Raines soaks up senior experience
2 September, 2004
Tony Greenberg
richmondfc.com.au
Richmond’s Round 22 debutant, Andrew Raines, believes the experience he gained in last Saturday’s match against the Sydney Swans at the MCG will prove a valuable boost to his playing prospects for next season.
“The pace is really fast and you certainly know what the fitness level requirements are like because there’s a hell of a lot of running around there,” said the 18-year-old son of former Tiger champion centreman, Geoff Raines.
“It was just a really good experience and something to build on for next year. I will now go through the pre-season realising exactly what’s required at senior level . . .
“I’ve put on a bit of weight this year, but I suppose I have to put on a bit more to play consistent senior footy.
“All in all, it was a very good experience for next year.”
Raines, who was taken at pick 76 by the Tigers in last year’s AFL National Draft, made excellent progress throughout his first season at Punt Road.
“I really didn’t expect to play this year,” he said.
“They (the Club) wanted me to develop this year, just in the VFL,” Raines said.
“But I took the next step and was fortunate enough to find a bit of form and get in the best players a few times at Coburg.
“Then, Danny (Frawley) gave me a call during the week and said: “You’re playing your first senior game on Saturday, against the Swans. And, it was a big thrill – definitely!”
Naturally enough, Raines’ family also were thrilled when they heard the news . . .
“I called my father and my mum straight away and they told me they had absolute faith in me to do the Yellow and Black proud,” he said.
“All the family came down (from Queensland) and their support was great.”
Raines spent most of the first quarter on the interchange bench, but was grateful for the few minutes of game time he did receive in the term, which allowed him to settle his nerves.
“It was good to get on in the first quarter. If I had to wait for the quarter to go by and then come on in the second quarter, the nerves might have been still building up,” he said.
As it turned out, Raines’ first kick in the big time led to a Tiger goal – one of only six scored by the team for the afternoon . . .
“Joel Bowden passed it to me and I kicked it up towards ‘Richo’ and then ‘Cogs’ got the free kick and scored a goal. So, that sort of cooled the nerves a bit, getting that first kick straight away.
Raines finished with match stats of 5 kicks, 4 handballs and 4 marks in just over a half of on-field time.
In the rooms after the game, he experienced mixed emotions as he reflected on his AFL debut at the club where his father won three Best and Fairests and was a premiership hero, in 1980.
“It was really disappointing in the rooms afterwards . . . everyone with their heads down. But I guess I was sort of still on ‘cloud nine’ from receiving the good news during the week,” he said.
“I felt disappointment for the Club, the supporters, all the players, and for Danny, who had tried his heart out for us. But I was really happy to get a senior game.
“I really look forward to 2005 now . . . and let’s go ‘Tiges’.”
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