Finals a forlorn hope: Bowden
By Geoff Dodd
Mon 11 August, 2008
RICHMOND stalwart Joel Bowden has conceded that finals are a forlorn hope after a miserable Tiger performance at AAMI Stadium in his 250th game left the club relying on a lot to go right.
The Tigers were belted by 63 points and never looked in the hunt against the Crows in a game they had to win to keep their finals plans on track.
“The (finals) carrot was there, no doubt, and I was excited about that and hoping we could set ourselves up,” Bowden said. “Unfortunately that hasn’t happened.
“It doesn’t look like we’ll play finals now. We’d have to win our last three and other teams would have to lose … it’s fundamentally out of our hands. We just need to finish the year off well.”
If Bowden’s last six weeks of footy was cricket, then Bill Lawry would no doubt be saying: “it’s all happening”.
In that period he has taken a game-saving, last minute mark against Port Adelaide (one of 23 he took for the day); won another game for his side with well thought-out rushed point tactics against Essendon; and then slotted the winner in the last minute of the match against Brisbane Lions.
Yet that is the antithesis of what Bowden says his footy is all about – except in one important aspect: helping his team win.
The desire to put team first meant Bowden was keen to play down the importance of his 250-game milestone this week, despite it making him just the 12th Tiger to reach the mark in the 100-year history of the club.
“The build-up was pretty subdued really, nothing over the top,” the philosophical Bowden said in the desolate Richmond rooms after the match, ice packs on both knees.
“Matthew Richardson just spoke last night at the team meeting about me getting to 250 games. That was nice. And we didn’t go over the top with anything too much in the pre-match.
“I hoped not to distract anyone – I just wanted it to be just another game of footy where our guys turned up and played well, as they have been over the last six or seven weeks. That was my aim.
“I’ve played a lot of footy now, and I’m looking at ‘how can I contribute to the team to play finals’.
“I’m very interested in how the team goes, in how my small actions can make a contribution, and if I can play a role in us playing finals footy – that’s what my footy’s about now days.
“It was just disappointing we weren’t able to come out and give a better showing.”
Nevertheless a few special guests made the trip for the milestone, including former teammate Brendan Gale and close family.
“My father flew down from Darwin which was really nice, and a couple of family friends came across. I think next week at the President’s Lunch back in Melbourne they’ll do something small and I’ll invite my brother and a few friends to that.”
Unfortunately the goal of playing finals footy wasn’t aided by the disappointing result, the Tigers blowing a chance to leap to the cusp of the eight.
The young Tigers now face a big test of character to come up after the disappointment of blowing a season-defining game.
“(We just have to) get the guys to bounce back from this, recuperate, recover and get ready for Hawthorn next week,” Bowden said.
“Every week’s a test. I haven’t played an easy game in 250. I wish there were a few easy games but there’s not, every team’s difficult. Hawthorn’s a good side and we’ll need to play well to match it with them and hopefully beat them.”
Time is running out for Bowden to play in finals again, but he reckons there are a few more shots in the locker.
“I reckon I’ve got a lot of footy left in me – certainly next year and perhaps the year after,” he said.
“I love the Richmond footy club. I hope to make a contribution on the field; I hope to make a contribution off the field as well.
“In the next couple of years with the list that we’ve got if we develop a little better and (learn to) play good footy in adversity, not just when it’s dry and we’re up and about, (then) hopefully (we’ll) play some finals.
“(But) I’m also looking to the future as well. I need to make sure that my body is okay. I need to make sure I can contribute to the Richmond footy club on and off the field.
“But I’ve also got a little more of a broader perspective and looking for what else I can do for society in those years to come.
“So for me, the next couple of years will be about trying to develop the guys at the footy club; trying to develop myself and look after my family; and then see where that leads me in the future for how I might be able to make a contribution off the field.
“Whether that’s with football clubs or with community groups, that’s something for me to continue to work on.”
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