Richmond need the money netted for selling games (Foxsports)

[one-eyed]

Gerard Healy says Richmond need the money netted for selling games

    By Gerard Healy
    FOX SPORTS
    July 18, 2011 4:30PM

On the same weekend that Richmond lost to Gold Coast Suns, a defeat which sparked an avalanche of angry talkback callers taking pot shots at their football club, Melbourne picked up four points and $450,000 in cash in Darwin. Not a word was heard from Demons fans.

Selling a couple of loss-making games that would otherwise draw loss-making crowds in Melbourne is a no-brainer for the clubs and should be a winner for the code.

Rather than losing money at the MCG, both Melbourne and Richmond bolstered the coffers of their football departments by half a million dollars.

The money made could arguably fund the recruiting department to find rookies that can kick or a ruckman that can have an influence.

Right now Richmond are a young team with a dozen or so talented players.

They are building but for whatever reason are down on confidence and Jack Riewoldt came in well down on form.

Riewoldt in full flight can transform an ordinary outfit into a competitive one and his lack of impact is now at the alarming stage.

No doubt he is carrying an injury but whatever it is, it is not working. Riewoldt has kicked 11 goals in his past six matches. His four-goal haul in the heavy loss to Carlton is his best return in that period.

The midfield has talent but no depth and its talent is limited at present as they continually get beaten at stoppages and in contested ball.

They are given no assistance with their lack of genuine AFL-standard ruck options and a defensive unit that turns the ball over far too often under pressure.

Take the money and spend it wisely, Tigers.

It will still be some years before the building process produces the power team that Richmond fans crave, if they can identify and recruit the half a dozen serious talents they are short of, but great gains can be made in 12 months, particularly in the ruck area.

Time is of the essence however, for on the weekend Gold Coast showed there are other teams on the same track that are moving faster than Richmond at present.

The Tigers are well off finals pace at present and miles off the top four, where the real finals are played, and ignoring good football decisions like moving games to money-making venues would only stifle the development.

As the Tigers coach said, to get to the big one you have to be able to win anywhere and the opportunity for AFL to promote itself in far-north Queensland is something it can't ignore.

It should have been a win all round for Richmond but the fact that they lost does not detract from the direction the club took.

http://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/afl-premiership/foxsportscomau-afl-expert-gerard-healy-says-richmond-need-the-money-netted-for-selling-home-games/story-e6frf3e3-1226096991203

[the claw]

a common sense horse in front of the cart article.
the lack of vision patience yes patience common sense and understanding of what must come first is mind boggling among our supporters.

[Penelope]

sad but true craw

[dizza]

Yep, we do need the money. But isn't is sad that a club of our stature has to sell off home games in order to stay afloat? Says something about where we're at.

[DCrane]

a common sense horse in front of the cart article.
the lack of vision patience yes patience common sense and understanding of what must come first is mind boggling among our supporters.

I don't think it's fair to say that fans who are against selling off home games aren't thinking of the long term future of the club.
To me wins, and good wins at that, are what this club so desperately needs at the moment and will provide the impetus for the cash registers to ring off field.

These debacles will end up costing the club. For example, this string of losses will cost us members next year and it all began with the port loss. We win the port game we are in the top 8 and flying. If our confidence was up Gold Coast would have been a cinch.

We should be on 7.5 wins with still a game against the GCS to come. That is finals contention. How much easier would it be to sell memberships if that were the case.
I applaud the current admin for trying to reduce the debt but these couple of years imv were not the years to pay for the off field sins of their predecessors.  

[The Big Richo]

DCrane, history shows that success is not a criteria RFC fans use in deciding whether to rejoin.

It would take a lot of members to make the $1,000,000 we made from those games, plus if they were in Melbourne we would have lost money so it probably becomes 1.1 - 1.3 million, plus I hear that merchandise sales at those games are worth more than they would be in Melbourne.

[WilliamPowell]

plus I hear that merchandise sales at those games are worth more than they would be in Melbourne.

Good point TBR - I know up in Darwin they sold a helluva lot of stuff