Power loss spurs TigersBy Adam McNicol
Thu 14 Jul, 2011RICHMOND coach Damien Hardwick says the Tigers learned a number of lessons when they lost to Port Adelaide in Darwin earlier this season, and he is confident the same mistakes won't be repeated when they meet Gold Coast in Cairns on Saturday afternoon.
The Tigers were on the verge of breaking into the top eight when they travelled to the Northern Territory to play the Power back in May.
But they suffered an upset 15-point loss and have enjoyed just one win - over the Lions in Brisbane - in the weeks since.
"What we learned from Darwin was that the conditions, the humidity, were the things we didn't handle overly well with our use of ball," Hardwick said at the ME Bank Centre on Thursday morning.
"So we've put a few things in place to try and rectify that. We're going up a day earlier to help with our preparation and so we can train on the ground.
"We'll have a couple of training sessions up there, so that should do the job for us."
"It's a change of scenery and a change or temperature - I think it's 26 up there today.
"So it will be good to get out of the Melbourne cold for a couple of days and we're looking forward to an exciting challenge.
Like the match in Darwin, Saturday's clash in Cairns is also a Richmond home game that the club has sold for a sizeable return.
But unlike the contest with the Power, which was played at night, this one will take place in the afternoon because Cazaly's Stadium doesn't have AFL-standard lights.
It means the heat will be an even bigger factor.
"We'll pick the fittest team we can and hope to run out the game at full strength," Hardwick said.
With Gary Ablett a strong chance to shake off his knee injury and line up for the Suns, the Tigers know the AFL's bottom side won't be a pushover.
"They're a young football club, but they're certainly exciting to watch," Hardwick said.
"They're a side I enjoy to watch to see how the young talent of this country is going. It's still an enormous challenge for us."
Richmond is desperate for a good showing after suffering big losses to Essendon and Carlton in recent weeks.
The 39-point loss to the Bombers came after the Tigers had led by 23 points during the third quarter.
"We just couldn't get our hands on the ball in the last quarter," Hardwick explained.
"I think at one stage the possession-count was 32-2, and the game was done and dusted from there.
"We just have to make sure we get our hands on the ball and drive the ball forward.
"One of the key indicators in games at the moment is time spent in your forward half.
"One of the funny things is that we actually won that key indicators stat but a number of their goals came over the back because of our poor defensive set-up.
"So we learned a few things out of the weekend's game. As much as you can, you try and learn something from the bad results that you have."
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