
Richmond: J Riewoldt 2 D Rioli N Drummond T Cotchin.
Umpires: Justin Schmitt, Chris Kamolins, Nick Brown.
Official Crowd: 51,892 at MCG.
VOTES
3. Sam Mitchell (Hawthorn)
2. Dustin Martin (Richmond)
1. Josh Gibson (Hawthorn)
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/hawthorn-celebrates-sam-mitchells-300th-with-a-scrappy-win-over-richmond/news-story/2a0da8cb7e2fd59ded77e7d38808a71a