Author Topic: Media articles & Stats: Eagles far too good for Tigers  (Read 2190 times)

Offline one-eyed

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Media articles & Stats: Eagles far too good for Tigers
« on: August 29, 2009, 12:43:18 AM »
Eagles far too good for Tigers
richmondfc.com.au
By Matt Brown 11:22 PM Fri 28 August, 2009


West Coast    4.8  9.14  15.18  17.23 (125)
Richmond       1.3  5.5     5.6     6.9 (45)

GOALS
West Coast: LeCras 5, Staker 3, McKinley 2, Ebert, Embley, Hurn, Kennedy, Lynch, Spangher, Swift
Richmond: Deledio, Edwards, McMahon, Morton, Polak, Tuck

BEST
West Coast: Swift, LeCras, Spangher, Glass, Adam Selwood, Naitanui, Hurn
Richmond: Cousins, Jackson, Deledio, Edwards

INJURIES
West Coast: Nil
Richmond: Matthew White replaced in selected side by Jayden Post

Reports: Nil

Umpires: James, Grun, Ryan
Official crowd: 39,017 at Subiaco Oval

--------------------------------------------------

RICHMOND has closed the door on a disappointing 2009 with a lacklustre 80-point loss to the West Coast Eagles at Subiaco Oval tonight.

The Tigers took to the field with the knowledge that two club favourites, Nathan Brown and Mark Coughlan, would be playing their final games.

But it was not enough to lift the Tigers and the Eagles led at every change with Mark LeCras kicking five goals as the home side prevailed, 17.23 (125) to 6.9 (45).

Brett Deledio (28 possessions) and Cousins (28) led the way for the Tigers with good contributions from Shane Edwards, Daniel Jackson and Jordan McMahon.

Matt Spangher and Tom Swift vied for the honour of West Coast’s best, Darren Glass was unbeatable in defence, while Mark LeCras’ five goals will further press his claims for All-Australian selection.

The match also marked the final game for West Coast veteran Chad Fletcher while fellow premiership player Adam Hunter also announced his retirement.

Coughlan had won a best and fairest in 2003 before being cut down by two knee reconstructions while the dual All-Australian Brown also had his career curtailed by a horrific broken leg in 2005.

Their departures will not be the last as new coach Damien Hardwick begins rebuilding the Tigers’ list for 2010.

Richmond started confidently and had the first goal on the board with just three minutes on the clock when Jordan McMahon let loose with a raking left foot shot from the 50 metre mark.

But it would be prove to be a false dawn and Eagles’ midfield quickly established control.

The home side dominated both the clearances and the inside 50s but were wasteful in front of goal.

Goals to Ben McKinley, Brad Ebert, Mark Le Cras and Shannon Hurn were punctuated by eight behinds.

Ben Cousins had received a warm welcome home until a clash with both Scott and Adam Selwood midway through the term ensured he earned a chorus of boos for the remainder of the game.

West Coast’s inaccuracy helped keep the Tigers within 23 points at the first break.

The second term opened badly for Richmond when Dean Polo surrendered a goal to LeCras through a deliberate rushed behind.

Deledio then sparked the Tigers with a 55-metre effort which was quickly followed by goals to Graham Polak and Shane Tuck.

The Richmond resurgence was short-lived with the Eagles having too many options in the forward 50 and they stretched their lead to 33 points at the long break.

The third quarter would perhaps be best forgotten by Richmond fans with 29 minutes of football yielding just one behind for the Tigers.

In reply, the Eagles rattled on six goals, the highlight being yet another 65-metre effort from Quinten Lynch in his 150th match.

Deledio, Cousins, Edwards and Jackson were working hard but nothing was going right for the Tigers.

Down by 72 points at the final break, Richmond tried to lift for Brown and Coughlan.

Jack Riewoldt was presenting the Tigers with a viable target inside 50 but successive shots on goal only resulted in behinds.

Meanwhile, LeCras was deadly at the opposite end of the ground posting his fourth goal.

Riewoldt again marked strongly before passing off to Mitch Morton who kicked the Tigers’ first goal of the half at the nine-minute mark of the final term.

But when LeCras capitalised on a defensive error by McMahon to kick his fifth, the Tigers were done for the night.

http://www.richmondfc.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/6301/newsid/83738/default.aspx

Offline one-eyed

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Eagles tame toothless Tigers (Age)
« Reply #1 on: August 29, 2009, 06:47:16 AM »
Eagles tame toothless Tigers
Tim Clarke, Perth | August 29, 2009

FOR a game that supposedly meant nothing, there were an awful lot of meaningful storylines in the first game of this year's final home-and-away round.

On the surface it was two teams in the bottom five, with West Coast's comfortable 17.23 (125) to 6.9 (45) victory over Richmond confirming its 2009 improvement, while also solidifying the size of the task facing Damien Hardwick next season.

Underneath, the clash had numerous emotional undercurrents.

Graham Polak's first game back in his home town since his horrific ordeal. Jade Rawlings' last game as Richmond coach and Mark Coughlan and Nathan Brown's final appearances as players for the Tigers.

The same landmark being reached for Eagles Chad Fletcher and Adam Hunter, the latter cruelled by a chronic shoulder complaint in what should have been his prime.

David Wirrpanda's late withdrawal after partner Shannon went into labour in the afternoon added another element of theatre for another player with an uncertain football future.

And centre stage, over-arching it all, was Ben Cousins, returning to Subiaco Oval to take on the club he once loved, and the supporters that mostly still love him.

After an initial reception as warm as the night was cold, Cousins' every touch was met with part cheer, part jeer from the Eagles faithful, who have never quite come to terms with how their golden boy became so tarnished, and why their team had to suffer.

With the Eagles' No. 1 tagger Adam Selwood trailing him - an indication of how much John Worsfold still rates his former spiritual leader - Cousins still found the football 28 times, but was powerless to curtail his ex-employer.

The Eagles should have had the contest wrapped up after the first quarter, which saw them score 12 times from 15 forward entries, but only four of them majors.

The Eagles sprinted out to a lead which threatened to get embarrassing for the visitors, and did in the end. Cousins' spat with one of his successors, Brad Ebert, sparked some life into the Tigers, with Polak's first goal since his return from the injuries suffered in his collision with a Melbourne tram paying back some of the luck that deserted him so horribly last year.

Two jagged goal-square bounces beat two Eagles players to the line, and gave the former Docker his brightest football moment in a dark year.

But Nick Naitanui continued to make his mark at the stoppages, and Tom Swift's incessant need to tackle allowed West Coast to kick four of the last five goals of the half and take a decisive lead.

With Fletcher's efforts summing up why the Eagles have not sought to extend his career - hit and miss being the easiest way to sum up his disposal - Coughlan and Brown were both trying hard to advertise their wares to potential suitors without either really convincing. And so as the past caught up with plenty of those on show, one passage from Naitanui and a complete game from Swift, showed the draft which came after the Eagles' worst ever on-field season could prove to be one of the best.

Naitanui's leap, tackle, gather, crunch and handball in one sustained blur of arms and legs in the third quarter raised the volume among the crowd to levels only Cousins once induced. And while Swift, like Coughlan, has also endured two knee reconstructions in too short a time span, he showed an intensity and poise which the Richmond man could only aspire to.

With Brett Deledio fighting a lone hand with 10 possessions in the third quarter, it equated to only a point to his team on the scoreboard as the Eagles' massive superiority gave it 6.4 for the quarter.

And the main beneficiary was fittingly Mark Le Cras, consistently the Eagles' brightest spark this season in the forward line, and occasionally in midfield, who finished with five goals, the last of which summed up the Tigers' miserable year.

Jordan McMahon's attempt to kick to himself and play on ended with a footpass straight to the West Coast forward, whose verbal volley towards the Tiger may be repeated many times by Hardwick in the months of pre-season to come.

WEST COAST 4.8 9.14 15.18 17.23 (125)
RICHMOND 1.3 5.5 5.6 6.9 (45)

GOALS
West Coast: LeCras 5, Staker 3, McKinley 2, Ebert, Hurn, Kennedy, Embley, Swift, Spangher, Lynch.
Richmond: McMahon, Deledio, Polak, Tuck, Edwards, Morton.

BEST
West Coast: LeCras, Swift, A Selwood, Hurn, Lynch.
Richmond: Deledio, Cousins, Jackson, Edwards, Tuck.

INJURIES: Wirrpanda replaced in selected team by McNamara.

West Coast:

UMPIRES: James, Grun, H Ryan.

CROWD: 39,017 at Subiaco Oval.

MAIN MEN
As one of the past greats made his return to the Eagles' nest, so one of the potential successors to his midfield crown in Tom Swift rose to the top under the Friday night lights. His high-kneed running style may have caused his teammates to compare him to a trotting horse, but the desire to win the football where it hurts, leading all-comers in contested ball and tackles, indicated Swift is no show pony.

TURNING POINT
There wasn't one, as the tide was constantly against Richmond from the first bounce. Four Eagles goals in the first 10 minutes set the tone for the evening and while Ben Cousins and Brett Deledio toiled, there was nothing really to be positive about for the Tigers. Dean Polo's triple clangers in the first half summed up the night and the season for Tigers fans.

THE UPSHOT
West Coast finishes with twice as many wins as the annus horribilis of last year, and with stalwarts Fletcher and Hunter riding off into the sunset, the massive progression of Shannon Hurn and Mark LeCras was mirrored on the night. For Richmond, a year that had such optimism before the first bounce ended in round 22 as it started in round one, with a convincing loss and a massive rebuilding job for Damien Hardwick.

http://www.realfooty.com.au/news/rfmatchreport/eagles-tame-tigers/2009/08/29/1251394598966.html?page=fullpage#contentSwap1

Offline one-eyed

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Eagles soar despite courageous Cousins (Age)
« Reply #2 on: August 29, 2009, 06:49:26 AM »
Eagles soar despite courageous Cousins
Justin Chadwick
August 29, 2009 - 6:09AM

Adopted Tiger Ben Cousins put on a first-half masterclass but it failed to inspire his teammates as West Coast romped to a 80-point AFL triumph over Richmond at Subiaco Oval on Friday night.

Cousins, playing against the Eagles at his former stamping ground for the first time, received a mixture of boos and cheers from the sellout crowd of 39,017 fans.

And their throats would have been sore by half-time after he collected the ball 18 times.

But Cousins, who finished the match with 28 possessions, was one of few winners for the Tigers, with West Coast's emerging batch of young guns inspiring the Eagles to the crushing 17.23 (125) to 6.9 (45) triumph, the club's fourth win from their past five matches.

Eagles sharpshooter Mark LeCras finished with five goals, Brent Staker chipped in with three and Ben McKinley booted two.

But it was West Coast's midfield dominance which sparked the rout, with Tim Swift putting in a case for best on ground honours with 26 damaging possessions and 10 tackles.

Shannon Hurn, Darren Glass and Matt Spangher cleaned up across half back while midfielder Chad Fletcher gathered 20 possessions in his farewell match, although his night was blighted by several turnovers.

Brett Deledio (28 possessions), Shane Edwards and Cousins battled valiantly for the Tigers, who were beaten in every area of the ground and managed just 1.4 after half-time.

Cousins was involved in his fair share of scuffles and could be scrutinised by the match review panel for a first-quarter tussle with Scott Selwood.

While the clash was expected to be fiery, the action started before the bounce when West Coast confirmed Adam Hunter had been forced into early retirement due to his shoulder injury and the Tigers announced Nathan Brown and Mark Coughlan would be de-listed.

And to add further drama, Eagles defender David Wirrpanda was a late scratching after his partner went into labour.

The Eagles blitzed the Tigers in the opening term and could have easily headed into quarter time with a 10-goal lead if not for their wastefulness in front of goal.

They had to be content with a 23-point advantage after booting 4.8 from 15 inside 50s.

West Coast's goalkicking woes continued in the second term as the Tigers finally clicked into gear.

Goals to Deledio, Graham Polak and Travis Tuck closed the margin to 11 points midway through the term but from there the Tigers simply surrendered.

West Coast slammed through 11 of the next 12 goals to take a commanding 72-point lead into the final change, with Richmond managing just a single behind in the third quarter.

Prized Eagles recruit Nic Naitanui provided one of the highlights of the match in the third quarter when he won the centre-square bounce, gathered his own ball and bustled his way through four Richmond opponents before expertly delivering it to Brad Ebert, who sprayed the shot on goal.

Polak also provided a special moment when his snap from 35m out in the second term bounced twice in the goalsquare and evaded two Eagles defenders to sneak through for a goal.

Richmond's night, and season for that matter, was summed up midway through the final term when Jordan McMahon played on from a kick-in and booted the ball straight into LeCras, who strolled in for the easiest of goals.

http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-news-sport/eagles-soar-despite-courageous-cousins-20090829-f2s1.html

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Richmond's season lose-lose (Herald-Sun)
« Reply #3 on: August 29, 2009, 06:51:49 AM »
Richmond's season lose-lose
Braden Quartermaine | August 29, 2009

      RICHMOND'S season from hell went full circle as the book closed on the Wallace-Rawlings era - and the careers of Nathan Brown and Mark Coughlan - with an insipid 80-point thrashing at the hands of West Coast at Subiaco.

After the Round 1 rout by Carlton heralded the beginning of the end for Terry Wallace, the only way is up for new coach Damien Hardwick after Jade Rawlings' last match in charge ended in humiliation.

It was only shoddy kicking for goal by the Eagles that saved Richmond from a belting of more than 100 points.

Ben Cousins predictably rose above every sub-plot to star in his first encounter with his former teammates at his old home ground.

Cousins was greeted by cheers from West Coast fans before the match and when he took possession in the early exchanges.

But that changed after Cousins was at the centre of some heated scuffles with his former teammates.

He could face a delayed start to next season with a high hit on Scott Selwood likely to attract scrutiny from the match review panel.

From that point, Cousins was booed by the majority of the fans who used to idolise him.

His efforts were in vain as the Eagles - minus stars Daniel Kerr and Dean Cox - showcased their future.

They finished the season with eight wins, including four from their last five games, to double last season's tally of four.

Brown, 31, and Coughlan, 27, were told before the match they would be delisted and both tried hard but struggled to have an influence.

Brown fought back from a horrific broken leg in 2005 but has never been quite the same player.

Coughlan's career was ruined by two knee reconstructions and a chronic hamstring condition and last night's game was just his ninth of the season.

Richmond assistant David King said before the match the decision to dump the pair was an unfortunate part of the football cycle.

"It is certainly not the players' choice, it has come from above. The club has made the decision not to offer those players contracts," King said.

"Players come under the microscope very quickly when you go through a cycle like Richmond have the last couple of years.

"Mark has been an outstanding contributor, but just has not been able to get his body right - an absolute warrior."

Eagles midfielder Chad Fletcher was recalled for just his fifth game of the season, getting the chance to farewell his home crowd before he will be delisted.

Defender David Wirrpanda was a late withdrawal after his partner, Perth model Shannon McGuire, went into labour before the match.

Premiership player Adam Hunter, who has battled a chronic shoulder condition, also officially retired.

SCOREBOARD

WEST COAST 4.8 9.14 15.18 17.23 (125)
RICHMOND    1.3  5.5   5.6    6.9 (45)

Goals:
West Coast: M LeCras 5 B Staker 3 B McKinley 2 A Embley B Ebert J Kennedy M Spangher Q Lynch S Hurn T Swift.
Richmond: B Deledio G Polak J McMahon M Morton S Edwards S Tuck.

Best:
West Coast: T Swift M LeCras S Hurn D Glass M Spangher A Selwood.
Richmond: B Cousins B Deledio S Edwards D Jackson.

Umpires: Stefan Grun, Heath Ryan, Mathew James.

Venue: Subiaco.

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/sport/afl/story/0,26576,25997482-19742,00.html

bushranger

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Re: Media articles & Stats: Eagles far too good for Tigers
« Reply #4 on: August 29, 2009, 07:41:50 AM »
If this was a team of players playing for their lives to continue in football, they have done a bad job.
I turned off at half time as I just couldn't watch anymore.
That has to go down as a loss to us and not a win to the Eagle's.
Hardwick has now got a really hard job and if the cull is to keep going I would be watching my back after last night.
Only a few played for the  jumper the rest went out there, looking like they wanted to lose.
This was my read on the game last night.  :banghead :banghead