Damien Hardwick is prepared to sacrifice players at training to improve their skills Greg Denham From: The Australian January 29, 2010NEW no-frills Richmond coach Damien Hardwick yesterday said he was prepared to sacrifice players on the training track to improve their skill levels under pressure.
In a rare interview since his appointment four months ago, the premiership player at Essendon and Port Adelaide who was widely recognised for his physical toughness, said a by-product of his more intense training methods could potentially lead to injuries.
"Part of my brief to the club during the (coaching) process was game-based training," Hardwick told Melbourne radio SEN.
"It will all be done under game-based conditions and understandably you are going to lose a soldier every now and then.
"But for us to get better we have to put our players through those situations."
He said statistics from last season proved Richmond's high number of skill errors and turnovers -- the Tigers were in the bottom three clubs in the competition for mistakes.
"I think you can make guys better in decision-making, as opposed to making them better kickers and we didn't recruit one player who couldn't kick.
"For us, kicking is a high priority and every player that comes to our club now has got to have that skill."
Following a massive cleanout of senior players and the retirement of its best player, Matthew Richardson, after just five wins last year, Hardwick said one of his main aims this season was to improve the club's defensive structure, which was statistically the worst in the league in 2009.
Richmond conceded an average of 109 points over the home-and-away season, ranking it 16th in the competition, and worse than wooden-spooner Melbourne.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/sport/damien-hardwick-is-prepared-to-sacrifice-players-at-training-to-improve-their-skills/story-e6frg7mf-1225824487927
