The tables will turn’: Jack Riewoldt’s defiant pledge to escape form slumpJacob Polychronis
July 29, 2020 11:05am
Under-fire Richmond forward Jack Riewoldt insists he’s just “10 minutes of good footy” away from turning around his 2020 season after a poor start.
The dual premiership star has kicked one goal in each of his past five games; a concerning lean patch that triple All-Australian Nick Dal Santo believes could lay waste to Richmond’s flag hopes if it doesn’t end.
Riewoldt has averaged 2.4 goals per game in his 14-year career at Punt Road, but an unprecedented slump in this season’s opening rounds has seen Richmond win just four of its first eight games.
Ahead of Wednesday night’s match against the Bulldogs, the 31-year-old told Fox Footy’s AFL 360 that he’s disappointed with his form, but remains confident that it won’t take much to turn it around.
When asked if a lack of goals has been weighing him down, Riewoldt said: “I’m not playing as well as I’d like.
“But I think when you’ve been around for as long as I have you develop an inner-belief that it’s only one quarter, 10 minutes away of good footy to get back to your best.
“The tables will turn. Sometimes this is footy and this is a completely different year to what we’ve had before. So it’s just taken us a little bit of time to adjust.”
Riewoldt added that his work off the ball is still important for the Tigers, as are his efforts in assisting other players to find their own form.
Nonetheless, the forward is unable to escape unwanted attention in 2020, in which he’s averaging just eight disposals a game — his lowest tally since his debut season in 2007.
St Kilda great Dal Santo is among those to raise the alarm over Riewoldt’s slump, telling Fox Footy’s First Crack that Richmond’s quest for back-to-back premierships can’t sustain his current form.
“I think we’ve seen enough football this year for me to say that if Jack Riewoldt doesn’t get out of this form slump that he’s going through, they can’t win the flag,” Dal Santo said after Richmond’s 12-point loss to the Giants on Friday night.
“He’s not playing good football, but they need him to play better football, in my opinion, for them to get to where we think they can get to.”
Riewoldt told AFL 360 that the criticism may have affected him earlier in his career, but it is now “water off a duck’s back”.
“I reckon maybe five or six years ago, had I gone through a lean patch like I am now, I really would have resented the way the media were talking about me because I feel like I’m still doing a lot of things off the ball that are making us a good side or go to the way we play,” he said.
“But I understand you’ve (media) got to talk about players. I’m a realist. I know that once you get a three in front of your age, people automatically write you off.
“I’m pretty realistic. I know I’m still a good player, I just haven’t played very well over the past few weeks and I know that it will come around again...”
Riewoldt isn’t the only Richmond forward struggling. His fellow key forward, Tom Lynch, was held goalless against the Giants and has just two majors in his past three games.
The pair will have a chance to turn the tables on Wednesday night (7.10 EST) when they face the Bulldogs, who have won back-to-back matches against Essendon and Gold Coast.
https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/afl-2020-richmond-tigers-vs-western-bulldogs-preview-jack-riewoldt-addresses-form-slump-tom-lynch/news-story/d22615f3fd2ef1c5f701fdd3153143cd
