Dear Mum and Dad, from JackMark Robinson
Herald Sun
28 September 2019Every Richmond player wrote a letter to their parents or someone they loved.
Others wrote to someone they needed to explain a story.
Jack Riewoldt wrote to his mum and dad.
And the Tigers asked those parents and loved ones to write back.
The players wrote their letters before Christmas and the return mail was delivered to the players at their pre-season camp on the Gold Coast in January.
What has that got to do with Richmond playing Greater Western Sydney in the Grand Final?
Probably not a lot.
But more than you would realise.
Richmond is not a kick, mark, handball club. At Richmond, Damien Hardwick coaches the players to be good people as much as he coaches them to be good footballers.
“The premise is connection,” Riewoldt tells the Herald Sun.
“We see each other every day and I have great connection and relationship with every single person at this football club.
“Most people working nine to five probably see their work mates more than they see loved ones.
“In today’s society, writing letters is a thing of the past.
“But if you write a letter rather than send a text, clearly it shows you’ve gone to some effort to think outside of yourself to say thank you, or apologise for something or tell them how much you love them.
“There’s an emotion attached to it.
“Footy’s only a job. And it’s obviously a high-profile job and there’s a lot on the line and we have 100,00 members.
“But like any job, when you have people happy and comfortable in their workplace they’re going to succeed and be better.
“It’s amazing how many life lessons marry into footy lessons.”
The letters were the idea of the leadership co-ordinator Shane McCurry and were supported by Hardwick and skipper Trent Cotchin.
It’s not the first time the Tigers have forged a spiritual bond within.
In 2017, they ran with the “Triple H.”
Every week of that season, a player or coach or football staffer stood in front of the group and spoke of: Hardship. Highlight. And Hero.
It was about connection and learning more about their teammate, their vulnerabilities and their achievements, their heroes and their fun times.
“It is what it is, you give a s--- about someone and they’ve got your back ... it’s connection,” Riewoldt said.
Unquestionably, it was the substance to their success.
This campaign started with a greater connection to family and loved ones.
Riewoldt’s letter was written when his wife Carly was pregnant with Poppy. She was born in March.
“Mine was at a time when I was reflecting a lot,” he said.
“This was before Poppy was born, but I wrote that I’m really looking forward to doing what they did for me because when you become parents for the first time you put all your energy into your child, get up in the middle of the night, change nappies, and it dawns on you that they did this for me.
“I wrote about how I was really looking forward to them becoming grandparents for the first time, how lucky Poppy — and we didn't know if she was going to be a boy or girl — but how low lucky the grandchild would be to have grandparents like them.”
In turn, Riewoldt’s parents, Lesley and Chris, wrote of their excitement when they had Jack in 1988.
Riewoldt selected some passages to share:
“Dear Jack,
“Many moons ago we were in the same position as you and Carly — expecting our first baby. So exciting. When you arrived we were so pleased and proud of our little family of three. We made plenty of mistakes along the way, but you filled our lives with joy.
“Here was our baby, we had made him. Life was hectic, but rewarding. We were so lucky to be able to watch you grow and of course were besotted by you.
“Just remember when you dream that there will be hiccups along the way. But always believe that your Mum and Dad love you with a deep-seated power of love that only parents can feel and give.
“Keep looking on the Brightside, mister.
“We love you, Mum and Dad”
Asked why he chose those passages, Riewoldt said: “Because they didn’t have anything to do with footy.”
And he liked the reference to The Killers’ track.
Writing a letter is from yesteryear when life was less digital and time was more thoughtful. Riewoldt said it was probably uncomfortable for some players.
“It depends if you want to be authentic to it,” he said.
“I wouldn’t say it’s hard, but sometimes saying good things and bad things can be uncomfortable.
“It’s probably like saying I love you to someone for the first time. It’s a big step and it can be uncomfortable and some conversations can be. But if you show the will to say something or write down something, then that’s a step in the right direction.”
It wasn't, he said, a football exercise.
“I wouldn’t even correlate it to the footy season at all, it just set up the group to be in a good mind-frame,” he said.
“Whether that’s day-to-day life or football, I feel there is a deep reflection of one and the other.
“If your football life isn’t going great sometimes your football can struggle, but it’s probably more weighted to the fact if your off-field is struggling it impacts your football.
“We speak about being Richmond men. What is a Richmond man?
“It’s authentic, it’s vulnerability, there’s a real emotion around it ... it’s connection.”
Riewoldt enters the Grand Final with intent.
His form is OK, which this week has been highlighted by commentators, but that outside noise hasn’t pricked his team-first bubble.
“It’s a team sport for a reason,” he said, adding: “I might’ve texted Lynchy (Tom Lynch) a few times after last week and said good job.”
At one time of his career, the sort of performance he delivered last week would’ve eaten at him for several days. Not any more.
“It comes to a reflection of what is valued in the group, what do the group value me for? Kicking goals and being a lot more involved in the play is great, but sometimes there’s different things that coaches look to and I bring a different thing to the game as well.”
Riewoldt said this year had been “like no other for me and the club”.
“Although I haven’t played a lot footy this year (12 games), this year has meant the most to me. Granted, I’ve had some huge things happen to me off-field, but I have seen so much growth within this group.
“As an older head sitting back and sometimes pondering what it would’ve been like in the past, I take great enjoyment out of seeing other players come in, debut, and play well and just enjoy and be themselves.”
If Richmond win, it just might be worth writing home about.
https://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/teams/richmond/jack-riewoldt-reveals-richmond-players-wrote-letters-to-their-loved-ones-to-kick-off-2019-campaign/news-story/7a5468ad085b4d41fccc7828df861568
