Tigers vocal about their 2013 chancesBrent Diamond
Football Nation
Jan 7. 2013 4:25 pmEVEN the youngsters at Tigerland are full of voice and optimism heading into the 2013 season and so they should be.
Adding some experience into the mix over the pre-season have only enhanced expectations of an on-field revival that could perhaps kick-start their finals premiership assault since the early 2000′s.
Youngster David Astbury said he had noticed a massive difference at the club since when he first arrived.
“I think when I first came, the list was pretty underdeveloped but now we’ve got huge depth. Every training session is pretty heated, there’s a lot of competition for spots so it’s fantastic for the football club and the supporters. It’s a different place at the minute and it’s a great thing for the football club,” Astbury said.
Richmond, who has been heavily criticised for its recruiting over the past decade (most notably choosing Richard Tambling ahead of Lance Franklin in a draft and snaring Jordan McMahon from the Western Bulldogs for an early round pick that ended up netting Callan Ward), has recruited shrewdly with mature age talent over the past two seasons that finally has it in a position to challenge.
It has patiently waited for its midfield crop to grow together – Brett Deledio, Trent Cotchin, Dustin Martin, etc – and form a formidable force with already established talent speeding up the process such as Shaun Grigg and Bachar Houli.
The Tigers have a knack of finishing in ninth spot, but it appears that trend may be over this season with an almost certain finals appearance on the cards and touted by most experts – although it is an early call.
So far we know that the club has depth it has not had for almost a decade. And we know that depth goes a long way in a long season.
http://www.footballnation.com.au/afl/afl-clubs/richmond/tigers-vocal-about-their-2013-chances/
