Riewoldt 'rapt' at LeCras 12richmondfc.com.au
By Mic Cullen
Tue 20 July, 2010GUN Richmond forward Jack Riewoldt, who became the first player in three years to kick 10 goals in the Tigers’ win over the Brisbane Lions in round 13, says he loved watching Mark LeCras kick a dozen on the weekend.
The 23-year-old Eagle booted 12.2 against the beleaguered Bombers at Etihad Stadium on Saturday night, lifting his season tally to 50 and taking third spot in the race for the Coleman Medal, behind Riewoldt and Western Bulldogs recruit Barry Hall.
Riewoldt, who has 61 for the season - seven more than Hall - said he was rapt to see LeCras kick a big bag, and wasn’t worried if that gave the Western Australian the boost required to win the Coleman.
“At the moment, it's all about everyone playing their role," he said at Punt Rd on Tuesday afternoon.
"Obviously I'm full-forward of this side, but it still comes down to - week in, week out - guys like Will Thursfield playing his role in the backline and stopping guys kicking goals.
"I've just been lucky to get on the end of a few this year, and I've been kicking pretty straight too, which has been good.
"Barry Hall is such a good player, and Mark LeCras kicking 12 on the weekend was an amazing effort, and I got a quiet enjoyment out of watching him.”
"I think it's great for the game to see guys kicking 10-plus goals, eight-plus goals, because fans come along to see high-scoring games, and if you've got guys kicking that amount of goals in games then it's going to make the game a better spectacle."
Riewoldt, who was taken with pick 13 in the 2006 NAB AFL Draft, is contracted through to the end of 2011, but says while he expects to be a one-club player, he's in no rush to sign a new deal.
"I'm still contracted for another year after this one - happy Tiger, and still will be for life, I reckon.
"Questions are going to be asked, as obviously I'm coming out of contract next year when the GWS (Greater Western Sydney) do come in, but it's something that we're trying to do with all our players down here is develop this culture that we're one team.
"I've got some great mates down here, guys that are playing really good footy as well, like Andy Collins, Shane Edwards and Dan Connors, all came out of my draft, so this is something that we're building together.
"You look at sides like Geelong and St Kilda, they've come through as a group together, and they haven't lost any names from their drafts.
"Newy (captain Chris Newman) is the driving force for that - I think we've just got this inner belief that we're going to be good in two to three years time.
"We're going to be a powerhouse of the AFL."
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