Why the Tigers are strugglingEmma Quayle
The Age
August 1, 2016Things are never as bad as they seem, which might not be what Richmond fans want to hear after watching their team crumble against Greater Western Sydney on Saturday afternoon.
The most harmful thing a club can do when it becomes clear it won't be good enough is to keep rolling out the same line-up, something the Tigers have not done for a number of rounds.
They don't need to be told that they need a refresh: Saturday's team featured Daniel Rioli, Oleg Markov, Jayden Short, Nathan Drummond and (the older) Adam Marcon and Kane Lambert.
They have taken a decent look at Jason Castagna and Connor Menadue, they've missed Kamdyn McIntosh and in playing others have exposed rather than hidden away from their own problems.
Some of their own making, others a consequence of their desire to stop sitting around the bottom at a time when it was not easy for low-ranked teams to make the jump.
Since they drafted Tyrone Vickery in 2008, the Tigers have deliberately gone small rather than tall with their first-round picks, something that, as time has passed, has left them with a gap in their squad.
They missed out on Tom Lynch in 2010 (four other clubs, it must be noted, let him pass by as well), but as things stand have not really missed out on any good early talls. Jake Lever in 2014, maybe?
Still, that approach means that with Vickery stalling and Ben Griffiths still so inconsistent, they have needed at least one of Liam McBean,Todd Elton or Reece McKenzie to come through.
All were chosen in the second round or beyond – never the ideal spot to be picking talls – and for various reasons they haven't developed, with McBean back in the VFL again on the weekend. He hasn't made nearly enough of his talent.
Brandon Ellis was good enough in 2014 to make the All-Australian squad but has stagnated this year. Whether Reece Conca is good enough is questionable, but he's also had two years of injury trouble.
Nick Vlastuin should be helping out in the midfield by now – he needs to be the player making life easier for Trent Cotchin and Dustin Martin – and has the talent and competitiveness to do that.
Corey Ellis is a talented player, with the sort of foot skills the Richmond midfield needs, but has been held back by his body since before he got there, a foot then a hip injury holding him up.
Ben Lennon has a huge amount of class, but glandular fever, shoulder surgery, an ankle injury and two concussions haven't allowed him to improve his running.
Rioli is smart, and has done work for his teammates in the forward line that a teenager in his first year coming off such a low base shouldn't really have to be doing. He looks like a good player.
The Richmond recruiters took over a list that lacked depth, and what should be its core: Brett Deledio should have more friends from the 2004 and 2005 drafts, but has come through on his own.
They are also suffering because while Sam Lloyd, McIntosh, Drummond and Markov have shown signs, they haven't got enough players into their team from round two and beyond of the draft.
Were those players never good enough? Have they not been developed well enough? Either way, it has possibly heightened the focus on a) their first rounders and b) their mature-age top-ups, who have had to be more than what they should have been.
Richmond have been criticised for the number and quality of "old" players it has brought into the club over the past few years: think Chris Knights, Aaron Edwards, Ricky Petterd.
That's fair in the sense that they could have dug much deeper into drafts – had a couple where they took six or seven picks and enhanced their odds – rather than use up those list spots.
But the drafts they would normally have done that in – 2010 and 2011 – were compromised, with players removed from the pool and Gold Coast and the Giants then taking most of the early picks.
And the same time, only Ivan Maric, Shaun Hampson and Chris Yarran really cost them anything (second-round picks); the rest have come as free agents, rookies or via the pre-season draft.
The Tigers have some serious work to do and it will be interesting to see whether anyone comes for any of their players at the end of the season. Vickery? Griffiths? Shane Edwards?
They deserve the right to ask what more they could have done in the last few years.
Richmond won't be the last team to get destroyed by the Giants, and the team's performance in the past few rounds is bound to reflect some of the uncertainty hovering around the club.
There's never a single reason for a slide like the Tigers' and the club's review of their football department, assisted by Ernst & Young, will take a good look at coaching, recruiting, list management, high performance and whatever else it needs to.
Ultimately, perhaps things would be looking more promising had they taken a further step back, four years ago. Had they realised finals were possible, but winning one wasn't.
But it seems a strange thing to be highly critical of a club – that hadn't played finals in a very, very long time and was in a whole lot of debt – looking for ways to be better than they had been.
Even if it's time to (continue, with a deep sigh) start over.
http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/afl-season-2016-the-trouble-with-the-tigers-20160801-gqik69.html
