Follow me, Tiger star tells cub
By Paul Daffey
The Age
December 19, 2004
For several years, Richmond fans have wondered about Matthew Richardson's sense of direction after watching him find all points of the compass while shooting for goal.
In recent weeks, Richmond's No. 4 draft pick, Richard Tambling, also has found cause to wonder about the big forward's bearings, having agreed to follow Richardson to training at Punt Road and ending up on a fast track to the south-eastern suburbs.
Richardson is billeting Tambling in a spare room at his Middle Park home until Tambling returns to Darwin on Wednesday. The arrangement is part of a scheme in which senior Tigers mentor the club's country and interstate recruits during their initial month in Melbourne, between draft day and the Christmas break.
On the occasion of the wrong turn to oblivion, Richardson arranged for Tambling to follow him from Middle Park to Punt Road.
But, in heading over the Yarra River and along the bridge that leads towards the Melbourne Park tennis centre, Richardson did his usual trick of travelling in the right lane for as long as possible without thinking that his young teammate might be thrown by such judicious driving.
While Richardson zipped into the left lane just before the right lane veers off towards Citylink, Tambling was stranded in the right lane and found himself bound for distant suburbs. "I thought I was going to miss training," he said.
The prized recruit was swept along by the flow of traffic before making sure he got off at the first available exit, which leads into Church Street. After working out his whereabouts, he was heading back towards Tigerland when a car horn began honking behind him. The driver, a dark-haired key forward, was waving to get his attention.
Tambling was impressed at how quickly Richardson had managed to track him down. "He must have been driving fast," he said. The pair pulled up in the Punt Road Oval car park and had a laugh about the travails of settling into a new city.
During quiet moments at home, Richardson has related to Tambling his experiences after moving to Melbourne from Devonport. Tambling, in turn, has told him about his early life in the Top End.
Richardson has cooked the odd meal, impressing Tambling with his sweet-and-sour chilli dish, but mostly the veteran forward has revealed the tasty delights of the many takeaway outlets in Middle Park.
"I haven't cooked as much as I should have," said Richardson, who is 29. "We had some Japanese from around the corner the other night and he seemed to enjoy it."
In all, five senior Richmond players have billeted out draft selections over the past month. In the case of Tom Roach, the 19-year-old who is mentoring Danny Meyer, Roach has been helped out by his father Michael, the former Richmond champion.
After the players return from the Christmas break for training in early January, the five draft choices will be moved into family accommodation organised by another former Tiger champion, Dale Weightman, who is the player development manager.
In 1977, Weightman's first year in Melbourne after moving down from Mildura, he boarded with a fellow Mildura teenager, Mark Lee, in Sandringham. Weightman said part of the role of the senior players was simply to help the teenagers work out a routine.
"They get home from training and they just want to sleep," Weightman said. "The senior players point out that it's best just to have a nap for an hour, otherwise they're awake all night."
Richardson, who also billeted out Kayne Pettifer after Pettifer had moved down from Kyabram in 2000, says he is happy to advise young Tigers on settling into their new lives.
TIGERS & CUBS
Matthew Richardson-Richard Tambling
Mark Coughlan-Brett Deledio
Andrew Kellaway-Dean Polo
Tom Roach-Danny Meyer
Shane Morrison-Luke McGuane
http://www.realfooty.theage.com.au/realfooty/articles/2004/12/18/1103312785365.html
