Tigers are out-tackling opponents for the first time under Dimma's reign (afl)

[one-eyed]

The stats files: Richmond's next step? Right now

Peter Ryan 
afl.com.au
August 8, 2017

Making Richmond great again starts now

RICHMOND'S lid needs to be blown off.

The Tigers sit third on the ladder, the highest they've been at this stage of the season since 1982.

They have played two bad games for the season – against Adelaide and St Kilda – with four of their six losses by fewer than 10 points.

Dustin Martin is the raging Brownlow favourite.

And the Tigers are tackling.

For the first time since coach Damien Hardwick took over in 2010, the Tigers have a positive tackling differential.



That's a change for a Tiger team that last season were the only AFL team to not have a single player lay 10 tackles in a game.

And skipper Trent Cotchin is leading the way.

In round 19, he passed 100 tackles in a season for the first time since his Brownlow medal winning season of 2012.

Twice he has laid 10 tackles in a game for this season and he is Richmond's leading tackler.

He sits 19th on the AFL's tackle count in 2017 with 106 tackles and needs just two more to break his 2012 tally.

The Tigers' pressure is forcing turnovers and allowing them to sweep the ball forward with pace, where their three ninjas, Dan Rioli, Jason Castagna and Dan Butler, use irregular means to create goals.

The Tigers have laid the second most tackles inside forward 50, a huge turnaround from last season when they were last in the AFL.



That forward pressure means the Tigers have spent 7.1 minutes more time in the forward half than their opposition, allowing their defence to set up behind the ball.

Pressure has made Richmond the hardest team to score against this season, conceding just 77.1 points a game on average.

It's a premiership formula.

Now the Tigers head to Geelong to book a top four spot and create a top two chance, essential to a team that is yet to win a final under Hardwick.

It's a tough ask. Richmond has not beaten the Cats anywhere since winning at Simonds Stadium in round nine, 2006

* The Tiges have lost 19 of their past 20 games against Geelong
* They've only scored more than 100 points at Simonds Stadium once this century
* Not one player on the list has been involved in a win against the Cats wearing a Richmond jumper.

The Cats will be without skipper Joel Selwood; one bonus as Richmond has not managed to beat Geelong in 12 attempts with Selwood in the team.

Finally ending the streak will remove internal doubts at Richmond as the external hype grows.

The Tigers' draw has been good and four of their losses have been to other top eight aspirants.

But it's their game style that has changed, with pressure the key.

If Hardwick's pre-season promise to make Richmond great again is to become true, it must start with a win in Geelong.

http://www.afl.com.au/news/2017-08-08/the-stats-files-how-the-tigers-found-their-teeth

[Francois Jackson]

Funny it's the one thing most of us have been crying for

Now they deliver under Blake.,better late than ever

[YellowandBlackBlood]

Yeah. Who can ever forget the ridiculous comment that we are a "low tackling sort of side"? If I was on the board, I would have asked for his resignation just for those comments.

[MintOnLamb]

Yeah. Who can ever forget the ridiculous comment that we are a "low tackling sort of side"? If I was on the board, I would have asked for his resignation just for those comments.

Like we are not the sort of team that has a high score?

[YellowandBlackBlood]

Not quite.
One is admitting you have difficulty scoring. The other is saying that you can't be fagged getting the players to put real pressure on the opposition.

[Tigeritis™©®]

All I'm saying, and most of us have been saying it for the last 8 years or more, is why the hell won't they tackle?
There were some apologists on here that were adamant that tackling numbers were overrated or just meant that you were second to the contest blah blah and they loved the Hardwick corale and the one handed stop slap. But most of us astute footy followers knew that among other things, tackling and pressure were the missing ingredients to success.

I'm glad Hardwick has come to his senses and changed his blueprint.  He has listened to those people that actually understand footy.
I'm glad Balme has come to Richmond and was able to get Caracella to come also.

Now if someone could just teach the boys how to shepherd and we'd be unbeatable.   

[Owl]

I think our coralling has suffered of late

[lamington]

And not over handball when in scoring distance. Just take responsibility and kick the goal!

[Andyy]

Can't tell you how happy it makes me to see our team actually tackling hard, for the first time in so long. And look it pays dividends who'd have thought...

[the claw]

Stats eh out tackling teams yet we are 13th for tackles laid. but have had higher tackle numbers in 11 of 19 games.

Dont think the numbers are anything special in the overall scheme of things, its just they were so poor in previous yrs and now  they are just where they should have been right throughout Hardwicks tenure.