Extra pick needed for soft sell
Jon Ralph | December 11, 2008
AFL match-winner Ben Cousins or one of a collection of kids and nobodies such as Kade Klemke, Justin Van Unen and Bryn Weadon?
On face value it shapes as an easy decision for a Richmond match committee quickly coming around to the idea of recruiting Ben Cousins.
What AFL clubs are asking is this: why have the Tigers decided so late that they need a second pick, if Cousins is the man they are after?
If the Tigers believe they can rehabilitate Cousins, take the punt with selection six in the pre-season draft.
If they want to take a kid, any of the aforementioned players training at Richmond would be viable options.
Could the answer lie in how the Tigers can sell selecting Cousins to their fans?
Richmond has already topped up on recycled players, albeit youthful options, with Port Adelaide's Adam Thomson and Essendon's Tom Hislop.
Taking another, albeit Brownlow Ben, is hardly pushing the message that the Tigers are riding a kid-led resurgence.
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/sport/afl/story/0,26576,24783558-19742,00.html
