Media articles & stats: Under-fire Tigers bite back against Pies

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Match report: Under-fire Tigers bite back against Pies

AFL.com.au
6 August 2016


RICHMOND has ended a tumultuous week with a thrilling 15-point win against Collingwood, playing with grit and standing up on the big stage at a time when its back was against the wall.

The under-siege Tigers produced some of the most committed football of their disappointing season, with a late goal to star forward Jack Riewoldt sealing the 14.8 (92) to 11.11 (77) win. 

After three-and-a-half seesawing quarters, they kicked four of the last five goals of the match to transfer at least some of the pressure they have been feeling to the disappointing Pies.

Scores were tied with 10 minutes to play after improving Magpie James Aish capped a strong night with a contested mark and goal.

However, it was around that time captain Scott Pendlebury limped from the ground with a left ankle injury that would end his night and rob the Magpies' midfield of their leader.

It ultimately proved too much of a hurdle for Nathan Buckley's men, who let a first-quarter lead of 25 points slip.

The Tigers deserve credit for putting their foot on their opponents' throats, however, with Brandon Ellis holding his nerve to kick a clutch set shot and Sam Lloyd marking late and converting.

Star defender Alex Rance was immense, shutting down opponent Jesse White and finishing with 26 possessions, eight marks and nine rebound 50s.

In his 150th game, gun midfielder Dustin Martin won a game-high 34 possessions, also finishing with seven clearances and a goal.

Captain Trent Cotchin (28) led brilliantly in the middle and had a game-high eight clearances, while first-year Tiger Oleg Markov (26 and 10 rebounds) announced himself on the big stage.

After a horror fortnight on-field that has translated to off-field murmurings and the threat of board challenges, Richmond needed an immediate response on Friday night.

But the emergency sirens were sounding early as Collingwood piled on four unanswered goals and hunted their opponents, who were struggling to win the ball and making poor decisions when they had it.

When Riewoldt walked into the protected area after a Taylor Adams mark, setting up another Magpie goal, the margin was 25 points and a familiar story was being written after just 12 minutes.

The unlikely hero to break the deadlock was maligned forward Ty Vickery, who sparked a three-goal run for the Tigers and showcased the contested marking that interested rival clubs are now taking notice of.

Recycled midfielder Andrew Moore, mature-age rookie Adam Marcon and mid-tier midfielder Shaun Grigg all chipped in with goals and, soon enough, the Tigers had their noses in front as the game turned on its head.

They built a 13-point lead by the final change and it was enough for them to protect, giving their tortured supporters the chance to sing their famous song at the MCG at least one more time this season.

The Magpies were well served by midfielders Taylor Adams (25 possessions and six clearances), Jack Crisp (25 and six) and Adam Treloar (24 and five), who came alive late in the match.

Ruckman Brodie Grundy won his battle with Shaun Hampson and was the difference early when the Magpies were on top.

RICHMOND               3.0    7.3    10.7   14.8    (92)
COLLINGWOOD        5.2    6.3      8.7    11.11 (77)     

GOALS
Richmond: Riewoldt 4, Vickery 2, Moore, Marcon, Grigg, Drummond, Martin, Rioli, Ellis, Lloyd
Collingwood: Cox 2, Aish 2, Adams, Cloke, Crocker, Varcoe, Wills, Pendlebury, White

BEST
Richmond: Rance, Martin, Grigg, Cotchin, Markov, Riewoldt, Miles
Collingwood: Crisp, Sidebottom, Aish, Adams, Grundy, Howe

INJURIES
Richmond: Nil
Collingwood: Cox (shoulder), Pendelbury (left ankle)

Reports: Nil

Umpires: Dalgleish, Harris, Jeffery

Official crowd: 49,122 at the MCG

http://www.afl.com.au/news/2016-08-05/underfire-tigers-bite-back-to-down-pies

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Tigers roar home against the Pies

Larissa Nicholson
The Age
6 August 2016

RICHMOND        3.0      7.3      10.7      14.8     (92)
COLLINGWOOD 5.2      6.3      8.7      11.11     (77)

GOALS -
Richmond:  Riewoldt 4, Vickery 2, Marcon, Moore, Ellis, Martin, Rioli, Drummond, Grigg, Lloyd.
Collingwood:  Aish 2, Cox 2, Crocker, White, Wills, Pendlebury, Adams, Cloke, Varcoe.

BEST -
Richmond: Martin, Rance, Grigg, Riewoldt,  Cotchin, Markov.
Collingwood: Treloar, Grundy, Aish, Sidebottom, Crisp, Adams.

INJURIES - Collingwood: Pendlebury (ankle).
Umpires: Dalgleish, Jeffery, Harris.
Crowd: 49,122 at MCG.

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Richmond showed what they were made of in a tenacious win against Collingwood after a shocking start.

And they even gave their disgruntled fans a few moments of brilliance, with a standout performance from Alex Rance and beautiful snap-shot goals from Jack Riewoldt and Dustin Martin.

After successive thrashings at the hands of top teams Hawthorn and Greater Western Sydney, Richmond coach Damien Hardwick was proved correct in his prediction that his team would be more competitive against the Magpies.

In a strange sort of way it was an important game even so late in the season and played between two teams that would not make the finals.

Richmond has been humiliated in Canberra by the Giants last weekend, scoring just 3.5 (23) to the Giants' 17.9 (111).

Criticisms of  Hardwick resurfaced, as did disapproval of the board's decision to extend his contract by two years.

And in the early going Richmond looked every bit the team under fire – buckling under pressure, not rising to the occasion.

The Tigers were cautious and often handpassed when a kick would have created better opportunities for their teammates.

Less than two minutes into the match, the ball had been turned over from right in front of their goal and James Aish had booted a goal at the other end.

But Richmond steadied, led from the back line by Rance and Bachar Houli, then Martin at half-forward.

The latter two did not always use the ball as well as they could have, but they got plenty of it and gave the team some of the energy they  lacked against GWS last week.

Travis Cloke kicked a freakish goal from the boundary line after the siren to help the Pies pull ahead, but the quarter-time score was arguably more cheering for the Tigers.

Although they went into the first break just 14 points down, Richmond had nearly matched their score for their entire game last week.

Perhaps a good sport psychologist could say something interesting about why it was that in the second term Richmond so dramatically lifted their game.

Brodie Grundy was excellent for Collingwood in the middle, but the Tigers seemed to develop a bit of dare, and became better at finding teammates.

Few would have predicted Richmond would go into half-time six points up, helped along by goals from Shaun Grigg, Nathan Drummond, Jack Riewoldt and second to Ty Vickery.

It was not a high-standard match,  but in the third term Martin showed his class with a beautiful snap shot and goal, breaking the monotony of end-to-end mistakes and misses.

It was only in the final term, with the game on the line, that the game really amped up. Collingwood lifted their intensity and began to dominate out of the centre.

By 16 minutes in the scores were tied and a behind to Adam Treloar put the Pies just in front, but when skipper Scott Pendlebury left the ground with an ankle injury and did not return, he took some of Collingwood's confidence with him.

When Riewoldt goaled in the dying minutes, pulling the ball out of a scramble and snapping it over his shoulder, it had Tigers fans on their feet and most likely, some of those higher up at Tigerland breathing a sigh of relief.

http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-match-report/afl-season-2016-richmond-tigers-roar-home-against-the-collingwood-magpies-20160805-gqme1o.html

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Under fire Tigers respond with statement win

Leo Schlink
Herald Sun
6 August 2016

UNDER fire on multiple fronts, Richmond has responded in the best possible way, edging out Collingwood in a dramatic clash at the MCG.

Desperate for a win to ease pressure on embattled coach Damien Hardwick, the maligned Tigers pocketed a precious 15-point win to silence the critics — however temporarily.

On the verge of implosion, Richmond bravely ended a miserable two-week sequence marked by heavy losses to Hawthorn and Greater Western Sydney.

Referring to speculation around board ructions, overhauls of the player list and uncertainty around his own job, Hardwick talked pre-game of the irrelevance of “external noise”.

But when the Tigers lapsed to a 25-point deficit after only 12 minutes, the noise of sharpening blades grew ever louder.

From that depressing and foreboding start, the Tigers kicked 14 of the following 21 goals to lift the Punt Road gloom.

Celebrating Dustin Martin (150th game) and Taylor Hunt’s (100th) milestones in fitting style, Richmond withstood a late Magpie charge to kick the last three goals of a fluctuating contest to notch just their second win in six outings.
Dustin Martin was excellent on Friday night.

Led superbly by Alex Rance, Dustin Martin, Trent Cotchin and Jack Riewoldt, Richmond deflected attention from clandestine board level machinations and Hardwick’s future.

As humble as 12th versus 13th in Round 20, it was a deserved triumph tinted with gold.

When the crisis of the past fortnight appeared to deepen, Richmond took the only available course to it and it outworked Collingwood.

And the Pies were complicit in Richmond’s pressure-easing victory, botching the chance to bury their old adversary by squandering a perfect opening with a stunning decline in skill and intensity.

Untouchable for the first 12 minutes as it raced to a 25-point buffer, Nathan Buckley’s team shaped to rout a wounded foe.

But shoddy skills (24 clangers to Richmond’s 14), questionable decision-making and ineffective movement contrived against it.

Making matters worse for the Pies was a left leg injury to captain Scott Pendlebury.

Richmond’s post-match elation was evident as jubilant players mobbed Hardwick.

The change-room mood contrasted with the decidedly glum tone pre-match when black-coated Tiger supporters gathered outside the ground, seemingly numbed in funereal trepidation.

Their worst fears seemed founded during that dreadful start as Richmond made the worst imaginable start.

Destroyed at the stoppages, it was shoved aside with worrying ease as Collingwood ran amok.

The voices of supporter dissent grew ever louder as the Tigers’ most detested rival rode roughshod, dominating the inside 50 count.

But suddenly, players with rumoured career life expectancies of no longer than season’s end, reacted.

Just as the spectre rose of a third successive mauling, a Cotchin smother and a Ben Reid clanger breathed life back into a critically ill patient.

Ineffective and uncompetitive early, Richmond regrouped to kick seven of the next nine goals to lead at halftime by six points.

Footballers of supposedly dubious character ran themselves ragged as the Tigers’ outside pace exposed the Magpies.

From a position of dominance, Coliingwood’s near flawless execution disappeared in a haze of errors.

Worse, there seemed to be a misplaced sense of diffidence among a team sitting 12th with only eight wins for the season.

Leading by 13 points late in the third term, the Tigers were overhauled early in a rollercoaster final term as Pendlebury inspired an overdue revival.

But, having clawed back the lead with goals to Pendlebury and Jesse White, Pies’ momentum stalled with Pendlebury’s loss with a lower leg injury.

Martin (34 disposals), Bachar Houli (30), Cotchin (28), Riewoldt (four goals) and Rance (26 disposals, including eight marks and nine rebounds out of the defensive 50) were the standard bearers.

Brodie Grundy (19 disposals and 17 hit-outs) Adam Treloar ((24 possessions and nine tackles), James Aish, Ryan Sidebottom and Rupert Wills won plenty of ball for the Pies.

RICHMOND 14.8 (92)

COLLINGWOOD 11.11 (77)

GOALS

Richmond: Riewoldt 4, Vickery 2, Martin, Grigg, Marcon, Moore, Ellis, Drummond, Lloyd, Rioli.

Collingwood: Aish 2, Cox 2, Adams, Wills, Pendlebury, Varcoe, Cloke, White, Crocker.

BEST

Richmond: Rance, Cotchin, Martin, Riewoldt, Houli, Markov.

Collingwood: Grundy, Treloar, Aish, Sidebottom, Wills, Smith.

VOTES

3 — Alex Rance (RIC)

2 — Trent Cotchin (RIC)

1 — Dustin Martin (RIC)

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/more-news/under-fire-richmond-responds-with-15point-win-over-collingwood-at-mcg-in-round-20/news-story/663283d86b310d7b9abf8c726874eff8

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Tigers show who really matters

Sam Edmund
Herald Sun
6 August 2016

RIEWOLDT, Cotchin and Martin are still the names that matter at Richmond.

Mandie, Silk, Capp and any other “suit” agitating for change may have to stay on the backbench for a little while yet.

With the footy world closing in on the Tigers and demands to uproot the football department, playing list, board, coach and just about everything else, Friday night’s triumph over Collingwood might buy them a little time.

We say “might” because footy’s off-field plotters can be harder to pick than a broken nose. But while a single win in a miserable season doesn’t make this club’s problems disappear, it puts some of the fire out.

Certainly, Damien Hardwick’s head would have hit the pillow as clear as it’s been for some time.

This was an opportunity to get some respect, get some breathing space and ease some pressure. Richmond’s 14.8 (92) to 11.11 (77) win over the Pies did all of that.

It wasn’t GWS the flag contender, it was Collingwood the mid-table battler. So when the Tigers were blindsided 25-0 and drowning in howlers after only 12 minutes, the morning-after didn’t bare thinking about.

Hardwick had spoken about the need to be stronger around the ball, yet the Pies were spanking them in clearances 11-1.

But then Trent Cotchin laid a superb smother, Ty Vickery kicked the ice-breaker and suddenly, Richmond started feeling it. Collingwood had kicked the first four, but Richmond kicked the next three and six of the next seven to thrust themselves back into the contest.

The Tigers were bold. The slow, stodgy, possession-based game that’s been self-sabotaging, was ditched for a more urgent, corridor-based approach.

They went quick, they went direct and they looked infinitely more dangerous.

There were mistakes, of course, and quality-wise this was very much a game between 12th and 13th. But Richmond players spread from the stoppages with intent and in numbers and it made them a better team.

Handball receives were 159-117 Richmond, uncontested possessions 310-223 and uncontested marks 132-92. They were running again.

Not for the first time Jack Riewoldt summed up his side’s night. Statless and with a free-against at quarter-time opposed to young Jonathon Marsh, Riewoldt came to life for the next three quarters and walked off with 4.2 and a hand in a couple of others.

Dustin Martin fended off a dozen players and while he was caught trying to do too much at times, his star quality was again obvious in another 30-plus outing in the face of tagging attention from Jack Crisp and Levi Greenwood

Oleg Markov was pure energy; ditto Adam Marcon and the future will be all the brighter if this is just the start for this pair. Markov adds spunk and he takes the game on at both ends.

Jayden Short had it 22 times. Shaun Grigg ran forward and wide to create an option. He had 14 uncontested marks, Grigg.

Alex Rance was immense and typically effervescent on the rebound. With Markov he was the instigator in numerous Richmond attacks.

It was a week in the spotlight, but Richmond was smiling again. It now has as many wins as Collingwood with twice the scrutiny.

Funny game, football.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/teams/richmond/those-agitating-for-change-at-richmond-may-have-to-stay-on-the-backbench-for-a-little-while-yet/news-story/3bf8076d94fd6bb0992b6171c21afebf