Finally, Hardwick's young Tigers are coming of ageRohan Connolly
May 23, 2011SATURDAY night's triumph was Richmond's best win for almost a decade. The short-term future is bright. But the bigger picture is even brighter. In fact, the Tigers haven't been this well-placed for close on 30 years.
That's not necessarily as big a call as it sounds when you consider how barren the vast bulk of that period has been for those at Punt Road. But Richmond is a mile ahead of where it was even when it reached preliminary finals in 1995 or 2001.
They were two versions of the Tigers that as well as they performed, merely confirmed the cliché´s that have hung around Richmond far too long.
It was all about passion and commitment, but ultimately also about the Tigers being several pegs below their finals opponents for class.
That gap has closed considerably as Damien Hardwick's version of Richmond grows stronger by the week. And whether or not the Tigers manage to reach their first finals series for 10 years, this model is setting itself up to hang around the upper reaches of the ladder far, far longer than the fleeting highs of its predecessors.
The most obvious example has come in Richmond's midfield, which continues to grow in depth and quality.
But Saturday night's win over Essendon in front of more than 83,000 showed off a few more Tiger tricks beyond merely the obvious symbolic statement on the biggest of stages.
Like in defence, so often the butt of ridicule, but on Saturday night, a combination not just steely and dour, but creative and offensive.
Luke McGuane is consistently underrated. Alex Rance wore plenty of derision for some less-than-effective spoiling efforts last week, but against the Bombers played the game of his career.
Dylan Grimes, who will prove a bigger loss with a hamstring strain than many would imagine, struggled in his first two games against Hawthorn and Collingwood but has been terrific ever since, every bit as cool as his Demon brother Jack.
Jake Batchelor is another whose composure and foot skills have snuck under the radar.
All of which is allowing skipper Chris Newman to do similarly. And he's one Tiger whose disposal has always been rated.
Up forward, too, Hardwick's determination to spread the load is paying off.
While Jack Riewoldt's four goals on Saturday night were valuable, he was far from the sole focus of the Tigers' attacks. Ty Vickery, also, is beginning to prove a genuine alternative.
For Jake King, meanwhile, the fairytale continues. "Push-up" isn't just a seriously good footballer these days. Not only is King's tremendous tackling and pressure helping Richmond lock the ball in its forward line with an effectiveness it hasn't known previously, his 17.3 has him second on the Tigers' goalkicking list, and in the top 10 overall. All-Australian consideration, anyone?
Reece Conca was another major contributor to the win, and another whose value is, for now at least, being sold short. Nine games into his AFL career, Conca is averaging 19 disposals per game. It's been a remarkably composed beginning.
But Conca is just another example of the fruits of Hardwick's non-negotiables on the recruiting front when it comes to kicking skills. And the numbers and quality are really beginning to stack up.
That Richmond has become a far more skilful and composed unit all over the ground, and not just where most of its class resides, is beyond dispute. The figures prove it.
Last season, the Tigers were ranked 10th for kicking efficiency. Before this round, they were second. Richmond ran eighth for disposal efficiency in 2010. Now the Tigers are No. 1.
That's almost unbelievable when you remember how sloppy and error-riddled Richmond looked for the first half of last year.
That string of nine consecutive defeats, most of them absolute beltings, seems like centuries ago now.
Perhaps that also underlines the extent, and speed, of Richmond's rise.
Since that moment, the Tigers have won 10½ games of 22. Last year's half-dozen scalps were all interstate teams, four of them beaten in Melbourne.
In 2011, the roll call has included a draw against last year's runner-up, St Kilda, and wins against two legitimate top-four aspirants in Fremantle and Essendon.
Those earlier incarnations of Richmond that dabbled in finals were relatively piecemeal affairs, a core of long-serving old hands supplemented by some band-aid trade pick-ups.
This version has been built from the ground up. And it's a very solid construction job.
In 30-odd years, we've been subjected several times to the fervour stirred by an alleged Richmond resurgence.
But the roar isn't going to be silenced so quickly now.
Make no mistake. The Tiger army is on the march.
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