Is it time for the Tigers to tear it up?Herald-Sun
June 2016WHAT Richmond thought was a reality is now turning into a distant dream.
Following a 70-point loss to North Melbourne last week, which left the club with a 4-7 record to start the year, it is virtually no chance of saving its season and playing finals in 2016.
Therefore, the time has come for the Tigers to reassess the position of their playing group.
Questions have already arisen over Richmond’s list profile, with the Tigers possessing the eighth oldest and eighth most experienced roster in the competition.
Of the top-10 finishers in the club’s best and fairest count last year, only Anthony Miles and Nick Vlastuin will end the 2016 season under the age of 25.
With doubts lingering over whether the remaining eight will still be around for Richmond’s next premiership tilt, it realistically gives the club a handful of valuable trade options come the end of the season.
“Give them credit for the solidarity they’ve actually shown,” Fox Footy analyst Jason Dunstall told On The Couch on Monday night.
“They had a plan, they stuck to it and they’ve backed it as far as they could.
“Now, they cut their losses. They say the plan didn’t work, they start again and they regenerate that list.
“That means you have to offer up some players for trade, you get some quality draft picks into the system and you’ve also got to sell that hope that this is going to take a few years to develop.”
Without a finals win in 15 years and having been eliminated in the first week of September for three successive seasons, Richmond spent last summer recruiting for mature talent to propel the side into the top four.
The Tigers traded a first-round pick to Carlton for Chris Yarran, signed Jacob Townsend from the Giants for virtually nothing and picked up delisted free agent Andrew Moore from Port Adelaide.
However, it has led to suggestions that the club overrated its current group in an effort to challenge for an elusive premiership.
“We’ve seen Carlton in recent years not acknowledge where they were at,” Fox Footy analyst David King said.
“They made decisions thinking they were in contention. All that does is cost you years.
“Everyone needs to be on the same page and I think they need to acknowledge they’ve got a problem with their list before anything can change.”
It’s not the only comparison Richmond can draw with Carlton.
Last summer, the Blues managed to keep its experienced leadership core of Marc Murphy, Bryce Gibbs and Kade Simpson, while still dealing for four first-round draft picks.
They’re footsteps the Tigers could follow in, if they harbour ambitions of retaining the likes of Trent Cotchin, Dustin Martin and Alex Rance.
Ultimately, they don’t have to give up those stars to land a handful of early draft picks. What they do have to do is make cold decisions on others.
Will a 29-year-old Brett Deledio really be part of the club’s next tilt at a flag? Is Brandon Ellis as crucial as what he once seemed? Could the age profile of Ben Lennon mean he carries trade weight? Is Nick Vlastuin key to Richmond’s next premiership side?
Richmond coach Damien Hardwick remained optimistic after the side’s loss on Friday night, reiterating he still “had faith in the younger talent” and saying that Richmond’s “best footy is in front of us”.
It was a claim Dunstall took umbrage to, suggesting there remains a lack of young quality coming through the ranks at the Tigers.
“I read that one of two ways,” Dunstall said. “He’s either deluded, or he’s remaining positive because he has to sell a positive message. I suspect it’s the latter and I certainly hope it’s not the former.
“There’s no doubt they’ve over-estimated the playing list. They’ve given it plenty of time, they’ve been very committed, they’ve backed Dimma and they’ve backed the playing list. But it ain’t working.
“They need to regenerate this list with young talent and they can only do that through the draft.”
Richmond has had only one pick inside the top-10 of the national draft in the last five years, selecting Nick Vlastuin with the ninth pick in 2012.
Without top-end draft picks, the Tigers have had to nail their later selections — a feat they have been unable to achieve.
“Out of 11 first or second-round picks, you can argue that only Dustin Martin is a bona fide star,” Fox Footy analyst Jonathan Brown said. “And that’s really where the core of your club comes from — the foundation picks.
“To me, it looks like a recruiting problem. They’re trying to build the core of their club and they’ve got the draft picks wrong.”
One thing is certain. If the Tigers are to go down the rebuild route, getting those draft picks wrong is simply not an option.
DRAFT WOES 2009-2013 (22 drafted, 12 remain, 7 played last week)2009
Dustin Martin (Pick 3)
Ben Griffiths (Pick 19)
David Astbury (Pick 35)
Matt Dea (Pick 44)
Troy Taylor (Pick 51)
Jeromey Webberley (Pick 67)
Ben Nason (Pick 71)
2010
Reece Conca (Pick 6)
Jake Batchelor (Pick 30)
Bradley Helbig (Pick 47)
Dean MacDonald (Pick 51)
Tom Derickx (Pick 63)
2011
Brandon Ellis (Pick 15)
Todd Elton (Pick 26)
Matthew Arnot (Pick 55)
2012
Nick Vlastuin (Pick 9)
Kamdyn McIntosh (Pick 31)
Liam McBean (Pick 33)
Matthew McDonough (Pick 42)
2013
Ben Lennon (Pick 12)
Nathan Gordon (Pick 50)
Sam Lloyd (Pick 66)
www.adelaidenow.com.au/sport/afl/richmond-rebuild-should-the-tigers-trade-their-experienced-players-to-reopen-flag-window/news-story/ff2151879b38cad129e3380294306af5
